Q&A Hero

Q: Analyze the following decision tree. After determining the missing probabilities, identify which alternative (Option 1 or Option 2) has the higher expected payoff. What is the expected payoff? A) Option 1, with an expected payoff of less than $35 B) Option 1, with an expected payoff of no less than $35 C) Option 2, with an expected payoff of less than $35 D) Option 2, with an expected payoff of more than $35

Q: Analyze the following decision tree. After determining the missing probabilities, identify which alternative (Option 1 or Option 2) has the higher expected payoff. What is the expected payoff? A) Option 1, with an expected payoff of less than $25 B) Option 1, with an expected payoff of $25 or more C) Option 2, with an expected payoff of less than $25 D) Option 2, with an expected payoff of $25 or more

Q: Analyze the following decision tree. Determine the missing probabilities, and identify the alternative that maximizes the expected payoff. A) Option 1, with an expected payoff of less than $25 B) Option 1, with an expected payoff of $25 or more C) Option 2, with an expected payoff of less than $25 D) Option 2, with an expected payoff of $25 or more

Q: George Burdell must decide among four alternatives for an oil exploration project. He estimates that the probability of high demand is 0.3 and the probability of low demand is 0.7. What is the best choice with the payoffs shown in the tree? A) Alternative A B) Alternative B C) Alternative C D) Alternative D

Q: A marketing director must decide among four alternatives for a new marketing campaign. She ascertains that the probability of high demand is 0.45 and the probability of low demand is 0.55. What is the best choice with the payoffs shown in the tree? A) Alternative A B) Alternative B C) Alternative C D) Alternative D

Q: A marketing director must decide among four alternatives for a new marketing campaign. She ascertains that the probability of high demand is 0.8 and the probability of low demand is 0.2. What is the best choice with the payoffs shown in the tree? A) Alternative A B) Alternative B C) Alternative C D) Alternative D

Q: An operations manager has developed this decision tree to evaluate the alternatives for a planned expansion. If the probability of high demand is 0.6, what is the best course of action? A) Alternative A B) Alternative B C) Alternative C D) Alternative D

Q: In order for a decision tree to be a valuable decision tool, the decision-maker should be in a condition of: A) certainty. B) risk. C) uncertainty. D) equilibrium.

Q: When using decision tree analysis: A) the sum of the expected payoffs must always equal zero. B) round nodes represent decision points. C) there must be more square nodes than round nodes. D) probabilities for all branches leaving a chance node must sum to 1.0.

Q: The online courses were already beginning to pay off, Josie thought as she sketched out her first decision tree. All payoffs are in positive dollars and she was confident her estimates were accurate. Clearly, the best choice for her was to choose High Demand.

Q: The average probability, P(E), for all branches leaving an event node is 1/n, where n is the number of branches leaving that event node.

Q: The first choice in a decision tree is the leftmost decision node.

Q: A company that is introducing a new product has to choose between four different manufacturing methods, referred to as methods A, B, C and D. Depending on the demand for the product, they have forecasted different levels of expenses for the year (values are in thousands). The company has identified three possible states of nature for economic growth, and named them High, Medium, and Low. Which alternative is best in accordance with an optimistic outlook? Which alternative is best according to a pessimist? High Medium Low Method A $450 $670 $780 Method B $950 $320 $200 Method C $375 $575 $775 Method D $800 $400 $300

Q: Given a payoff table in a decision making under risk scenario, what value is derived from applying the following decision rule? Apply all four criteria presented in your book and choose the alternative that is selected more frequently than the others.

Q: Provide an example of two or more events where you as a decision maker would truly be engaged in decision making under uncertainty. Why are you incapable of deciding which event is more likely than the other(s)?

Q: List and describe decision rules that are used for decision making under uncertainty.

Q: A(n) ________ is the difference between a given payoff and the best payoff for a given state of nature.

Q: The decision rule ________ chooses the alternative with the best weighted payoff.

Q: An analyst that can't assign probabilities to the events must be engaged in decision-making under ________.

Q: The decision rule ________ chooses the alternative that is the "best of the best."

Q: The simpler the product, the more pronounced the learning rate.

Q: When production time standards are being developed for a brand new process for several of the hand assembly components of the production line, what are the implications of learning effects on the time standards and the line balance? What could be done to address this situation?

Q: For a company that produces hand held calculators, the Operations Manager knows that in the early stages of production for a new product, the expenditures exceed receipts, whereas in the latter stages, the reverse is true. Give an explanation for this phenomenon.

Q: How are learning curves useful in financial planning?

Q: The production for a new product follows: Month Units 1 4 2 5 3 6 4 7 The first unit will take 2,000 hours to produce and the learning rate is 90 percent. Currently, the company employs 40 workers, who each work 200 hours regular time per month. In which months will overtime be needed for the production schedule shown? Refer to the copy of Table I.1 appended to this exam. A) month 4 only B) months 3 and 4 only C) months 1 and 2 only D) month 1 only

Q: I.3 Using Learning Curves Case I.1 The production schedule for a new product follows. Month No. Units 1 15 2 20 3 40 4 35 The first unit took 100 hours to complete, and the rate of learning is 80 percent. Each employee works 40 hours per month. Refer to the copy of Table I.1 appended to this exam. Using the information in Case I.1, what is the minimum number of employees needed in month 3? A) fewer than 20 employees B) greater than or equal to 20 employees but fewer than 30 employees C) greater than or equal to 30 employees but fewer than 40 employees D) greater than 40 employees

Q: Tim usually exhibits an 80% learning rate for the mechanical tasks he undertakes. His next big project, the fence along the street, will require 35 iterations of the fencepost task. If he has 80 hours available to work on the project, how fast must he perform the first iteration in order to finish all 35 within his allotted time? Refer to the copy of Table I.1 appended to this exam.

Q: Tim usually exhibits a 90% learning rate for the mechanical tasks he undertakes. His next big project, the fence along the street, will require 24 iterations of the fencepost task. If he has 40 hours available to work on the project, how fast must he perform the first iteration in order to finish all 24 within his allotted time? Refer to the copy of Table I.1 appended to this exam.

Q: A contractor is preparing a bid to install swimming pools at a new housing addition. The estimated time to build the first pool is 35 hours. The contractor estimates a 90 percent learning rate; what is the estimated time to install all 30 pools? Refer to the copy of Table I.1 appended to this exam.

Q: What are the three major assumptions of the learning curve?

Q: The learning rate depends on factors such as ________ and ________, while replacing direct labor hours with _________ alters the learning rate, giving less opportunity to make reductions in the required hours per unit.

Q: The mathematical model that is used to generate a learning curve is ________.

Q: A company is introducing a new product. The first unit took 1,000 hours to complete, and the fourth unit took 750 hours to complete. What is the rate of learning for this product? A) less than 40 percent B) greater than or equal to 40 percent but less than 60 percent C) greater than or equal to 60 percent but less than 80 percent D) greater than 80 percent

Q: Given that the fifth unit took 10 hours to build and the learning rate is 90 percent, how much time will it take to build units 11 through 15? Refer to the copy of Table I.1 appended to this exam. A) fewer than or equal to 38 hours B) greater than 38 hours but fewer than or equal to 40 hours C) greater than 40 hours but fewer than or equal to 42 hours D) greater than 42 hours

Q: It took 100 hours to produce the first unit and the learning rate is 80 percent. How much time will it take to produce units 16 through 20? Refer to the copy of Table I.1 appended to this exam. A) fewer than or equal to 160 hours B) greater than 160 but fewer than or equal to 170 hours C) greater than 170 but fewer than or equal to 180 hours D) greater than 180 hours

Q: It took 100 hours to produce the first unit and 95 hours to produce the second unit. How many hours are required to produce the eighth unit? [Note: a calculator is required to answer this question.] A) fewer than or equal to 60 hours B) greater than 60 hours but fewer than or equal to 75 hours C) greater than 75 hours but fewer than or equal to 90 hours D) greater than 90 hours

Q: Given that the third unit took 100 minutes and the rate of learning is 80 percent, how much time will it take to build unit 96? A) fewer than or equal to 30 minutes B) greater than 30 minutes but fewer than or equal to 35 minutes C) greater than 35 minutes but fewer than or equal to 40 minutes D) greater than 40 minutes

Q: In Troix City, the learning rate is based on a tripling of output instead of the traditional doubling. The first unit of a long production run was produced in 20 hours. In Deux City across the river, the learning rate is based on the usual doubling of output. The first unit of the production run in Deux City took 30 hours. At what level of output will the workers in Deux City become faster than those in Troix City if both locations enjoy an 80% learning rate? A) 27 units B) 31 units C) 35 units D) 39 units

Q: In Troix City, the learning rate is based on a tripling of output instead of the traditional doubling. The first unit of a long production run was produced in 25 hours. The process has an estimated learning rate of 80 percent. How long will the 9th unit take to produce? A) 22 hours B) 20 hours C) 18 hours D) 16 hours

Q: In Troix City, the learning rate is based on a tripling of output instead of the traditional doubling. The first unit of a long production run was produced in 25 hours. The process has an estimated learning rate of 90 percent. How long will the 15th unit take to produce? A) 18.67 hours B) 19.28 hours C) 20.74 hours D) 17.23 hours

Q: In Troix City, the learning rate is based on a tripling of output instead of the traditional doubling. The first unit of a long production run was produced in 25 hours. The process has an estimated learning rate of 90 percent. At what level of output will the cumulative production time exceed 200 hours? A) 8 units B) 9 units C) 10 units D) 11 units

Q: The fifth unit took 36.3406 hours to produce and the eighth unit took only 32.549 hours. If the producer, who shall remain nameless (for obvious reasons) learns at a constant rate, how long did the first unit take? A) 49 hours B) 53 hours C) 57 hours D) 61 hours

Q: Centurion Processing finishes the first unit in 120 hours and learns at a 70% rate. Their competitor, Ochenta Incorporated, completes their fist unit in 80 hours but learns at an 80% rate. If they match total output with each other how many units must each fierce rival make before Centurion's cumulative processing time is lower than Ochenta's? A) 30 units B) 33 units C) 36 units D) 39 units

Q: Centurion Processing finishes the first unit in 100 hours and learns at a 75% rate. Their competitor, Ochenta Incorporated, completes their first unit in 80 hours but learns at an 80% rate. If they match total output with each other how many more units must each fierce rival make before Centurion is faster than Ochenta? A) four more B) six more C) eight more D) ten more

Q: The first two units took 28.5 days to finish and the subsequent two units took 24.8431 days to complete. What is the learning rate? A) 80% B) 85% C) 90% D) 95%

Q: The first unit took fifteen days to finish and the second unit was finished a mere 13.5 days later. How long will it take to finish the eighth unit? A) 10.7 days B) 10.9 days C) 10.5 days D) 11.1 days

Q: The first unit took fifteen days to finish and the second unit was finished a mere 13.5 days later. How many more days will pass before the tenth unit is finished? A) 91.5 B) 119.9 C) 109.3 D) 129.5

Q: Which one of the following statements about learning curves is false? A) The direct labor for the n+1st unit will always be less than the direct labor required for the nth unit. B) The reduction in time will follow an exponential curve. C) A benefit of learning curves is that they are unaffected by factors such as product complexity and the rate of capital additions. D) Using industry averages for learning curves can be risky because the type of work and competitive niches can differ from firm to firm.

Q: Under learning curve theory, with a learning rate of 70 percent, the: A) time to produce the second unit will be 70 percent less than the time to produce the first unit. B) time to produce the second unit will be 30 percent less than the time to produce the first unit. C) cumulative average time per unit after producing the first 100 units will be 70 percent less than the average time per unit of the first 50 units. D) average time per unit will be cut in half for every 70 units.

Q: The annual report for Luddite Corporation boasted of their ERP implementation and noted that, "while there were initially some growing pains, our learning rate for this system has been calculated at 100%." What are the implications of this statement? A) Luddite Corporation is twice as fast processing transactions now. B) Luddite Corporation is twice as slow processing transactions now. C) Luddite Corporation processes transactions at the same rate now. D) Luddite Corporation processes transactions instantaneously (takes zero time) now.

Q: Which one of the following statements is not a typical assumption related to developing learning curves? A) The total direct labor hours needed to produce the first 100 units will be double the amount of hours needed to build the first 50 units. B) The direct labor needed per unit will decrease at a declining rate as cumulative production increases. C) The direct labor hours per unit will decrease according to an exponential curve as cumulative production increases. D) The direct labor needed to produce the 50th unit will always be more than the direct labor needed to produce the 51st unit.

Q: One assumption about learning curves is that the reduction in time will increase as output increases.

Q: One assumption about learning curves is that the reduction in time obeys a normal distribution.

Q: A business that relies on learning effects to achieve their strategic objectives is most likely in a ________ volume ________ variety production sector.

Q: Once the learning curve has flattened, i.e., reached a mostly horizontal shape, the per-unit time could be described as ________.

Q: Which one of the following is an assumption of learning curves? A) The cumulative time of production decreases as production increases. B) Time reduction per unit increases as cumulative production increases. C) The same learning curve should be used when a company increases its level of automation. D) The reduction in time per unit follows an exponential curve.

Q: Which one of the following statements is true about the relationship between learning curves and competitive strategy? A) Knowing where your process is on the learning curve will enable you to make frequent product modifications. B) Firms that emphasize low cost in their competitive strategy strive to move down the learning curve by increasing volume. C) Learning curves enable managers to project fixed manufacturing costs for future production quantities. D) Projecting the impact of learning curves into the future is one effective way of reducing the impact of environmental uncertainty.

Q: Which of the following statements about learning curves is generally true? A) Management can decide to achieve a certain rate of learning. B) Learning curves were first quantified by the U.S. Postal Service. C) Using the "doubling" model, a learning curve with a rate of learning of 70 percent means the tenth unit takes 70 percent of the time that the twentieth unit will take. D) Learning curves are recognition of the concept that the time a task takes usually decreases with experience.

Q: An 80% learning rate means that the time falls by 20% at each doubling of output.

Q: The first learning curve was developed by the aircraft industry.

Q: The learning effect can be represented by a line called a learning curve.

Q: What is the impact of greater reliance on technology on work measurement?

Q: Traditional work measurement techniques are sometimes viewed as repressive and not conductive to good management-employee relations.

Q: Companies should utilize traditional work measurement techniques when faced with technological change and process automation.

Q: What are the strengths and limitations of the time study method when compared to work sampling, and for which applications are each best suited?

Q: Why would the elemental standard data approach be used instead of a work sampling study when developing a time standard?

Q: Why is a sampling schedule important in a work sampling study?

Q: ________ involves estimating the proportion of time spent by people and machines on activities, based on a large number of observations.

Q: A work sampling method is used to determine the proportion of the time a worker is idle. The following information was gathered on a random basis. Day No. Times Clerk Idle Total No. Observations Monday 8 26 Tuesday 8 32 Wednesday 7 28 Thursday 7 34 If the manager wants a 95 percent confidence level (z = 1.96) and a degree of precision of + 0.03, how many more observations are needed? A) fewer than or equal to 700 B) greater than 700 but fewer than or equal to 800 C) greater than 800 but fewer than or equal to 900 D) greater than 900

Q: A work sampling method is used to determine the proportion of the time a worker is idle. The following information was gathered on a random basis. Day No. Times Clerk Idle Total No. Observations Monday 2 8 Tuesday 4 10 Wednesday 2 10 Thursday 4 12 If the manager wants a 95 percent confidence level (z = 1.96) and a degree of precision of + 0.03, how many more observations are needed? A) fewer than or equal to 600 B) greater than 600 but fewer than or equal to 800 C) greater than 800 but fewer than or equal to 1,000 D) greater than 1,000

Q: A major disadvantage of the work sampling method of work measurement is that: A) observers must be specially trained. B) only one study can be conducted at a time. C) it can be used only in hospital settings. D) a large number of observations are often required.

Q: Which one of the following statements about work measurement is true? A) Work sampling is a technique to determine the proportion of time spent on different activities. B) In determining the normal time for the cycle, using a rating factor less than one (1.0) will increase the total time allowed for a job to be performed, relative to the select time. C) Machine standards are more difficult to develop than labor standards. D) The time study method is most appropriate for non-repetitive jobs in which the nature of the task differs each time.

Q: Which one of the following statements about work measurement methods is true? A) The two methods of using a stopwatch in time studies are historical and snap-back. B) The time study method is usually used for less-repetitive work with no definite work cycle. C) With the time study method, the analyst assigns a performance rating factor (RF) to the work's performance. A value of RF greater than 1 means the worker is slower than a standard worker. D) The work sampling method needs many observations.

Q: As the sample size increases in a work sampling study, the maximum error decreases.

Q: Special training is required for observers using work sampling.

Q: The more frequently the activity occurs, the longer the time period should be when conducting a work sampling study.

Q: When using work sampling, the times of day to collect data samples are selected at random over the length of the study.

Q: The ________ system features a database with micromotions such as reach, move, apply pressure, grasp, and turn.

Q: An analyst divides each work element into a series of micro-motions common to a variety of tasks when using the ________.

Q: When using the MTM approach: A) stopwatches are needed to time the elements that go together to make a task. B) there is a problem of biased judgment because performance ratings are needed to derive standards. C) an analyst consults tables that contain the select times for a variety of work elements. D) new work methods can be compared without conducting a time study.