Instructor Resource

Neck, Organizational Behavior

SAGE Publications, 2017.

Sample Answers to Questions in the Text

Chapter 8: Decision-Making and Ethics
Thinking Critically
Decision-Making and Problem-Solving
1. Briefly discuss the ways in which a more experienced employee could excel in comparison to
a new employee with regard to programmed decisions.
Question Location: Page 191

Answers will vary: Experienced employees are aware of how those types of decisions have been
made in the past or they know who to ask to get that insight. New employees would not have that
automatic nature or awareness of recurring situations.

2. What qualities and habits would you expect an employee who excels at making non-
programmed decisions to exhibit?
Question Location: Page 191

Answers will vary: I would expect an employee who excels at non-programmed decisions to be
creative, quick-thinking, intuitive, good communicator, and passionate.

3. Do you believe an employee’s ability to make programmed decisions would decrease in

importance as they advanced in level of responsibility? Why or why not?
Question Location: Page 191

Answers will vary: Yes I would agree because generally the more responsibility the fewer
programmed decisions that you make. At that level you likely have subordinates to deal with the
programmed decisions while you focus on other things like non-programmed decisions.

A Rational Model of Decision-Making

1. Review Brian’s reasoning as he develops a plan to reduce workplace injuries at the plant. If
you were Brian, what steps in the five-Step Model of Decision-Making would you have spent the
most time exploring? What plant personnel would you have consulted within formulating and
finalizing a plan?
Question Location: Page 196

Answers will vary: I would have spent the most time on step 3 – generate alternatives and step 5
– choose, implement, and evaluate the decision. I would have consulted Hans, the supervisors on
the line and some of the employees as well as an OSHA expert.

2. Defend the perspective that the first step in the five-Step Decision-Making Model is the most
important.
Question Location: Page 196
 Instructor Resource
Neck, Organizational Behavior
SAGE Publications, 2017.

Answers will vary: I think if you do not accurately or adequately define your problem then the
rest of the steps will be misguided and not as effective.

3. Defend the perspective that generating and evaluating alternatives (Steps 3 and 4) are the most
important steps in the model.
Question Location: Page 196

Answers will vary: I think if you fail to generate good alternatives or are unable to evaluate them
then you are effectively unable to solve the problem. You need the ideas and the ability to
evaluate them to make a good decision.

4. Do you believe that any one step is more or less important than any other step in the model?
Why or why not?
Question Location: Page 196

Answers will vary: I do think that defining the problem is vital as well as choosing,
implementing, evaluating. These are the keys to a successful decision – especially the
implementation and evaluation of the decision. They help with future decisions and help close
the loop on the decision-making process.

Decision-Making in the Real World

1. Discuss the ways in which Brian Stevens’ decision-making process with regard to reducing
injuries at the plant illustrates bounded rationality.
Question Location: Page 200

Answers will vary: Brian does not have the time or resources to make a rational decision. He is
new on the job and does not have the experience with this company to know who or what to ask
of everyone. He is constrained by the boss and the workers as well to make a fully rational
decision.

2. In what types of work situations would satisficing be appropriate? List at least three
occupations or industries where satisficing would not be an appropriate strategy for decision-
making?
Question Location: Page 200

Answers will vary: In situations where the difference between maximized and satisficed decisions
is minimal. I think health care, education, and law practice are industries where satisficing
would not be appropriate.

3. Provide two examples of each of the three heuristics (availability, anchoring and adjustment,
and representative) that are not discussed in the text.
Question Location: Page 201

Answers will vary: Availability – everyone talks about how innovative a tech company is so we
assume that is true, also we hear press coverage of shark attacks so we focus on it over a bigger,
more preventable problem. Anchoring and adjustment – when shopping for a car, the dealer
 Instructor Resource
Neck, Organizational Behavior
SAGE Publications, 2017.

anchors you with the sticker price so that the lower price they offer seems like a great deal, or a
student bases their opinion of a professor on what a friend told them. Representative – you
assume a poorly dressed customer will not be as likely to buy as a more professionally dress one
so you give poor customer service, or your potential spouse does not fit the bill of what your
parents expect so you break the engagement.

4. Which of the biases and errors discussed do you think are most likely to lead to
miscommunication issues with colleagues and friends? Devise a series of questions you could
ask yourself in order to avoid falling prey to the biases and errors you identify.
Question Location: Page 201

Answers will vary: I think escalation of commitment leads to a lot of miscommunication in

friends as they because unwilling to challenge others or to have accountability. I would ask if I
am overly committed to a course of action as well as what is the opposite opinion of mine and
what merit does it have.

5. Which of the biases and errors discussed are most likely to lead to budget and timeline
problems in an organization? Defend your answer.
Question Location: Page 201

Answers will vary: Biases and errors that are most likely to lead to budge and timeline issues is
common-information bias and hindsight bases. Common-information bias limits the diversity in
your perspective and limits the input to decision-making, while hindsight bias does lead to
learning from your mistakes.

Ethical Decision-Making in Organization

1. Describe the process you would use to resolve the ethical dilemma related to seeing a friend
cheat on an exam. How would you define the problem? What ethical decision criteria would you
apply? What alternative actions could you take? How would you evaluate each alternative action
and what would you ultimately do?
Question Location: Page 205

Answers will vary: I would think about the policy of the school related to cheating and informing
on others. I would think about my own sense of what’s right. I would consider the strength of my
friendship and what may be going on with that person. I would define the problem as to whether
I should turn them in or not. The criteria would include what is ethical, what is university/class
policy, quality of friendship. I would evaluate not turning them in as unethical and violation of
academic integrity despite it helping my friend. I would evaluate turning them in as adhering to
my ethics and upholding the academic integrity of the institution even though I am likely to lose
a friend.

2. Write a mission statement or list of rules that sums up what “consistently doing what’s right”
means to you.
Question Location: Page 205
 Instructor Resource
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SAGE Publications, 2017.

Answers will vary: Consistently doing what’s right means to effectively fulfilling goals while
efficiently executing tasks.

3. In the case, Brian comes up with an alternate, ethical way to save costs related chemical waste
disposal when confronted by Hans’ unethical cost-saving strategy. Assume that Johnsons Waste
is actually cheaper than its competitors. What other strategies (think back to what you learned in
the previous chapter) could Brian employ to come up with an alternate cost saving solution?
Question Location: Page 205

Answers will vary: I would think about reducing the chemical waste or to see if it could be
repurposed into something valuable to others. He could try to adjust the schedule wherein he is
still within EPA guidelines but perhaps more efficient.

Ethical Decision-Making Approaches

1. Consider the strengths and weaknesses of each of the three ethical decision-making
approaches (utilitarian, rights, and justice). Is one of the three more appealing to you than the
other two? Why or why not?
Question Location: Page 207

Answers will vary: Utilitarian approach focuses on the greater good, but it can deny individual
rights. Rights approach infringes on as little of the entitlements of others as possible, but can
diminish collective success. Justice approach can have high fairness perception, but who decides
what is fair and how is it implemented can be a weakness. I think the justice approach is more
appealing because it balances rights and good for all.

2. Think back to the Case of Brian Stevens. Under what circumstances, given Hans’s emphasis
on profitability, could enacting an ethical decision-making process at the plant change Hans’s
outlook?
Question Location: Page 207

Answers will vary: If you could show the financial costs of being unethical and the potential
gains of increased performance or customer perception.

3. Imagine that the only way to reduce costs at your manufacturing plant is to lay people off.
Fewer people will lose their jobs if you choose to lay off more senior staff, but more senior staff
will be less likely to find employment elsewhere and all have a track record of extreme loyalty to
the company. A number of senior staff members, meanwhile, are supporting aged parents, while
the less senior staff are mostly single. Apply the model of ethical decision-making advocated by
the Josephson Institute to this ethical dilemma. Which of the Six Pillars of Character
(trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship) would you take most
into account in making your decision?
Question Location: Page 207

Answers will vary: This decision would violate trust in departing and remaining employees. It
would show a lack of respect for the senior staff. It is demonstrating responsibility by making a
decision and it will likely be seen as fair to everyone who remains. It shows a lack of caring as
 Instructor Resource
Neck, Organizational Behavior
SAGE Publications, 2017.

well and perhaps poor citizenship. In this situation, I would take into account respect,
responsibility, and trustworthiness.

OB in the Real World

1. How do you explain Stuart’s attitude toward expenses?
Question Location: Page 202

Answers will vary: His attitude toward expenses is guided by his ethics and values.

2. What would you do in his situation?

Question Location: Page 202

Answers will vary: I would understand the policy and rules related to expenses and maximize my
monetary return without compromising my principles.

Examining the Evidence about Bounded Rationality

1. What are the implications of the Paradox of Choice for managerial decision-making?
Question Location: Page 199

Answers will vary: The implications are that you should limit the freedom of choice to avoid
uncertainty and dissatisfaction. You should limit choices or allocate decisions to multiple
employees.

2. How can managers simplify their decision-making so that they will not be paralyzed by
choices?
Question Location: Page 199

Answers will vary: They can codify the decision-making process to learn from best practices
within the organization. They can have a centralized decision-making hub that helps managers
quantify and qualify the nature of the decisions.

Thinking Critically about the Case of Brian Stevens

1. Observe: What differences do you perceive between Brian and Hans’s attitude towards the
plant’s workers? As company president, is it fair to assume that Hans is operating within a
different set of ethical considerations than Brian? Does he owe more loyalty to his shareholders
and board than to his employees? Why or why not?
Question Location: Page 209

Answers will vary: Brian seems to care about the employees while Hans is less empathetic
toward them. I would say that he has the same ethical standard as Brian, but more impact on the
ethical performance of the company. He owes loyalty to many stakeholders – I would say more
to his shareholders and board as they are the owners – but he should be loyal to employees as
well.
 Instructor Resource
Neck, Organizational Behavior
SAGE Publications, 2017.

2. Interpret: How do you interpret Brian’s initial decision to resign from his position rather than
follow Hans’s proposal to store corrosive waste on-site? What greater good would be served if
Hans had allowed Brian to resign and gone ahead with his scheme to store the chemical waste on
site? Assuming this outcome, could Brian’s decision to resign be interpreted as a self-serving
gesture? Why or why not?
Question Location: Page 209

Answers will vary: I thought it was principled but rash. He showed he was willing to stand up for
what is right, but maybe should have discussed it more with Hans. There would not have been a
greater good except Brian is likely to get a job elsewhere where he can uphold his principles. I
would not say his decision to resign to be self-serving, because he was not going to be complicit
in something unethical not merely serving himself.

3. Analyze: To what extent is Brian’s critical thinking ability as important as his ethical decision-
making in this scenario? Put another way: Hans appears less wedded to his unethical proposal
than he is to cutting costs. He backs down quickly when Brian refuses to go along with his idea.
Could Brian have avoided a showdown on ethics altogether by proposing alternatives from the
get-go? Would this have been a better or more efficient approach?
Question Location: Page 209

Answers will vary: Both are important in this scenario, his critical thinking provides a way to
address the profit issue but uphold ethical standards. Yes Brian could have avoided a showdown
on ethics by proposing cost-saving alternative. This would have been more efficient and likely
better received.

4. Evaluate: Based on Hans’s reaction to Brian’s refusal to behave unethically, what steps could
Brian take going forward to ensure that Hans doesn’t propose similarly unethical strategies in the
future?
Question Location: Page 209

Answers will vary: He could create an ethics code that Hans agrees to and helps implement
throughout the organization. He could anticipate other areas that Hans may currently be acting
unethically or areas that he might do so in the future and consider alternatives to the unethical
solution. He could start looking for a better job.

5. Explain: How would you respond if you were faced with a challenge similar to Brian’s? In
what ways would you handle things differently and in what ways would you handle things the
same?
Question Location: Page 209

Answers will vary: I would like to think that I would be firm in my convictions as well, but would
hopefully anticipate and be able to offer other solutions before having it come to my resignation.