TEST 1 ANSWERS

ANALYZING & MANAGING INFORMATION

TEST 1                                                                              MARKS

1.    Which are the two major perspectives on organizational life?       2
Select two

          Institutional perspective

 Bureaucratic perspective
 Active perspective
 Social perspective

2.    Which of the statements accurately defines Structuration?         2
Select two

            Social structure never changes
            Through human interaction social structures are
               reproduced and may also change
            Social structures do not exist independently of people
            Social structures constrain and inform human action

3.    What is the meaning of Systemics?                                                2

            Systemics is the study of the general properties
               and behaviour of all systems

4.    Draw and explain the operation of a single-loop feedback         4

            The single-loop feedback regulates the internal
               behaviour of an operational process using sensor
               and effector signals

            See B-D, p49

5.    Draw and explain the operation of a double-loop feedback       4

            The double-loop feedback regulates both the
              internal behaviour of an operational process and
              makes adaptations to control changes to the
              process’s external environment

            See B-D, p50

6.    Decision strategies can be modelled in two ways.                     4
State what they are and describe how one works in more
  detail.

            (i) An If…Then… Strategy by which two decisions
                (Thens) can be made as a consequence of two
               possibilities (Ifs) being used as controls

            (ii) A Decision Tree Strategy by which a set of
                 business rules are created to determine how to

                 Regulate business behaviour according to
                 different circumstances

7.    Organizations are best described as what type of system?     1
Select one

            Closed
            Open
            Physical

8.    What are the 3 ‘Es’ that are often used to describe the            3
performance of a system ?

            Efficiency
            Effectiveness
            Efficacy

9.    What are three types of information that are regularly              3
used and communicated within an organization

Examples:
Delivery advice

Sales receipt

Invoice

Order
                                                                                                        _____

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