Chapter 11: People Issues - Managing Service Employees

The two primary roles that boundary-spanning personnel fulfil are:
1. sales and profit-production
2. sales and customer service
3. information transfer and representation
4. process flow and service
5. information transfer and profit production
Which of the following is a boundary spanner?
1. University lecturer
2. Top Shop customer service representatives
3. McDonald’s order takers
4. restaurant servers
5. all of the above
Boundary-spanning personnel typically experience different sources of conflict
while performing their roles. Which of the following is not one of the sources?
1. person/role conflict
2. channel conflict
3. organization/client conflict
4. inter-client conflict
5. all the above are sources of boundary spanning conflict
When a plastic surgeon feels a conflict between what he/she is asked to do and her own orientation or values she is experiencing ______ conflict.
1. person/role conflict
2. channel conflict
3. organization/client conflict
4. inter-client conflict
5. horizontal conflict
Initially, bank counter staff were uncomfortable with their new task of selling services to customers. They viewed themselves as bank counter staff and not salespersons. This is an example of which type of conflict?
1. person/role conflict
2. channel conflict
3. organization/client conflict
4. inter-client conflict
5. all the above are sources of conflict
Employees who feel that they are often caught in the middle between company
rules and regulations and customer requests for services which are against
company rules are experiencing which of the following types of conflict?
1. person/role conflict
2. channel conflict
3. organization/client conflict
4. inter-client conflict
5. all the above are sources of conflict
A Disney Tram driver that is asked to break-up a fight between a feuding
couple who is breaking off their engagement is experiencing which of the
following types of conflict?
1. person/role conflict
2. channel conflict
3. organization/client conflict
4. inter-client conflict
5. all the above are sources of conflict
Employees often attempt to reduce their role stress by engaging in a number
of behaviours. Which of the following is not one of these behaviours?
1. ignore the customer
2. engage in a people-processing mode
3. use physical symbols in their office to regain some sense of control
4. overact the role and place the customer in a subservient role
5. all the above are ways employees attempt to reduce role stress
Employee perceptions of one or more organizational strategic imperative is called ____________.
1. empowerment
2. enfranchisement
3. service passion
4. climate
5. production-lining
__________ gives discretion to front-line personnel to meet the needs of
consumer's creatively.
1. empowerment
2. enfranchisement
3. service passion
4. service climate
5. production-lining
__________ combines with empowerment a compensation method that ties
pay to performance.
1. double empowerment
2. straight salary
3. enfranchisement
4. quota systems
5. straight commission
Which of the following is not a benefit associated with empowerment?
1. quicker response to customer needs
2. quicker response to dissatisfied customers
3. employees feel better about their jobs and themselves
4. employees interact with customers with more enthusiasm
5. all the above are advantages of empowerment
Which of the following is not a benefit associated with empowerment?
1. quicker response to customer needs
2. larger investment is needed in selection and training of personnel
3. quicker response to dissatisfied customers
4. employees feel better about their jobs and themselves
5. employees interact with customers with more enthusiasm
Which of the following is not a cost associated with empowerment?
1. higher labour costs
2. slower or inconsistent service delivery
3. decreased word-of-mouth advertising
4. giveaways and bad decisions
5. some customers think others receive preferential treatment
One of the potential costs in employee empowerment is:
1. higher labour costs
2. slower responses to dissatisfied customers
3. decreased word-of-mouth advertising
4. increased employee dissatisfaction
5. increased customer dissatisfaction
Empowerment approaches fall along a continuum that ranges from control-
oriented to involvement-oriented. Which of the following empowerment
approaches is the least involvement-oriented?
1. job involvement
2. suggestion involvement
3. high involvement
4. enfranchisement
5. contingency involvement
The empowerment approach that allows employees to use a variety of skills and
teams, but higher level decisions such as reward allocation are left to senior
management to decide is called:
1. job involvement
2. suggestion involvement
3. high involvement
4. production line approach
5. contingency involvement
The empowerment approach that trains people to manage themselves is called:
1. job involvement
2. suggestion involvement
3. high involvement
4. production-line approach
5. contingency involvement
Indicate whether the service firm should employ a production line approach or an empowerment approach under the conditions below:

The technology involved with the business is non-routine and complex.
1. production line approach
2. empowerment approach
Indicate whether the service firm should employ a production line approach or an empowerment approach under the conditions below:

The firm produces a low cost, high volume product.
1. production line approach
2. empowerment approach
Indicate whether the service firm should employ a production line approach or an empowerment approach under the conditions below:

The business environment is predictable with few surprises
1. production line approach
2. empowerment approach
Indicate whether the service firm should employ a production line approach or an empowerment approach under the conditions below:

The business thrives on repeat customers
1. production line approach
2. empowerment approach
Indicate whether the service firm should employ a production line approach or an empowerment approach under the conditions below:

The business employees Theory Y managers who believe that employees have high growth needs and strong interpersonal skills
1. production line approach
2. empowerment approach
According to the text, marketing and service orientated organisations are embracing market-focused management approaches. What do market-focused organisation understand:
1. consumers always buy more if the employee is satisfied with their pay
2. there is no relationship between service given and customer satisfaction
3. there is a relationship between employee turn-over and customer satisfaction
4. employees who are “new to the job” are not trained in market-focused organisations
5. all of the above
Which one of the following facts about the benefits to the customer of service orientated organisations is false?
1. they receive better service
2. greater customer satisfaction
3. better customer/organisation relationship
4. lower customer churn
5. they receive staff training
Which one of the following is not one of the seven tests of reward effectiveness?
1. availability
2. flexibility
3. visibility
4. durability
5. perishability
Which of the following tests of reward effectiveness reflects the notion that if
rewards are given to the wrong people for the wrong reasons, they should not be lifelong?
1. availability
2. flexibility
3. visibility
4. durability
5. reversibility
Which of the following tests of reward effectiveness reflects the notion that rewards should be given immediately following desired behaviours?
1. availability
2. flexibility
3. timeliness
4. durability
5. perishability
Which of the following tests of reward effectiveness reflects the notion that rewards should be tied to desired performance criteria?
1. availability
2. flexibility
3. timeliness
4. durability
5. contingent
Which of the following tests of reward effectiveness reflects the notion that rewards should be large enough for employees to take notice?
1. availability
2. flexibility
3. timeliness
4. durability
5. contingent
Which of the following tests of reward effectiveness reflects the notion that rewards should be able to be given to anyone at anytime?
1. availability
2. flexibility
3. timeliness
4. durability
5. perishability
One of the major lessons to learn from the Service-Profit Chain is:
1. customer loyalty leads to customer satisfaction
2. firms must satisfy their employees in order for customer satisfaction to
  become a consistent reality
3. employee retention leads to employee satisfaction
4. the firm's profitability leads to customer satisfaction
5. revenue growth leads to customer satisfaction
Important components of internal service quality include all of the following
except for:
1. customer referrals
2. rewards and recognition
3. workplace design
4. job design
5. selection and development
Customer retention, repeat business, and customer referrals are alternative
measures for:
1. internal service quality
2. external service value
3. employee satisfaction
4. customer loyalty
5. employee productivity
Empowerment coupled with a performance-based compensation method is called _________.
1. empowerment
2. enfranchisement
3. service passion
4. climate
5. production-lining

Chapter 11: People Issues - Managing Service Employees

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