Question

When paul o’neill joined alcoa as ceo, he set a, that there would be zero workplace accidents. A lot of people in the organization thought this was impossible given how dangerous some aluminum-manufacturing jobs are, but alcoa’s safety record improved tremendously. As the board of governors of the american red cross considers planning, one option is to make strategic plans and then direct managers to align tactical and operational plans accordingly. Another option is to have planning specialists managers across the organization make their own plans. Why might this organization’s executives opt for the latter approach? Check all that apply. (a) the environment is a dynamic one, and department and frontline managers can come up with more responsive plans than can central leadership. (b) resources will be better coordinated across the organization in support of the overall strategy.(c) senior leadership will have more control over the organization’s direction. (d) when managers come up with their own plans, they are likely to be more committed to following through on them.

Answer 1

Answer:

(a) the environment is a dynamic one, and department and frontline managers can come up with more responsive plans than can central leadership.

(d) when managers come up with their own plans, they are likely to be more committed to following through on them.

Explanation:

Firstly, research has shown that both decentralized decision structure (where managers are allowed to make their own decisions) and planning activities; are associated with higher performance in dynamic environments.

This is one reason why the organization’s executives might opt for the decentralization approach to planning - because of the organization's dynamic nature

Secondly, when managers come up with their own plans, they are likely to be more committed to following through on them. When managers participate in planning it serves as a motivation for them to achieve it which is preferable to forcing the plans on them from senior management. This might have been the reason for Alcoa's improved performance when Paul O'Neill took over, in relation to safety records. Managers may have been allowed to make their own safety plans