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Ppm Question Paper

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Course:Bachelor Of Business Administration (Business Administration)

Exam Year:2009

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF MANAGEMENT
2009 Time Allowed: 3 hours

Answer any FIVE questions. ALL questions carry equal marks.

QUESTION ONE
Samson Kimani was recently appointed as the finance manager of Bita Chemicals Ltd. He qualified as an accountant one year ago and this is his first managerial position. The finance department is made up of ten members of staff who have been working for the company for several years but since they are not qualified accountants, they were not considered when the appointment was being done. Members of the department are not happy with the appointment as they would have liked someone who has been with the organization for a longer duration and therefore with more experience to have been promoted to that position.

Although Samson is a good accountant, he has a problem relating to people. Consequently, there has been little social contact between him and members of his department.

To overcome his communication problems, Samson has been relying on internal memoranda and placing instructions on the department’s notice board as the main methods of conveying information to his staff. These new methods of communication have not been well received by the staff and have resulted in several complaints being made to the chief finance officer regarding Samson’s inability to effectively communicate with his staff. There has also been a lot of confusion within the department and team spirit is at an all time low.

The chief finance officer has talked to Samson and was able to establish the following as the reasons for Samson’s reliance on written communication only:

• To avoid confusion since there is a documented record of his instructions.
• When chairing departmental meetings he feels intimidated with so many experienced and older employees and as a result the meetings always end in chaos with no decisions being made.

As a manager in a consultancy firm, you have been approached by the chief finance officer to help Samson improve on his communication skills.

Required:
(a) Explain to Samson why he should use different styles of communication to improve the working relations in his department. (12 marks)
(b) Outline to Samson the guidelines of conducting effective meetings with members of his department. (8 marks)
(Total: 20 marks)

QUESTION TWO
United Manufacturing Ltd. produces agricultural chemicals and currently has 800 employees stationed in its four branches.

The company has been experiencing very rapid growth in the last few years and the number of employees is expected to increase. To maintain its competitive edge the company has been training the existing employees and improving their benefits.

Recently, a new human resource manager was appointed and he has suggested that the company should invest in a computerized human resource information system to replace the manual system.

Required:
(a) Explain how a computerized human resource information system will benefit United Manufacturing Ltd. (10 marks)
(b) Outline the steps the company should follow in the planning, development and implementation of the human resource information system. (10 marks)
(Total: 20 marks)

QUESTION THREE
(a) “When a company introduces a new product, it faces the challenges of setting its price for the first time.”

Discuss this statement using the two pricing strategies. (12 marks)

(b) Explain the environmental factors that a marketing manager should consider before entering the international market. (8 marks)
(Total: 20 marks)

QUESTION FOUR
a) Discuss the impact of information technology upon modern management practice
(10 marks)
b) “For any manager to be effective in the change process, he must own the process” Discuss this statement with regard to a manger as an agent of change. (10 marks) (Total: 20 marks)

QUESTION FIVE
Show how delegation of authority in an organization is influenced by the following factors:

a) Chain of command (5 marks)
b) Unity of command (5 marks)
c) Span of control (5 marks)
d) Line and staff relationship (5 marks) (Total: 20 marks)

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