Lesson 3.10.1.2

3.10.1.2 Flexible organisations, information and barriers to change Quiz: AQA Business, Unit 10

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 3.10.1.2, Flexible organisations, information and barriers to change: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA Business (7132), Unit 10: Managing strategic change, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What is delayering?

    • Adding new layers of management so that each manager has a smaller number of staff to supervise
    • Reducing the number of levels in an organisation's hierarchy to speed up communication and decisions
    • Changing the order of tasks in a production process so that each stage is completed in a new sequence
    • Moving employees to a different location while keeping the same job title and reporting line

  2. Which is an example of a flexible employment contract?

    • A contract that guarantees the same number of hours each week for every employee for life in the business
    • A contract that requires the employee to remain with the firm for a minimum period of twenty years
    • A permanent full-time contract with a fixed salary and fixed hours that cannot be changed by the employer
    • Fixed-term or part-time contracts that allow the firm to adjust staffing levels to demand

  3. What is an organic organisational structure?

    • A structure in which every employee reports directly to the chief executive with no managers in between
    • A rigid structure with formal rules, a strict chain of command and clearly defined job descriptions for all staff
    • A flexible structure with informal communication and roles that adapt to changing conditions
    • A structure based on fixed departments that are never changed, regardless of the market conditions faced

  4. What is a mechanistic organisational structure?

    • A rigid structure with formal rules, a clear chain of command and tightly defined roles
    • A flexible structure with informal communication and roles that adapt quickly to changing market conditions
    • A structure that is designed around a single project team that is disbanded once the project is complete
    • A structure with no formal rules, in which every employee decides their own roles and responsibilities daily

  5. Why does knowledge management matter to a business undergoing change?

    • It helps capture and share expertise so that it is not lost when staff leave or roles change
    • It guarantees that all knowledge is accurate and up to date at every point in time without any review
    • It removes the need for staff training, because knowledge can be kept permanently in a single system with no human input
    • It stops all information flows within the business, so that employees only receive instructions from their managers

  6. Which of these is one of Kotter and Schlesinger's reasons for resistance to change?

    • Low cost of production, which makes the business feel that no change is needed in its operations
    • Excessive profit, where a business earns too much money and so does not need to change at all
    • Parochial self-interest, where people resist change that threatens their own position or benefits
    • High levels of customer satisfaction, which mean that managers never consider any change to the product

  7. Which reason for resistance to change arises when people have different views about the costs and benefits of a change?

    • Low tolerance for change, where staff enjoy new ideas and welcome every change that is proposed to them
    • Parochial self-interest, where staff put the interests of the whole business ahead of their own in every case
    • Misunderstanding, where staff are fully informed about the change and agree with all of its effects
    • Different assessments of the situation, where staff and managers judge the same change differently

  8. Which of Kotter and Schlesinger's six ways of overcoming resistance involves involving employees in designing the change?

    • Explicit coercion, which threatens employees with dismissal if they do not accept the change
    • Facilitation and support, which provides new equipment but excludes staff from any decisions
    • Manipulation and co-option, which hides the real purpose of the change from employees
    • Participation and involvement

  9. Which of these is a limitation of using coercion to overcome resistance to change?

    • It always increases commitment because people accept any change once they feel threatened by their managers
    • It removes the need for any other approach to change, because it is always the most effective method in every case
    • It has no effect on resistance, because employees never respond to threats from management in any situation
    • It may achieve compliance quickly but can create lasting resentment and reduce commitment to the change

  10. A business widens its span of control from 8 to 12 for 120 staff. How many managers are needed before and after, assuming all staff are managed directly?

    • 15 before and 10 after
    • 8 before and 12 after
    • 12 before and 8 after
    • 10 before and 15 after

  11. What is the main value of a flexible organisation to a business?

    • It guarantees that the business will never need to restructure, because its structure is always in the right form
    • It allows the business to respond more quickly to changes in its markets and environment
    • It ensures that all employees have identical roles and responsibilities, which makes management easier in practice
    • It means that managers no longer have to make decisions, because the organisation adapts without any intervention

  12. Which of these is a barrier to change arising from the structure of an organisation?

    • A structure with regular cross-departmental teams that share information and ideas on a continuous basis
    • A culture of experimentation in which staff are encouraged to test new ideas and report the results openly
    • A flexible structure with few levels of management, which allows staff to make decisions quickly and easily
    • Rigid hierarchies and formal procedures that slow down decisions and block new ideas

  13. Evaluate the use of coercion compared with participation in overcoming resistance to change.

    • Coercion can be quick but may breed resentment; participation takes longer but usually builds commitment, so the choice depends on urgency
    • The two approaches are identical in their effects, so managers can choose either without considering the outcome
    • Coercion is always better than participation, because it removes all resistance quickly and permanently in every case
    • Participation always fails, because employees never accept change they have helped to design or plan

  14. A business finds that managers are reluctant to share information with each other. What is the most likely consequence for change?

    • Decisions become faster because managers no longer have to consult others before taking any action at all
    • The business is unaffected, because information flows have no effect on the implementation of strategy
    • Decisions become slower and less well informed, which can make the change harder to manage
    • Change is accelerated, because information is always unhelpful and so managers ignore it when making decisions

  15. Why might a restructuring of departments create resistance from staff?

    • It may threaten established roles, status and working relationships, leading staff to resist the new arrangements
    • It always improves the working lives of staff, so staff are pleased about any restructuring carried out by managers
    • It has no effect on staff because the reporting lines and roles of employees never change during a restructure
    • It is always welcomed by employees, because restructuring means that managers spend more time with their teams

  16. Which of Kotter and Schlesinger's six ways is most appropriate when staff resist change because they have low tolerance for it?

    • Manipulation and co-option, which conceals the change from staff until it is too late for them to object
    • Facilitation and support, such as training, counselling and time to adjust
    • Negotiation and agreement, which offers financial rewards to those who resist change in the business
    • Explicit coercion, which threatens employees with dismissal if they fail to adapt quickly enough to the new processes

  17. Which is an example of education and communication as a way to overcome resistance?

    • Forcing staff to accept the change through threats of dismissal and loss of pay in the business
    • Explaining the reasons for the change clearly to staff before it is introduced
    • Refusing to discuss the change with any employee so that the decision is final and cannot be questioned
    • Hiding the true purpose of the change from staff until it has already been fully implemented

  18. A firm uses negotiation with a trade union to agree a change in working hours. Which way of overcoming resistance is this?

    • Negotiation and agreement
    • Manipulation and co-option
    • Education and communication
    • Explicit coercion

  19. What is the main risk of using manipulation or co-option to overcome resistance to change?

    • If staff discover the manipulation, trust can be lost and the change may fail or be resisted more strongly
    • Staff will always welcome the change once they are manipulated, so no problems arise afterwards
    • Manipulation makes the change cheaper and quicker, with no effects on trust or commitment in the business
    • Manipulation removes the need for any monitoring of the change, because staff never question their managers

  20. Evaluate the claim that flexible organisations always outperform rigid ones.

    • Flexibility and rigidity have no effect on performance, so structure is irrelevant to the success of any business
    • Flexibility helps in fast-changing markets, but in stable markets rigid structures can offer efficiency and control, so the context matters
    • Flexible organisations always outperform rigid ones because flexibility is the only factor that determines success
    • Rigid organisations always outperform flexible ones because rigidity is the only route to success in every market

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