Results:
The Your correct answer for each question is indicated by a
1 INCORRECT
.
The competitive moves and business approaches a company's management
are using grow the business, attract and please customers, compete
successfully, conduct operations, and achieve the targeted levels of
organizational performance is referred to as its
E) strategy.
2 INCORRECT
3 INCORRECT
Which one of the following is not related to actions and approaches that
comprise a company's strategy?
A) How to take advantage of growth opportunities
B) How to prove to shareholders that the company's business model
is viable
In answering the question, "How are we going to get there?" management
must have deliberate plans for addressing such issues as
B) changing market conditions, development of internal capabilities
and competencies, and allocation of financial resources.
4 CORRECT
Which of the following is not an element of a company's business
strategy?
C) Management actions to revise the company's financial and
strategic performance targets
5 INCORRECT
Which of the following is not one of the most frequently used strategic
approaches to building competitive advantage?
A) Striving for a competitive edge based on bigger profit margins
6 CORRECT
The most important aspect of a company's business strategy
A) is the linkage with its business model.
B) is its ability to increase shareholder value.
C) is its approach to competing in the marketplace.
7
UNANSWERED
Strategies that yield sustainable competitive advantage is important
because
A) increases in shareholder value are contingent on a sustainable
competitive advantage.
B) a strategy that yields a competitive advantage over rivals is a
company's most reliable means of achieving above-average
profitability and financial performance.
C) competitive advantage forms the underpinnings of a company's
strategic vision.
D) a competitive advantage is what enables a company to achieve its
strategic objectives.
E) All of these.
8 INCORRECT
A company achieves sustainable competitive advantage when
E) an attractive number of buyers have a lasting preference for its
products or services as compared to the offerings of competitors.
9
UNANSWERED
A strategy that sets a company apart from rivals and that gives it a
sustainable competitive advantage
A) is a company's most reliable ticket to above-average profitability.
B) is based heavily upon the emergent elements of its strategy.
C) is a reliable indicator that the company has a profitable business
model.
D) can be called a winning strategy.
E) is the best indicator that the company's strategy and business
model are well-matched and properly synchronized.
10
INCORRECT
Approaches to achieving a sustainable competitive advantage include
which of the following?
A) Developing unmatched resource strengths and competitive
capabilities.
B) Focusing on a narrow market niche within an industry.
C) Strategies keyed to creating a differentiation-based advantage.
D) Strategies keyed to developing a cost-based advantage.
E) All of these.
11 CORRECT
Company strategies evolve because
A) it is a bad idea to do too much strategizing until a company has
been in business long enough to know what strategies will work
best.
B) most managers like to develop the strategy in bits and pieces
rather than all at once.
C) of the ongoing need to respond to changing market conditions, the
fresh moves of competitors, shifting buyer needs and preferences,
emerging market opportunities, new ideas for improving the
strategy, and any evidence that indicates the strategy is not
working well.
D) many managers are conservative, preferring to carefully
contemplate the best responses to new developments and avoiding
the risks associated with developing a complete strategy too
quickly.
E) a strategy does not really transition to a well-crafted stage until a
company has been trying to execute it for a number of years and
has learned what works and what doesn't.
12
UNANSWERED
It is normal for a company's strategy to end up being
A) little different from management's original planned set of actions
and business approaches since making on-the-spot changes is too
risky.
B) a combination of defensive moves to protect the company's market
share and offensive initiatives to set the company's product offering
apart from rivals.
C) pretty much like the strategies of other industry members since all
companies are confronting much the same market conditions and
competitive pressures.
D) a blend of deliberate actions to improve the company's
competitiveness and financial performance and unplanned
reactions to changing circumstances and fresh market
conditions.
E) a mirror image of its business model, so as to avoid impairing
company profitability.
13
INCORRECT
Which of the following statements about a company's realized strategy is
true?
A) A company's realized strategy is usually kept secret.
B) A company's realized strategy is typically planned well in advance
and usually deviates little from the planned set of actions.
C) A company's realized strategy generally changes very little over
time unless a newly-appointed CEO decides to take the company
in a new direction with new a strategy.
D) A company's realized strategy is developed mostly on a day-today basis because of the constant efforts of managers to keep rival
companies at a disadvantage.
E) A company's realized strategy is typically a blend of
deliberate/planned initiatives and emergent/unplanned reactive
strategy elements.
14
UNANSWERED
A company's business model
A) determines whether its strategy will be ethical or not.
B) is management's storyline for how the strategy will result in
achieving sustainable competitive advantage.
C) outlines the key components of its business approach and indicates
how revenues sufficient to cover operating expenses will be
generated.
D) identifies how the company plans to outmaneuver and outcompete
key rivals and become a market leader.
E) sets forth the actions and approaches that it will rely on to earn the
best profit margins in the industry.
15
INCORRECT
A viable business model
A) is derived from the company's strategic vision.
B) lays out a compelling case for how the strategy will yield
competitive advantage.
C) should explain how the company will achieve high profit margins
while at the same time charging relatively low prices to customers.
D) must be closely linked to the company's business strategy.
E) must generate revenues sufficient to cover costs and deliver good
profitability.
16
INCORRECT
The difference between a company's strategy and a company's business
model is that
A) strategy relates broadly to a company's action plan for running the
business and building competitive advantage, while its business
model relates to whether the revenues and costs flowing from the
strategy will allow the business to earn satisfactory profits and
returns on investment.
B) the strategy concerns how to achieve the company's vision and the
business model concerns how to operate efficiently.
C) a company's strategy is management's game plan for building
shareholder value whereas a company's business model is the
game plan for accomplishing the business purpose or mission.
D) a company's strategy is developed by the board of directors and
chief executive officer while its business model is developed by
line managers.
E) a company's strategy concerns how to please customers while its
business model concerns how to please shareholders.
17
INCORRECT
Which of the following statements concerning Microsoft's business model
and Red Hat's business model (as discussed in Illustration Capsule 1.2) is
false?
A) Microsoft has a proven business model while Red Hat's business
model is unproven.
B) Microsoft's business model involves employing a cadre of highly
skilled programmers to develop proprietary code; keeping the
source code hidden from customers/users, and locking them in to
using Microsoft's proprietary software.
C) Most of Microsoft's costs arise on the front end in developing the
software and are thus "fixed"; the variable costs of producing and
packaging the CDs provided to users are only a couple of dollars
per copy-once the breakeven volume is reached, Microsoft's
revenues from additional sales are almost pure profit.
D) Red Hat relies on the collaborative efforts of volunteer
programmers from all over the world who contribute bits and
pieces of code to improve and polish the Linux system.
E) Red Hat's business model is predicated on closely guarding its
source code while Microsoft is a strong advocate of open or free
source code.
18
INCORRECT
A winning strategy is one that
A) makes the company a market leader, is ethically and socially
responsible, and maximizes profits.
B) is highly profitable and boosts the company's market share.
C) passes the profitability test, the ethics and social responsibility
test, the customer satisfaction test, and the shareholder wealth test.
D) fits the company's internal and external situation, builds
sustainable competitive advantage, and boosts company
performance.
E) passes the ethical standards test, the competitive advantage test,
and the profitability test.
19
INCORRECT
Which one of the following questions can be used to distinguish a winning
strategy from a so-so or losing strategy?
A) What portion of the strategy was ultimately abandoned as market
conditions changed as the strategy played out?
B) How well does the strategy fit the company's business model?
C) Does the company have a large number of differentiating features
in comparison to rivals?
D) Has the strategy produced good financial performance?
E) Does the company have viable business model?
20
INCORRECT
Which of the following questions ought to be used to distinguish a winning
strategy from a mediocre or losing strategy?
A) Did the strategy develop from an inclusive cooperative
relationship between top-level management, line managers, and
hourly personnel?
B) Has management responded to changing market conditions with
emergent strategy elements?
C) Is the strategy built upon a viable business model?
D) Does the strategy strike a balance between shareholder interests
and social responsibility?
E) Is the strategy well-matched to the company's situation, helping
the company achieve a sustainable competitive advantage, and
resulting in better company performance?