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MANAGING PROJECTS

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Projects represent nonroutine business activities that often have long-term strategic ramifications for a firm. In this chapter, we examined how projects differ from routine business activities and discussed the major phases of projects. We noted how environmental changes have resulted in increased attention being paid to projects and project management over the past decade. In the second half of the chapter, we introduced some basic tools that businesses can use when planning for and controlling projects. Both Gantt charts and network diagrams give managers a visual picture of how a project is going. Network diagrams have the added advantage of showing the precedence between activities, as well as the critical path(s). We wrapped up the chapter by showing how these concepts are embedded in inexpensive yet powerful software packages such as Microsoft Project. If you want to learn more about project management, we encourage you to take a look at the Web site for the Proj...
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Interpersonal Communication in Organizations

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The basic elements in the communication process—senders, receivers, transmitters, receptors, messages, channels, meaning, encoding, decoding, and feedback—are interrelated. Face-to-face interpersonal communication has the highest degree of information richness. An information-rich medium is especially important for performing complex tasks and resolving social and emotional issues that involve considerable uncertainty and ambiguity. Important issues usually contain significant amounts of uncertainty, ambiguity, and people-related (especially social and emotional) problems. There are many potential challenges to effective interpersonal communication. Direct barriers include aggressive communication approaches, noise, semantics, demeaning language, and lying and distortion. Through mastering the factors that constitute dialogue, the likelihood of engaging in ethical interpersonal communications is magnified. Dialogue includes communication openness, constructive feedback, ...
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Business Strategy: Differentiation, Cost Leadership, and Integration

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This chapter discussed two generic business-level strategies (differentiation and cost leadership); some factors that companies can use to drive those strategies; integration strategy, the attempt to find a competitive advantage by reconciling the trade-offs between the two generic business strategies; and the dynamics of competitive positioning. Definition business-level strategy and how it determines a firm’s strategic position. Business-level strategy determines a firm’s strategic position in its quest for competitive advantage when competing in a single industry or product market. Strategic positioning requires that managers address strategic trade-offs that arise between value and cost, because higher value tends to go along with higher cost. Differentiation and cost leadership are distinct strategic positions. Besides selecting an appropriate strategic position, managers must also define the scope of competition—whether to pursue a specific market niche or go...
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Workplace Stress and Aggression

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Stress is the excitement, feeling of anxiety, and/or physical tension that occurs when the demands placed on individuals exceed their ability to cope. The stories of stress are often about negative stress. An individual’s general biological responses to severe stressors prepare them to fight or flee—behaviors generally inappropriate in the workplace. Many factors determine how employees experience severe work stress, including their perception of the situation, past experiences, the presence or absence of social support, and a variety of individual differences. Organizational sources of severe stress at work often include (1) workload, (2) job conditions, (3) role conflict and ambiguity, (4) career development, (5) interpersonal relations, (6) conflict between work and life roles, and (7) workplace aggression, especially bullying, sexual harassment, and violence. In addition, significant changes or other events in an individual’s personal life may also be sources of sever...
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Competitive Advantage, Firm Performance, and Business Models

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This chapter demonstrated three traditional approaches for assessing and measuring firm performance and competitive advantage, as well as two conceptual frameworks designed to provide a more holistic, albeit more qualitative, perspective on firm performance. We also discussed the role of business models in translating a firm’s strategy into actions. Conduct a firm profitability analysis using accounting data. To measure competitive advantage, we must be able to (1) accurately assess firm performance, and (2) compare and benchmark the focal firm’s performance to other competitors in the same industry or the industry average. To measure accounting profitability, we use standard metrics derived from publicly available accounting data. Commonly used profitability metrics in strategic management are return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE), return on invested capital (ROIC), and return on revenue (ROR). See the key financial ratios in five tables in the “How to ...
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Motivation: Goal Setting and Reward Programs

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Goal setting is a process intended to increase efficiency and effectiveness by specifying the desired outcomes toward which employees, departments, teams, and organizations should work. The goal-setting model emphasizes the challenges provided for the individual: goal difficulty, goal clarity, and self-efficacy. Setting difficult but clear and achievable goals for individuals who believe that they have the ability to complete their tasks leads to high performance. Four moderators—ability, goal commitment, feedback, and task complexity—influence the strength of the relationship between challenging goals and performance. If the individual has the ability, is committed to the goal, and is given feedback on progress toward achievement of the goal—and if the task is complex—high performance will result. All four moderators must be present to motivate an employee to achieve goals. Four mediators direction, effort, persistence, and task strategy—facilitate goal attainment. These ...
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