Big picture questions are questions that focus on the main idea of the passage. This type of question tests on no specific details from the passage. It focuses on understanding the entire passage and processing how the author is trying to put across points. Most students find this question type difficult as students don’t read from an author’s perspective.
Solve the following passage:
According to P. F. Drucker, the management philosophy known as Total Quality Management (TQM), which is designed to be adopted consistently throughout an organization and to improve customer service by using sampling theory to reduce the variability of a product’s quality, can work successfully in conjunction with two older management systems. As Drucker notes, TQM’s scientific approach is consistent with the statistical sampling techniques of the “rationalist” school of scientific management, and the organizational structure associated with TQM is consistent with the social and psychological emphases of the “human relations” school of management. However, TQM cannot simply be grafted onto these systems or onto certain other non-TQM management systems. Although, as Drucker contends, TQM shares with such systems the ultimate objective of increasing profitability, TQM requires fundamentally different strategies. While the other management systems referred to use upper management decision-making and employee specialization to maximize shareholder profits over the short term, TQM envisions the interests of employees, shareholders, and customers as convergent. For example, lower prices not only benefit consumers but also enhance an organization’s competitive edge and ensure its continuance, thus benefiting employees and owners. TQM’s emphasis on shared interests is reflected in the decentralized decision-making, integrated production activity, and lateral structure of organizations that achieve the benefits of TQM.
What else you can do inside qs leap ?
The primary purpose of the passage is to
(A) point out contradictions in a new management system
(B) compare and contrast the objectives of various management systems
(C) identify the organizational features shared by various management systems
(D) explain the relationship of a particular management system to certain other management systems
(E) explain the advantages of a particular management system over certain other management systems
Which of the following best describes the relationship of the second paragraph to the first paragraph?
(A) It presents contrasting explanations for a phenomenon presented in the first paragraph.
(B) It discusses an exception to a general principle outlined in the first paragraph.
(C) It provides information that qualifies a claim presented in the first paragraph.
(D) It presents an example that strengthens a claim presented in the first paragraph.
(E) It presents an alternative approach to solving a problem discussed in the first paragraph