Title: Teamwork and Communication
Course: Question Banks

Q: Which of the following definitions best describes a team (or work team)?
- A group of people who go about their jobs independently and meet primarily to share information.
- A group of people performing the same job functions and working in the same office space.
- A group of people who come together to make decisions.
- A group of people with complementary skills who work together to achieve a specific goal.
A: A group of people with complementary skills who work together to achieve a specific goal.

Q: Choose the answer below that describes a work team rather than a work group.
- Employees working in the same department who attend periodic departmental meetings.
- Workplace friends that plan a social event to celebrate a co-worker’s birthday.
- Employees who work in the same office and perform the same function.
- Employees from different parts of the business working together to develop a new product.
A: Employees from different parts of the business working together to develop a new product.

Q: Key characteristics of work teams include:
- all team members report through the same department and/or management chain.
- teams change periodically adding new members and dropping old members as they finish their assigned tasks.
- teams completely disband after the completion of each project.
- teams have authority and decision-making power to pursue their goals and complete assignments.
A: teams have authority and decision-making power to pursue their goals and complete assignments.

Q: Lola works at ActionTech’s headquarters where she leads a team of eight people. The team is focused on providing technical support and customer service for ActionTech’s new line of wearable computing gear for runners. It is Lola’s sole responsibility to set team goals, assign tasks and monitor the performance of team members. Lola reports to her manager on team progress, outcomes and performance metrics. Lola’s team structure is:
- a self-managing team.
- a virtual team.
- a democratically lead team.
- a manager-led team.
A: a manager-led team.

Q: Doris is a member of a team that works to seamlessly execute a large company’s annual shareholder meeting and quarterly board meetings on an ongoing basis. Doris is an employee in the investor relations department of the company. The team also includes Don from IT, Sally from Communications, Editha from event management, Saul from security, Tony from catering, Rob from transportation services and Lola from Marketing. This team is an example of what kind of team?
- Virtual team
- Project team
- Implementation team
- Cross-functional team
A: Cross-functional team

Q: Lumen Learning uses web tools to write new textbooks, including Google Docs, Google Hangouts, and Hypothes.is. A team of writers and editors works together from Virginia, Texas, Maryland, and Oregon, but never meet in-person. This is what kind of team?
- Cross-functional team
- Project team
- Planning team
- Virtual team
A: Virtual team

Q: During which phase of team development are team members focused primarily on defining tasks, establishing a schedule, organizing the team’s work and building relationships?
- Storming
- Norming
- Adjourning
- Forming
A: Forming

Q: A team in the ________ phase is transitioning to a period when it focuses on developing shared values and expectations for how to work together and facilitate collaboration.
- storming
- performing
- forming
- norming
A: norming

Q: After a kick-off session and six contentious weekly team meetings, Lola is struggling to align her team around common expectations. These expectations are: how to work together, communicate effectively, and identify appropriate hand-off points as her team provides customer service and technical support for a new product line. Two team members in particular keep butting heads on every issue and Lola is losing patience with their inability to work together. Based on Bruce Tuckman’s theory of team development, where is Lola’s team currently in the evolution process?
- performing
- norming
- forming
- storming
A: storming

Q: The productivity of a group in the norming stage is:
- minimal.
- high.
- it varies
- moderate.
A: moderate.

Q: What key characteristic(s) may be seen when groups are in a norming stage?
- distrust
- synergy
- competitiveness
- collaboration
A: collaboration

Q: Successful teams require:
- command-and-control management.
- volatile management.
- no management.
- supportive management.
A: supportive management.

Q: Which of the following is a factor that typically contributes to successful teamwork?
- Members work better individually than together.
- Leadership remains consistent over time.
- Leadership controls all the team’s functions.
- Members trust one another.
A: Members trust one another.

Q: Teams can fail because of tasks team members do (or fail to do), as well as tasks that managers do (or fail to do). Which of the following are leading causes of team failure linked primarily to what MANAGERS do or don’t do effectively?
- Failure to remain involved with all decision making that takes place within the team.
- Failure to cooperate on common goals and activities.
- Failure to form trusting relationships with all members of the team.
- Failure to commit needed resources like funding or personnel.
A: Failure to commit needed resources like funding or personnel.

Q: In order to be in business, it is essential to develop relationships inside the organization as well as with your customers. These relationships most commonly allow you to:
- share your feelings with others.
- be promoted more quickly.
- earn recognition from your supervisors and peers.
- help solve your customer’s problems.
A: help solve your customer’s problems.

Q: Diana sends a text to her co-worker Timothy that says “Did you take care of the apps for Friday?” Timothy thinks: Yes, I went through the applications that came in for the job opening in HR and I sent my recommendations to Phillis. So, he texts back to Diana “yes, all taken care of” On Friday, Diana arrives at the reception for the new board members. Diana is horrified to see that there are no appetizers at the function. Timothy said he had taken care of the apps! What should Diana and Timothy have done differently?
- Diana should have taken care of the appetizers herself.
- Timothy should have known what Diana meant and answered her question correctly.
- Diana and Timothy both should have known to never text about work issues.
- Diana should have made sure her question to Timothy was clearly understood by using a more effective communication method than shorthand in a text.
A: Diana should have made sure her question to Timothy was clearly understood by using a more effective communication method than shorthand in a text.

Q: When employees feel the boss is listening and the boss acts on their ideas, employees feel more:
- information overload.
- job burnout.
- disengaged.
- job satisfaction.
A: job satisfaction.

Q: ________ is what message distortion is called when people are hearing what they want to hear or expect to hear, not what is actually stated.
- Workplace gossip
- Explication
- Biased hearing
- Filtering
A: Filtering

Q: Filtering creates communication problems within an organization because:
- it may provide too much information or the wrong types of information to people.
- it can be difficult to understand the biased language.
- it promotes too much workplace gossip.
- each sender translates the message into his or her own words, thus creating their own version of the message.
A: each sender translates the message into his or her own words, thus creating their own version of the message.

Q: Tania is one month into her new job as an office manager for an engineering company. She receives many work-related email messages from various engineers and they are often filled with anachronisms and industry specific terms with which she is unfamiliar. She is getting frustrated at trying to interpret what the messages are really trying to ask her to do or understand. Tania is experiencing what common communication barrier at her job?
- Chain of command barriers.
- Filtering barriers.
- Biased language barriers.
- Excessive use of industry jargon barriers.
A: Excessive use of industry jargon barriers.

Q: The CEO, COO and CTO of a business worked frequently together in meetings at the office. Often times decisions were made without much or any input from other top or mid-level management. When these types of decisions were announced, the rest of the people in the company were caught off guard and it caused confusion and frustration. If you were to advise this company’s chain of command, what would you suggest they do?
- Work on creating a common culture and language.
- Add additional levels of hierarchical to react more quickly to the new changes.
- Tell lower employees that they need to accept executive decisions without questions.
- Increase interaction of top executives with departments and create better communication.
A: Increase interaction of top executives with departments and create better communication.

Q: Which of the following are examples of biased language?
- Telling your co-worker that your good friend is a really great person that anyone would like.
- Writing an email message to your supervisor when you’re very upset about a hiring decision you just heard about.
- Sending out an email to recognize your colleague’s amazing work.
- Referring to someone’s ethnicity with an unnecessary descriptor, such as "I’d like you to meet our Asian sales representative, Julianne."
A: Referring to someone’s ethnicity with an unnecessary descriptor, such as "I’d like you to meet our Asian sales representative, Julianne."

Q: Rick steps into Jeannie’s office and tells her “Great news! We just closed on the Donaldson account.” Jeannie says, “That is great news! Thanks for telling me right away and congratulations to you and your team!” This is an example of which type of business communication.
- Presentation
- News update
- Written communication
- Face-to-face
A: Face-to-face

Q: Ray just learned that he is one of three finalists for a Vice President position at Microsoft. In two weeks he will meet with the company president and two other current vice presidents for one final interview. After the interview, if he gets the position, most likely he can expect to receive________.
- a text letting him know he got the job.
- an email telling him that he was selected for the position.
- a phone call telling him when he is expected to start work.
- a letter with details about the job offer.
A: a letter with details about the job offer.

Q: Jeannie schedules a meeting with her sales colleagues scattered across the country. She needs to be cost effective and time sensitive so she sets up a meeting online where all can see and hear each other in order for the sales figures to be worked through as a team. This is an example of which type of business communication?
- Face-to-face
- Message board
- Written communication
- Web-based communication
A: Web-based communication

Q: You start to write an end-of-week email progress report to your manager. It has been a very busy week and your manager has been out of the office. Therefore, there is a lot of ground to cover. Which of the following approaches is most likely to make this an effective business communication?
- List each milestone with all the accompanying details she might possibly be interested in, even though it’s a very long message.
- Send a one-line text message, with emojis, to say the week has been pretty good.
- Explain the two to three most important milestones and leave out the rest.
- Provide a brief overview of key milestones from the week, and offer to provide more detail upon request.
A: Provide a brief overview of key milestones from the week, and offer to provide more detail upon request.

Q: What is proper etiquette regarding electronic devices during business meetings you attend in person?
- Leave all electronic devices behind.
- Use electronic devices as you would outside the meeting.
- Use them when the meeting is focused on topics that are irrelevant to you.
- Bring electronic devices but silence them or turn them off.
A: Bring electronic devices but silence them or turn them off.

Q: In email messages, using all capital letters denotes:
- nothing out of the ordinary.
- you are excited or happy.
- the point you are making is important.
- you are shouting or angry.
A: you are shouting or angry.

Q: When using email for business communications, it is advisable to:
- use text messaging abbreviations like “ur” and “2nite”.
- always “reply to all” when responding to an email message.
- always use casual, easy-to-understand language.
- check for proper spelling and grammar before sending a message.
A: check for proper spelling and grammar before sending a message.

Q: Communication that flows horizontally across the organization among people working at the same level is known as:
- downward communication.
- upward communication.
- diagonal communication.
- lateral communication.
A: lateral communication.

Q: The weekly report you prepare for your supervisor about your team’s progress toward performance targets is considered:
- downward communication.
- lateral communication.
- diagonal communication.
- upward communication.
A: upward communication.

Q: Freddie Mac released information about quarterly income and expenses. This is an example of:
- horizontal communication.
- vertical communication.
- diagonal communication.
- external communication.
A: external communication.

Q: Within a business, formal communication:
- only takes place with people inside the organization.
- does not follow the organization’s chain of command for internal communication.
- involves all messages sent by company leaders.
- involves planned, prepared communication pieces and artifacts.
A: involves planned, prepared communication pieces and artifacts.

Q: Which of the following are considered informal communications?
- A memo to your boss summarizing decisions made at a meeting he missed.
- A scheduled meeting with your boss to discuss an upcoming presentation.
- A project proposal draft sent to your boss for feedback.
- An instant message from someone you supervise to let you know she just signed a new customer.
A: An instant message from someone you supervise to let you know she just signed a new customer.

Q: Which of the following are considered formal communications?
- An email message from your colleague inviting everyone out to celebrate another employee’s birthday.
- An email message from the CEO asking if you can stop by her office before going home.
- A text from a client to let you know they’ll be a couple of minutes late for the meeting.
- A monthly budget report from the accounting analyst who supports your team.
A: A monthly budget report from the accounting analyst who supports your team.

Q: Your friend Kayla calls you and says “Don’t open the email you received from my email account! Something is wrong with my computer. I didn’t send it, but a number of friends told me they received a weird email from me.” You and Kayla are dealing with a common risk associated with electronic communication. What might be happening?
- Stolen identity
- Email avalanche
- Email fraud
- Spoofing or phishing
A: Spoofing or phishing

Q: A cyber attack which floods network resource with useless messages and renders the service temporarily unavailable to real customers is called ________.
- spoofing
- a virus
- phishing
- denial-of-service attack
A: denial-of-service attack

Q: Ross is managing a confidential new product team. His team communicates by email for accuracy because the plans are very detailed. To keep the information safe, they use an internal email system, protected by a firewall and antivirus software. But the confidential information is still vulnerable to:
- key-logging software.
- virus attacks.
- phishing attacks.
- disgruntled employees able to observe the team computers.
A: disgruntled employees able to observe the team computers.

Q: If you send a personal email from a work computer, does the company have the right to view that message?
- No, if you are sending a private message through your personal email, even on a work computer, the employer cannot view that message.
- Yes, but only if it is sent through company e-mail. If you use your personal email on the company computer, the employer cannot read it.
- No, employers have no right to know details about your personal life.
- Yes. Regardless of the email account, courts have found in favor of employers most of the time when these cases have gone to court.
A: Yes. Regardless of the email account, courts have found in favor of employers most of the time when these cases have gone to court.

Q: Eduardo puts everything on his Facebook page. He is excited to show the world every aspect of his life—it just doesn’t feel real if it is not shared! What advice might you give Eduardo as he matures and starts to look for that perfect first job in his career?
- Eduardo, stop posting on Facebook. It is not professional and you won’t be able to get a job if you use Facebook.
- Eduardo, you do what you feel is right. Post whatever you want on Facebook. Any company that can’t handle that would not be a good fit for you anyhow.
- Eduardo, delete your facebook account. You clearly are not responsible enough to be using social media.
- Eduardo, you might want to be a little more discerning about what you post on social media. More and more employers are using social media to learn about their potential employees. It is likely that what your posts will follow you for years and years.
A: Eduardo, you might want to be a little more discerning about what you post on social media. More and more employers are using social media to learn about their potential employees. It is likely that what your posts will follow you for years and years.

Q: Heather’s company has super-fast internet access. She likes to do her internet shopping at work to get it finished in half the time. What advice would you give her?
- This is OK because her activity does not cost the company anything.
- The company owes her this because of all the extra work she does.
- She can do it as long as she finished her work first.
- Her activity is not private, so her employer can see what she is doing. And she may be violating company policy on internet use.
A: Her activity is not private, so her employer can see what she is doing. And she may be violating company policy on internet use.