Q&A Hero

Q: A clear mission statement describes the values and priorities of an organization.

Q: The world population that lives outside of the U.S. is growing ________ the U.S. population. A) 25 percent slower than B) 70 percent slower than C) 25 percent faster than D) 70 percent faster than E) at the same rate as

Q: Modern organizational realities demand that employees demonstrate greater A) flexibility. B) innovation. C) creativity. D) initiative. E) all of the above

Q: Strategists should strive to preserve, emphasize, and build upon aspects of an existing culture that are antagonistic to a proposed strategy.

Q: Although bankruptcy can be an effective type of retrenchment strategy, it does not allow firms to avoid major debt obligations and to void union contracts.

Q: Competitive intelligence is not considered corporate espionage because 95 percent of the information a company needs to make strategic decisions is available and accessible to the public.

Q: In the last five years, the position of chief strategy officer (CSO) has diminished in comparison to other top management ranks of many organizations.

Q: In which of the following industries is the U.S. NOT yet greatly challenged by foreign competitors? A) auto industry B) electronics C) manufacturing D) retailing E) None of the above

Q: If success for one organizational department means failure for another department, then strategies may be A) synergistic. B) advantageous. C) trendy. D) feasible. E) inconsistent.

Q: Changing a strategy to fit an existing culture is not as effective as changing a firm's culture to fit a new strategy.

Q: Retrenchment and turnaround are the same strategy.

Q: An effective CI program allows all areas of a firm to access consistent and verifiable information in making decisions.

Q: A vision statement answers the question, "What is our business?" whereas a mission statement answers, "What do we want to become?"

Q: What percent of the world's population lives outside the United States? A) 55 B) 65 C) 75 D) 85 E) 95

Q: Rumelt's criteria of consonance refers to the need for strategists to examine A) inconsistent goals. B) sets of trends. C) impractical objectives. D) competitive advantages. E) the costs associated with particular strategies.

Q: Organizational change today should be viewed as a project or event rather than as a continuous project.

Q: Unrelated diversification may be an especially effective strategy when an organization's basic industry is experiencing increasing annual sales and profits.

Q: Hiring top executives from rival firms is a way companies obtain competitive intelligence.

Q: All strategists have similar attitudes, values, ethics and concerns for social responsibility.

Q: Protectionism involves countries doing all of the following EXCEPT A) levying tariffs against firms outside the country B) imposing taxes on firms outside the country C) imposing regulations on firms outside the country D) restricting imports from firms outside the country E) liberalizing restrictions on the import of foreign goods

Q: What term refers to the need for strategists to examine sets of trends, as well as individual trends, in evaluating strategies? A) Consistency B) Consonance C) Synergy D) Feasibility E) Advantage

Q: A force change strategy is plagued by low commitment and high resistance.

Q: Deutsche Bank's entrance into the casino business in Las Vegas is an example of related diversification.

Q: Major competitors' strengths may represent key threats.

Q: The middle manager is the most visible and critical strategic manager.

Q: Most economists argue that protectionism ________ the world economy because it ________ trade among countries. A) helps; inhibits B) helps; encourages C) harms; inhibits D) harms; encourages E) doesn't impact; doesn't affect

Q: Competitive advantage normally is the result of superiority in resources, skills, and A) employees. B) position. C) consistency. D) feasibility. E) governance.

Q: Strategists should strive to create a work environment in which change is recognized as necessary and beneficial so that individuals can more easily adapt to change.

Q: Unrelated diversification is an appropriate strategy when an organization's present channels of distribution can be used to market the new products to current customers.

Q: Internal opportunities can be represented by major competitors' weaknesses.

Q: Strategists are usually found in higher levels of management and have considerable authority for decision-making in the firm.

Q: ________ countries are market leaders in labor-intensive industries and ________ offers abundant natural resources and rapidly developing markets. A) East Asian; Brazil B) South American; Germany C) East Asian; Germany D) South American; Brazil E) European; Japan

Q: According to Rumelt, the final broad test of strategy is its A) advantage. B) feasibility. C) consonance. D) consistency. E) distinctiveness.

Q: The rational change strategy is one that presents information to convince people of the need for change.

Q: The acquisition of security-software company McAfee by Intel Corp. is an example of related diversification.

Q: Corporate intelligence can be defined as a systematic and ethical process for gathering and analyzing information about the competition's activities and general business trends to further a business' own goals.

Q: In order for a firm to achieve sustained competitive advantage, a firm must continually adapt to changes in external trends and events and effectively formulate, implement, and evaluate strategies that capitalize upon those factors.

Q: Which of the following statements is NOT true? A) America's economy is becoming much less American. B) A world economy and monetary system are emerging. C) Corporations in every corner of the globe are taking advantage of the opportunity to obtain customers globally. D) Markets are shifting slowly and in many cases diverging in tastes, trends, and prices. E) Innovative transport systems are accelerating the transfer of technology.

Q: Success today A) guarantees success tomorrow. B) is no guarantee of success tomorrow. C) should lull a firm into complacency. D) is all that really matters. E) none of the above.

Q: The advantage of the educative change strategy is that implementation is quick and relatively easy.

Q: Diversification strategies are becoming more popular as organizations are finding it easier to manage diverse business activities.

Q: "Innovate or evaporate; particularly in technology-driven businesses, nothing quite recedes like success," is a characteristic that describes the most competitive companies in America.

Q: Most traditional retailers have tried in vain to use their online sales to boost in-store sales.

Q: ________ is the fastest-growing market for pocket book maker Coach and the second-largest market for Dell. A) America B) China C) Brazil D) Japan E) Mexico

Q: Which of the following is NOT a reason for the increasing difficulty of evaluating strategies? A) Product life cycles are longer. B) Domestic and world economies are less stable. C) Product development cycles are shorter. D) Technological advancement is more rapid. E) Change is occurring more frequently.

Q: When the rational type change strategy is successful, strategy implementation can be relatively easy.

Q: Most companies favor related diversification strategies in order to exploit common use of a well-known brand name.

Q: A characteristic that describes the most competitive companies in America is "whether it's broke or not, fix it make it better; not just products, but the whole company if necessary."

Q: One of the ways in which the Internet has transferred power from businesses to individuals is by making comparison-shopping quick and easy.

Q: Strengths of competitors in foreign lands are often ________, and weaknesses are often ________. A) overestimated; overestimated B) overestimated; underestimated C) underestimated; underestimated D) underestimated; overestimated E) made too much of; ignored

Q: All of the following are reasons strategy evaluation is more difficult today EXCEPT A) a dramatic increase in the environment's complexity B) the increasing number of variables C) the increase in the number of both domestic and world events affecting organizations D) the decreasing difficulty of predicting the future with accuracy E) the rapid rate of obsolescence of even the best plans

Q: A rational change strategy means giving orders and enforcing those orders.

Q: There are four basic types of diversification: concentric, conglomerate, forward, and backward.

Q: Walgreens and CVS pharmacies are located generally across the street from each other and battle each other every day on price and customer service.

Q: While the number of people shopping online has increased, the average amount spent online has decreased.

Q: All of the following are potential disadvantages to initiating, continuing, or expanding business across national borders EXCEPT A) Firms confront different social, cultural, and political forces when doing business internationally, which can make communication in the firm difficult. B) Keeping informed about the number and nature of competitors is more difficult when doing business internationally. C) Foreign operations can absorb excess capacity, reduce unit costs, and spread economic risks over a wider number of markets. D) Dealing with two or more monetary systems can complicate international business operations. E) Foreign operations could be seized by nationalistic forces.

Q: With the passage of time strategy evaluation is becoming A) increasingly difficult. B) much simpler. C) very convenient. D) an unnecessary activity. E) less important.

Q: Resistance to change can be considered the single greatest threat to successful strategy implementation.

Q: Product development is an appropriate strategy when an organization has successful products that are in the maturity stage of the product life cycle.

Q: In practice, critical technology decisions are too often delegated to lower organizational levels or are made without an understanding of their strategic implications.

Q: Although the Internet has increased in popularity, it has actually led to increases in company expenses.

Q: A firm's power and prestige in domestic markets may be significantly enhanced if the firm competes globally, ________. A) which can translate into improved negotiating power among important groups B) though this rarely results in a practical advantage C) but this can hurt its bargaining power with suppliers and distributors D) yet this does nothing to improve its position with creditors E) which can alienate the firm from its domestic creditors, suppliers, and distributors

Q: All of these are Richard Rumelt's criteria to evaluate a strategy EXCEPT A) advantage B) consistency C) feasibility D) distinctiveness E) consonance

Q: People's anxieties are raised with the thought of change because they fear economic loss, inconvenience, uncertainty and a break in normal social patterns.

Q: Product development is a strategy that seeks increased sales by improving or modifying present products or services.

Q: The Internet is changing the very nature of many industries by altering product life cycles and changing the historical trade-off between production standardization and flexibility.

Q: Newspaper companies in the United States provide a good example of how a company can sustain a competitive advantage over the long-term.

Q: ________ can enable firms to learn the technology, culture, and business practices of other people and to make contacts with potential customers, suppliers, creditors, and distributors in foreign countries. A) Economies of scale B) Joint ventures C) Low-cost production facilities D) Reduced tariffs E) Domestic operations

Q: What is the cornerstone of effective strategy evaluation? A) Adequate and timely feedback B) Quality and quantity of managers C) Smaller ratio of top- to lower-level management D) Evaluation preceding implementation stage E) Punitive corrective actions

Q: On average, CEOs at Japanese companies are paid more than CEOs at American or European companies.

Q: PepsiCo is the largest food-and-beverage firm in Russia.

Q: The United States has been more active than other nations in protectionist measures and has engaged in many "Buy American" policies.

Q: Once a firm acquires a competitive advantage, they are usually able to sustain the competitive advantage indefinitely.

Q: Which of the following is a potential advantage of conducting international operations? A) Competitors in foreign markets may not exist, or competition may be less intense than in domestic markets. B) Dealing with two or more monetary systems can complicate international business operations. C) Differing language, culture, and value systems can make communication difficult. D) Gaining an understanding of regional organizations is difficult but is often required in doing business internationally. E) All of the above

Q: Too much emphasis on evaluating strategies A) may be expensive and counterproductive. B) is not possible - the more emphasis the better. C) is good for morale, as employees like being closely evaluated. D) is always advised if the firm can afford it. E) is worse than too little or no evaluation.

Q: A dual bonus system based on both annual objectives and long-term objectives is becoming common.

Q: An appropriate strategy when an organization has excess production capacity is market development.

Q: India is increasing tariffs on foreign steel.

Q: Anything the firm does especially well compared to rival firms could be considered a competitive advantage.

Q: All of the following are potential advantages to initiating, continuing, and/or expanding international operations EXCEPT A) Firms can gain new customers for their products. B) Foreign operations can absorb excess capacity, reduce unit costs, and spread economic risks over a wider number of markets. C) Foreign operations can allow firms to establish low-cost production facilities in locations close to raw materials and/or cheap labor. D) Foreign operations could be seized by nationalistic factions. E) Foreign operations may result in reduced tariffs, lower taxes, and favorable political treatment.