Q&A Hero

Q: A doctrine or system regarding ones personal compass regarding right or wrong is called a. ethics. b. deontology. c. morality. d. moral philosophy.

Q: The discipline that deals with what is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation is a. morality. b. deontology. c. ethics. d. moral philosophy.

Q: One of the functions of corporate governance is a. oversight of senior managers. b. capital budgeting. c. incorporating ethics into the strategic planning process. d. monitoring executive bonuses.

Q: The magnitude of the current ethics problem is seen to be caused by a. rising social expectations. b. small increases, declines, and stability in actual business ethics. c. both rising social expectations and small increases, declines, and stability in actual business ethics. d. Ethics is not currently a problem.

Q: Public opinion polls regarding business ethics are a. clearly tied to reactions to the latest scandals reported by the media. b. reflective of actual business ethics currently in practice. c. unrelated to actual business ethics practices. d. difficult to assess because the media keeps ethics scandals in the public eye.

Q: There is no doubt that the media are a. ignoring ethical violations in their own industry. b. reporting ethical problems more frequently and fervently. c. defending the right of business to be conducted amorally. d. reporting breaches of ethics in politics more than they are reporting business ethics violations.

Q: An NBES Survey concluded that ethical misconduct a. whistle-blowing had decreased. b. In pressure to cut corners had increased. c. at work was down slightly d. was observed more on the job.

Q: At the macro level, big business is being questioned for its: a. ethical challenges b. legitimacy c. individual activities d. managerial relationships

Q: The Wall Street financial scandals involved all the following except a. recklessness about risk b. ethical lending c. subprime lending calculations d. greed

Q: The Enron Era brought about a broad range of legal and ethic charges that included all the following except a. securities fraud b. conspiracy to inflate profits c. corrupt corporate cultures d. building company assets

Q: Moral identification and ordering refers to the ability to discern the ambiguity of moral factors. a. True b. False

Q: Culture is that broad synthesis of societal norms and values emanating from everyday living. a. True b. False

Q: The postconventional level of moral development is the most common level for adults over 50 years of age. a. True b. False

Q: In Kohlberg's preconventional level of moral development, the individual's primary concern is for others. a. True b. False

Q: Amoral management relies primarily on a compliance strategy that focuses on obedience to the law. a. True b. False

Q: Researchers have found that many business people go through life thinking that they are objective. a. True b. False

Q: Virtually all companies that exhibit moral management have had that outlook since they were founded. a. True b. False

Q: Moral management stresses profitability over other stakeholder concerns. a. True b. False

Q: Immoral management implies that decision makers know right from wrong, but choose to do wrong. a. True b. False

Q: In business decisions ethics, the environment and the law are not factors. a. True b. False

Q: In making ethical judgments, it is usually easier to reach consensus on individual practical cases than it is to agree on broad principles. a. True b. False

Q: Ethical behavior is generally considered to be on a higher plane than legal behavior. a. True b. False

Q: The best reason to base one's ethics on societal norms is that the norms do not conflict; thus they provide clear guidance to "right" and "wrong." a. True b. False

Q: The major questions related to the conventional approach to business ethics are "Whose norms do we use?" and "What norms are prevailing?" a. True b. False

Q: Normative ethics depends on whether "everyone is doing it" to justify moral decisions and actions. a. True b. False

Q: Descriptive ethics is concerned with studying and describing the morality of a particular group of people. a. True b. False

Q: The public's view of business ethics has always been very high until the recent scandals. a. True b. False

Q: The public's opinion of business ethics may be reported at two levels - a high level and a low level. a. True b. False

Q: A December 2015 Gallop poll revealed that only 17% of the public thought that business executives had high or very high ethics. a. True b. False

Q: A recent NBES survey indicated that ethical misconduct at work was up slightly. a. True b. False

Q: Over half of Americans say that business executives have high or very high ethics. a. True b. False

Q: The ethics scandal that has come to define modern business ethics is the Enron debacle. a. True b. False

Q: Before Enron, many thought business ethics was a problem with the top of the pyramid. a. True b. False

Q: Public interest in business ethics is at an all-time high. a. True b. False

Q: The evaluation, monitoring, and control of issues involves a. continual control of responses to ensure that they remain on track. b. extensive cost/benefit analyses. c. deciding what to do about the issues the firm faces. d. appointing a separate team within the public affairs office to perform the control function.

Q: The next stage of formalization beyond having a single person managing issues is a. hiring outside consultants to handle the process. b. organizing a new and independent department specifically to manage issues. c. appointing an assistant to help with the administrative details of categorizing issues and publishing the in-house newsletter. d. assigning the issues management function to a team, usually within the public affairs department.

Q: Questions and dimensions can be used to rank or prioritize issues. Which of the following is not included? a. likelihood of occurrence b. impact on the organization c. how much impact will it have d. knowledge of the business

Q: Key questions proposed to use in analyzing issues includes all of the following except a. who is affected by the issue? b. who is in a position to exert influence on the issue? c. who can best afford to resolve the issue? d. who ought to care about the issue?

Q: The most important thing in issue identification is a. selection of the proper sources to scan. b. assigning the right person to scan the environment. c. identification of stakeholders with power, legitimacy, and urgency. d. getting the people who are confronted with new issues in touch with top managers.

Q: Which of the following is not one of Molitor's leading forces? a. leading events b. leading literature c. leading economic indicators d. leading political jurisdictions

Q: An emerging issue is characterized by all of these EXCEPT: a. the terms of the debate are clearly defined. b. the issue deals with matters of conflicting values and interest. c. the issue is often stated in value-laden terms. d. trade-offs are inherent..

Q: All of the following are predictors of social change EXCEPT: a. leading events. b. leading authorities. c. leading crises. d. leading organizations.

Q: The immediate result of environmental scanning is often a. identification of emerging issues. b. publication of an internal report that is distributed throughout the company. c. publication of a list of emerging issues for internal and external stakeholders. d. resolution of some issues.

Q: The most rudimentary form of issue identification entails a. subscribing to a news clipping service. b. subscribing to a forecasting service. c. assigning a member of the organization to continuously scan a variety of publications. d. relying on the staff of the public affairs office to scan the environment.

Q: One thing that is common to all techniques used for identification of issues is a. news clipping services. b. environmental scanning. c. subscription to forecasting services. d. a formal, organized effort to gather information on emerging social trends.

Q: The implementation phase of the issues management process does not include a. formulation of responses. b. putting the plan into action. c. evaluating the results of the response. d. monitoring the results.

Q: Planning aspects of the issues management process include all of the following except a. identification. b. analysis. c. ranking. d. monitoring.

Q: The issues management process contains two basic functions, a. planning and implementation. b. identification and resolution. c. planning and controlling. d. leadership and followership.

Q: Which of the following is not an assumption we make when we use issues management? a. Issues can be identified earlier and more completely than in the past. b. Early anticipation of issues gives the firm more options. c. Issues are so complex that firms have little chance to resolve them favorably. d. The firm will be able to identify stakeholders earlier than in the past.

Q: When managers consider issues that affect their firm, they often ignore a. ethical considerations. b. financial concerns. c. personnel matters. d. personal stakes.

Q: Emerging issues have all of the following characteristics except a. the terms of the debate are not clearly defined. b. the issue deals with matters of conflicting values and interests. c. trade-offs are not yet needed. d. the issue does not lend itself to resolution by expert knowledge.

Q: Once an issue becomes public and subject to debate and media exposure, it becomes more difficult to a. resolve. b. hide. c. identify. d. define.

Q: One of the benefits of the portfolio approach is that it helps a. identify issues. b. prioritize issues. c. resolve issues. d. spread authority among managers to deal with issues.

Q: The approach to issues management in which experience with each prior issue influences future issues is the a. conventional approach. b. strategic management approach. c. portfolio approach. d. changing mix approach.

Q: The most dramatic growth in importance of issues has been in ____ issues. a. financial b. social, ethical, and political c. practical d. military

Q: Which of the following issues has always been part of the business process? a. legislative b. ecological c. financial d. social welfare

Q: Which of the following is not a feature that distinguishes the conventional approach to issues management from the strategic management approach? a. how broadly issues are defined b. whether the function stands alone or is integrated with other functions c. who within the firm implements the system d. at what level of the firm issues identification takes place

Q: Which is not a leading force of social change? a. Leading technology b. Leading authorities c. Leading organizations d. Leading advocates

Q: Which is a leading force of social change? a. Leading political jurisdictions b. Leading events c. Leading literature d. All of these

Q: What is not an assumption typically made when we use issues management? a. Issues can be identified earlier, more completely, and more reliably b. Better study and understanding of one issue c. Early anticipation of issues widens the organizations range of options d. The organization will have earlier identification of stakeholders

Q: Which is not a characteristic of an emerging issue? a. Tradeoffs are inherent b. The issue is stated in value-laden terms c. The issue deals with matters of conflicting values and interest d. The terms of debate are clearly defined

Q: M-commerce involves transacting business through a mobile device such as a phone or tablet. (A) True (B) False

Q: Which of the following is not an element of the issues management process? a. issues identification b. prioritizing issues c. eliminating issues d. monitoring results of responses to issues

Q: "Not in my back yard" (NIMBY) illustrates attitudes and behaviors that deny responsibility for the misuse of our natural environment and for pollution. (A) True (B) False

Q: Risk, issue, and crisis management focus on a. prevention of harm to the firm. b. avoidance of crises. c. increasing the organization's ethical responsiveness to stakeholders. d. understanding of stakeholders' interests.

Q: Agricultural runoff (animal wastes, pesticides, and fertilizers) is now the primary cause of water pollution; therefore, the EPA has placed several thousand large farming operations under pollution permits allowing a set amount of pollution. (A) True (B) False

Q: The issues management process and crisis management process are both focused on a. improving stakeholder management. b. improving sustainability. c. improving financial performance. d. improving management development.

Q: The government is currently taking a less active approach, trying to clean it up after the damage rather than prevent pollution to begin with. (A) True (B) False

Q: In a crisis, the first communication should be with internal stakeholders. a. True b. False

Q: The most effective form of communication during a crisis is one that is reactive. a. True b. False

Q: Sustainability, or multifaceted long-term quality of life, may be the most complex yet vital phenomenon of our time. (A) True (B) False

Q: From a managerial point of view, a crisis is common in business. a. True b. False

Q: The application of ethics to the field of biotechnology is called _________. (A) biotechnology (B) genetic engineering (C) bioethics (D) agri-ethics (E) micro-engineering

Q: A crisis is an extreme event that may threaten your very existence. a. True b. False

Q: ________ is a substance released into the environment that has a negative effect on the environment and society. (A) Granulation (B) Technology (C) Depletion (D) Pollution (E) Biodiversity

Q: The _________ is the prevention of solar heat absorbed by the atmosphere from returning to space, creating global warming and climate change problems. (A) greenhouse effect (B) oxygen depletion effect (C) pollution constant (D) big hole (E) strangulation effect

Q: The concept of crisis management is relatively new, arising out of the crises of the past two decades. a. True b. False

Q: The U.S. National ________ requires all federal agencies to prepare environmental impact statements for any proposals for legislation and other major federal action that would affect the quality of the human environment. (A) Ozone Protection Act (B) Environmental Policy Act (C) Clean Air Act (D) Impact Study Act (E) Environmental Disaster Prevention Act

Q: Issues management can be viewed as a type of pre-crisis planning and post-crisis management. a. True b. False

Q: In most companies, issues management is done in isolation from other departments. a. True b. False