CPRE Leadership and Strategic Management 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A SWOT analysis in parks and recreation strategic planning examines:
- Staff, Workload, Operations, and Technology
- Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (Correct answer)
- Systems, Workflow, Outcomes, and Targets
- Skills, Work ethic, Organization, and Training
Correct answer: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats
SWOT analysis evaluates internal Strengths and Weaknesses alongside external Opportunities and Threats to inform strategic decision-making.
Question 2: Which leadership style is most effective during a major organizational crisis requiring immediate decisions?
- Laissez-faire
- Democratic participative
- Autocratic directive (Correct answer)
- Servant leadership
Correct answer: Autocratic directive
Autocratic leadership, where the leader makes decisions with little input, is most effective in crises requiring rapid decisive action.
Question 3: A park agency's mission statement should primarily describe:
- Financial goals for the next fiscal year
- The agency's fundamental purpose and reason for existence (Correct answer)
- Specific measurable outcomes for each program
- The organizational chart structure
Correct answer: The agency's fundamental purpose and reason for existence
A mission statement articulates the organization's core purpose — why it exists and whom it serves.
Question 4: Servant leadership in a parks context emphasizes:
- Leader authority and command-and-control management
- Prioritizing the growth and well-being of staff and community served (Correct answer)
- Maximizing revenue at the expense of community access
- Top-down decision-making with minimal staff input
Correct answer: Prioritizing the growth and well-being of staff and community served
Servant leadership focuses on serving others first — empowering staff and the community rather than exercising positional authority.
Question 5: Which strategic planning tool maps objectives across financial, customer, internal processes, and learning perspectives?
- SWOT analysis
- Balanced Scorecard (Correct answer)
- Logic model
- Gap analysis
Correct answer: Balanced Scorecard
The Balanced Scorecard translates strategy into measurable objectives across four perspectives to give a balanced view of organizational performance.
Question 6: Succession planning in a park agency primarily ensures:
- Equal pay for all positions
- Continuity of leadership and institutional knowledge when key staff leave (Correct answer)
- Compliance with equal employment opportunity laws
- Annual performance reviews are completed on time
Correct answer: Continuity of leadership and institutional knowledge when key staff leave
Succession planning identifies and develops future leaders to ensure leadership continuity and preservation of institutional knowledge.
CPRE Leadership and Strategic Management 1
A SWOT analysis in parks and recreation strategic planning examines: