Chapter 4: Internal Analysis Resources, Capabilities, and Core Competencies

A core competency can help a company achieve which of the following?

-to differentiate its products and services -to offer products of comparable value at lower cost than rivals can -to create higher value for the consumer

The internal activities of a firm that for transforming inputs into outputs consist of (A) activities, which add value directly, and (B) activities, which add value indirectly.

(A) Primary (B) Support

A(n) __________ is a unique strength, embedded deep within a firm, that is critical to gaining and sustaining competitive advantage.

Core competency

Core competencies should he continuously improved so that the firm can acquire or maintain a competitive advantage.

True

A resource is considered (?) if it helps a firm to deal with an external threat.

Valuable

According to the value chain perspective, (?) are located in the network that connects different, but related activities within a firm.

Core competencies

The (?) perspective is a model that emphasizes a firm's ability to modify and leverage its resource base in a way that enables it to sustain competitive advantage in a constantly changing environment.

Dynamic capabilities

Strong resource flows (?) a firm's resource stocks.

Increase

Dynamic capabilities can be described as (?)

Intangible resource

(?) do not have physical attributes.

Intangible resources

Core competencies of a business are generated by the interaction of (?)

Resources and capabilities

(?) describes a situation in which different social and business systems interact with each other.

Social complexity

The interaction of the many individual systems in the operation of a company often leads to casual ambiguity because of (?).

Social complexity

Accounting and finance are (?) activities in a firms value chain.

Supporr

In order to avoid making costly mistakes due to the potential shortcomings of the SWOT analysis, a manager should (?).

Take results from the SWOT analysis with "a grain of salt".

How are intangible resource stocks acquired?

Through investments over time in intangible resources

According to the resource-based model, a firm is assumed to be a unique bundle of resources, capabilities, and competencies.

True

What can cause an outflow of intangible resource stocks from a firm?

Turnover of employees and forgetting knowledge

Which of the following is NOT considered an isolating mechanism?

Uncertainty about future resource value

The _______ is a theoretical model that explains and predicts what resource attributes underpin competitive advantage. It identified which types of resources are key to firm performance.

VRIO framework

The value chain concept is applicable primarily to high-tech firms in rapidly changing environments.

False

While the (?) clarifies in a firm's core competencies, the (?) helps leaders understand how competitive advantage arises from the firm's unique activities.

Resource-based view; value chain perspective

The culture of Zappos is hard imitate because it consists of numerous, diverse interactions among its employees, processes, procedures, and norms, that create which of the following?

Social complexity

A firm trying to compete with the leading firm in a competitive industry can try to negate the leading firm's competitive advantage through which of the following?

Substitution and direct imitation

Research and development, information systems and Human Resources are examples of _________ activities.

Support

Why is competitive advantage more likely to spring from intangible rather than tangible assets?

Tangible assets can be bought on the open market.

The resource-based view classifies all resources as ________.

Tangible or intangible

(?) are the firm's level of investments to maintain or build a resource.

Resource flows

_____ suggests that sometimes even random events may have a large impact on an outcome.

Path dependence

In performing a SWOT analysis to generate insights from external and internal analysis, internal strengths and weaknesses can be determined by applying (A) and external strengths can be evaluated in part by applying (B).

(A) the VRIO framework (B) PESTEL

What does the concept of resource immobility imply?

- That reproducting the set resources from another company is difficult - That resource differences between firms can last a long time

Understanding the cause and effect of a strategy may help managers avoid (?)

Casual ambiguity

Which of the following are example of business activities?

-Order taking -Delivery of products -Invoicing customers

Capabilities include which of the following?

-Routines -Culture -Organizational Structure

In the dynamic capabilities perspective, competitive advantage derives from

Actively modifying of the resource base

According to the dynamic capabilities perspective, competitive advantage stems from a firm's ability to (?).

Agilely transform its resource base.

Time compression diseconomies occur when a firm

Attempts to reach an outcome in a reduced amount of time

Isolating mechanisms are considered to be _______

Barriers to imitation

Which of the following are examples of resources for a firm?

Buildings, intellectual property, and cash

The organizational and managerial skills necessary to orchestrate a diverse set of resources and deploy them strategically are called

Capabilities

________ describes a situation where the cause and effect of a phenomenon are not readily apparent.

Casual ambiguity

Primary activities include which of the following?

Operations and supply chain management

Which of the following can help a firm extend its competitive advantage?

Path dependence, better expectations of future resource value, and intellectual property protection.

_______ activities add value directly by transforming inputs into putouts as the firm moves a product or service horizontally along the internal value chain.

Primary

According to the VRIO framework, in order for a firm to gain a temporary competitive advantage, a resource must be at least both (?).

Rare and valuable

_____ refers to the idea that a firm is a bundle of resources and capabilities that is unique to the firm.

Resource heterogeneity

_____ refers to the assumptions that resources tend to be "sticky" and do not move easily from firm to firm.

Resource immobility

(?) are the firm's current level of intangible resources.

Resource stocks

In order to be successful, a firm must have a resource that is valuable, rare, costly to imitate, and the firm must ______.

be organized to capture value

Strategic fit ___ the likelihood that a firm is able to gain a competitive advantage.

increases

Which of the following are considered resources under the resource-based view of the firm?

Competencies, capabilities, and assets

(?) has a greater chance of arising from tangible resources than from tangible resources.

Competitive advantage

Which of the following are situations in which a resource is considered valuable?

The resource helps the firm increase its economic value creation (V-C) and exploit an external opportunity.

Which of the following statements are true about the capabilities of a firm?

They include organizational and managerial skills, and concern the deployment of resources.

A firms attempts to shorten the length of time a process takes, may lead to disappointing outcomes because of (?).

Time compression diseconomies

What does the concept of resource immobility imply?

That reproducing the set resources from another company is difficult and the resource differences between firms can last a long time.