Company Officer, 5th Ed. Exam Prep Audit Quiz

Question 1 of 50

Company officers should consider the fire and emergency services organization to be __________-oriented.
  Customer service
  Results
  Task
  Mission

Question 2 of 50

Which is a correct approach to take as a new company officer meeting challenges?
  I won't let promotion change my relationship with my friends
  I will not let public perception affect how I do my job
  It will not publicly criticize my supervisors
  I will use discretion to enforce only those policies I deem to be productive

Question 3 of 50

Which is a correct approach for managing the transition to company officer?
  Do not be reluctant to remind them that you are in charge
  Be willing to acknowledge your own mistakes and failures
  Be willing to acknowledge the shortcomings of the organization
  Share confidential information only with those you can trust

Question 4 of 50

Which approach is correct regarding praise and criticism?
  Do not encourage subordinates to offer you suggestions or feedback
  Do not single out a subordinate for praise in front of his peers
  Do not permit yourself to be publicly criticized
  Do not publicly discipline or discredit a subordinate

Question 5 of 50

Which is the method of last resort when seeking compliance from subordinates?
  Apply the appropriate supervisory technique for the situation
  Use your rank as a reason for compliance
  Project a command presence
  Work to earn the respect of subordinates

Question 6 of 50

A new company officer must enforce the rules and regulations of the agency. Which approach is most likely to be successful?
  Gradually raise the bar
  Easy does it
  Build the house one brick at a time
  Start tight, then go light

Question 7 of 50

Which NFPA standard addresses professional qualifications for fire officers?
  1021
  1500
  1901
  1581

Question 8 of 50

According to the NFPA, which item is part of a Level I company officer's duties?
  Divisional fiscal administration and budget preparation
  Hiring, evaluation, promotion and dismissal of personnel
  Efficient and equitable administration of agency policies and procedures
  Project conception, design and implementation

Question 9 of 50

Which statement is the best description of the company officer's responsibility regarding fire and life safety educational programs?
  He is responsible for delegating these activities to a capable subordinate
  He is responsible for forwarding these activities to the appropriate division of the agency
  He must be able to make presentations to members of the community
  His involvement in these types of programs is generally minimal

Question 10 of 50

When operating at a terrorist/criminal incident, a company officer should _________.
  Interview witnesses and possible suspects
  Detain persons of interest
  Collection and preservation of evidence samples
  Establish and maintain crime scene security

Question 11 of 50

The NFPA has established standards for _____ levels of fire officer.
  3
  4
  2
  5

Question 12 of 50

A company officer should be careful to avoid __________.
  Allowing personal ethical principles to influence professional behavior
  Putting popularity with his/her crew above enforcing agency policies
  Acting as a representative of company members to the administration
  Seeing themselves as "public servants"

Question 13 of 50

As a company officer, how should you respond to an order that is unpopular with your crew?
  Privately discuss your questions and concerns with the administration
  Openly and honestly discuss the flaws and merits of the order with your crew
  Devise a strategy which will minimize the impact of the order while appearing to comply with it
  State that you agree with your crew's criticisms but that compliance is not optional

Question 14 of 50

For which one of a company officer's roles is ethical conduct of particular importance?
  Leader
  Supervisor
  Role model
  Mentor

Question 15 of 50

The success of any fire and emergency services organization is directly proportional to its ________.
  Funding
  Community involvement
  Management
  Leadership

Question 16 of 50

When might it be appropriate to say something that might dishonor a person, a position, or the organization?
  When the officer must do so to protect his/her subordinates
  Never
  When legal violations have occurred
  When they are clearly in the wrong

Question 17 of 50

To ease the transition to officer, the new officer should __________.
  Require the respect of subordinate
  Quickly establish their authority over those they supervise
  Adopt an appropriate level of humility and respect for those they supervise
  Attempt to establish friendships with those they supervise before exercising authority

Question 18 of 50

Of the choices listed, which is the most common title for the head of a fire department?
  Commander
  Administrator
  Supervisor
  Commissioner

Question 19 of 50

Which is the common organizational structure used in the fire service?
  Vertical
  Scalar
  Adaptive
  Top centralized

Question 20 of 50

The phrase "having an uninterrupted series of steps" best describes which organizational structure?
  Vertical
  Scalar
  Flat decentralized
  Collaborative

Question 21 of 50

"The order of rank and authority in an organization" best defines which term?
  Span of control
  Unity of command
  Scalar organization
  Chain of command

Question 22 of 50

Which statement about a scalar organization is the most correct?
  The chain of command is more vulnerable to disruption than with other organizational structures
  Authority is mostly decentralized
  Information is generally centralized
  It eliminates intermediate organizational levels

Question 23 of 50

What is the primary function of line personnel?
  Support staff personnel
  Support the firefighters
  Supervision
  Deliver services to the public

Question 24 of 50

What is the primary function of staff personnel?
  Support of line personnel
  Supervision/leadership
  Administration/management
  Delivery of service to the public

Question 25 of 50

__________ is a person's legal power to execute decisions and the accountability for those decisions.
  Management
  Authority
  Command
  Administration

Question 26 of 50

Which term means an organizational structure where decisions are made by one individual at the top of the structure?
  Centralized authority
  Concentrated authority
  Unified command
  Executive authority

Question 27 of 50

Which term means an organizational structure where authority is delegated to varying levels within the organization?
  Delegated authority
  Unified command
  Decentralized authority
  Divisional

Question 28 of 50

In which setting is centralized authority most effective?
  Operations dispersed over a large geographic area
  Tasks which are complex and highly specialized
  Small organizations or groups
  When there are large numbers of subordinates

Question 29 of 50

Which statement about decentralized authority is correct?
  It allows specific tasks to be performed at various levels within the organization
  Authority for making decisions is delegated to the lowest possible level
  The potential for duplication of effort is minimized
  It should be distributed equally throughout the organizational structure

Question 30 of 50

Which statement about decentralized authority is correct?
  It works well for decision making but not for accomplishing tasks
  Decision-making power is retained by the delegating authority
  It allows upper management to focus on other matters
  The agency chief must be kept informed of all decisions being made at lower levels

Question 31 of 50

Which statement about delegation of tasks is the most correct?
  It gives the supervisor an opportunity to develop the subordinate's skill set
  Reluctance to delegate shows a lack of trust in the supervisor for his/her subordinates
  Tasks may be delegated, but authority cannot be delegated
  A task that cannot be performed by most subordinates should not be delegated

Question 32 of 50

Which principle states that every individual should report to only one designated supervisor?
  Chain of command
  Functional supervision
  Span of control
  Unity of command

Question 33 of 50

Which is considered an acceptable exception to unity of command?
  Functional supervision
  Division of labor
  Decentralization of authority
  The "end-run"

Question 34 of 50

What is a common cause of the use of functional supervision?
  Line personnel involved in activities supervised by staff officers
  Poorly defined and/or poorly adhered to chain of command
  Having to do more with fewer resources
  Adoption of participatory management techniques

Question 35 of 50

A company officer reporting directly to a staff officer regarding a specialized area of responsibility is an example of __________.
  Functional supervision
  Decentralized authority
  Division of labor
  Unified command

Question 36 of 50

When does unity of command break down?
  There is no accountability for poor performance or recognition of good performance
  A supervisor has too many subordinates to effectively manage
  There are repeated transfers of command
  A subordinate answers to more than one supervisor

Question 37 of 50

Two different officers are giving conflicting orders to a single subordinate. Which organizational principle has been violated?
  Span of control
  Unity of command
  Chain of command
  Functional supervision

Question 38 of 50

"The path of responsibility from the top to the bottom of anorganization" is __________.
  The one-boss principle
  The chain of command
  Scalar organization
  Unity of command

Question 39 of 50

An employee is playing one boss against another boss which allowshim to get away with doing very little work. Which organizationalprinciple has been violated?
  Chain of command
  Unity of command
  Span of control
  Division of labor

Question 40 of 50

Conflicting and contradictory orders from different bosses have resulted in a frustrated and discouraged employee. Which organizational principle has been violated?
  Unity of command
  Chain of command
  Functional supervision
  Span of control

Question 41 of 50

Instead of talking to his company officer, a disgruntled firefighter goes directly to a chief officer with his complaint. Which organizational principle has been violated?
  Functional supervision
  Span of control
  Division of labor
  Unity of command

Question 42 of 50

A firefighter begins to ventilate at a location specified by his captain. Along comes a chief who tells the firefighter to cut the hole somewhere else. Which organizational principle has been violated?
  Unity of command
  Division of labor
  Functional supervision
  Span of control

Question 43 of 50

In which circumstance might sidestepping be justified?
  A subordinate views the immediate supervisor as part of the problem
  The subordinate is a highly productive, motivated worker
  There is no such circumstance
  The immediate supervisor is reluctant to delegate authority

Question 44 of 50

What is the term for a subordinate informing his/her immediate supervisor that he/she wishes to take an issue directly to the next level?
  Informed end-run
  Formal bypassing
  Skip level notification
  Sidestepping

Question 45 of 50

Which principle states that a supervisor can effectively manage a limited number or subordinates?
  Span of control
  Unity of command
  Division of labor
  The one-boss principle

Question 46 of 50

Span of control for NIMS-ICS is _____ subordinates reporting to a single supervisor.
  5 to 10
  8 to 12
  3 to 7
  5 to 8

Question 47 of 50

Generally, the ideal span of control in NIMS-ICS is _____ to subordinates to one supervisor.
  4
  5
  7
  3

Question 48 of 50

What will be the immediate result of failure to apply the principle of span of control?
  Subordinates accountable to more than one supervisor
  Numerous subordinates overwhelming a single supervisor
  Confusing or contradictory chain of command
  Committing more resources than needed to the incident

Question 49 of 50

Which factor increases a supervisor's effective span of control?
  Tasks that must be performed quickly
  Responsibility for dissimilar tasks
  Crew members physically separated by distance
  Well-trained, experienced subordinates

Question 50 of 50

Which factor decreases a supervisor's effective span of control?
  No time constraints
  Complex tasks
  Close physical proximity to subordinates
  Routine tasks

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