MGMT 481: Ch. 3 (test bank) cont...
A
A firm's ________ relates to its ability to create value for customers (V) while containing the cost to do so (C). A) strategic position B) industry effects C) advantage of the marketplace D) industry analysis
C
A new company named Far Reach Inc. entered the radio retail business, which is a fairly consolidated industry. In response, two large incumbent radio retailers, Smooth Waves and Clear Signal, lowered the price of their radios. Also, they spent more money to improve their radios and on additional marketing. By doing this, Smooth Waves and Clear Signal: A) decreased industry exit barriers. B) increased industry exit barriers. C) decreased industry profit potential. D) increased industry profit potential.
C
Addams Coaches Inc. is a bus line with service to several major cities. It has several competitors that each offer service to one or two cities, and based on its current outlays, it cannot match or beat those competitors on price. Because of long-term contracts and an increase in the cost of gasoline, it is not possible to reduce expenditures at this time. Which of these strategies should Addams pursue instead? A) Create a strategic group through mergers. B) Compete based on inter-group rivalry, not intra-group rivalry. C) Pursue a differentiated strategy. D) Close the business until the cost of gas decreases.
C
Anders is researching sociocultural factors related to his employer, a sporting goods manufacturer. Which of the following would be part of the sociocultural forces in a firm's external environment? A) the interest rates prevalent in an economy B) the laws protecting small enterprises in a nation C) the family size of the firm's target market D) the rate of employee attrition within the firm
C
Bethany is a chef who owns three moderately successful restaurants with innovative menus. Based on what you have read, which of these approaches could help her improve her profits? A) Change her menus and décor to appeal to economy-minded consumers. B) Carefully time the opening of her business and focus on underserved niches. C) Use her existing knowledge, equipment, and staff to launch a catering business. D) Expand to new locations in economically struggling areas.
A
Bryan is a manager at a software firm. The CEO tells him that the industry as a whole has become increasingly profitable over the past five years. Based on this information, Bryan is most likely to expect: A) increased competition in the future and therefore he should recommend that the company upgrade its products to slow the entry of rival companies. B) increased profitability in the future and therefore he should recommend that the company remain on its current course. C) a leveling off of profitability in the next few years and therefore he should recommend that the company cooperate with its rivals to stimulate the industry. D) decreased competition in the next few years and therefore he should recommend that the company take advantage of its pricing power.
C
Clear Calls Inc., a telephone service provider, has a large user base mainly because phone calls and messages between all Clear Calls users are free. When a person switches to a Clear Calls network, his or her entire network of family and friends is likely to switch to the same network to receive the benefit of free calls and messages. In addition, an existing user who gets a new user to register with Clear Calls Inc. is given a free wireless connection. This has helped to keep competition away from Clear Calls. In this scenario, which of the following factors is acting as an entry barrier for Clear Calls Inc.? A) economies of scale B) high capital requirement C) network effects D) high fixed costs
A
Competitive rivalry based solely on ________ is destructive to firms as it transfers most of the value created in the industry to the customers. A) price-cutting B) new product releases C) promotional campaigns D) product differentiation
B
Corner Market Inc. is a supermarket chain. Due to strong competition from other stores in the industry, Corner Market has aggressively used branding, pricing, and superior customer service to uniquely position itself in the market. As a result, the supermarket chain has been able to differentiate itself from its competitors and sell its products at higher prices. Which of the following industry competitive structures does this scenario best illustrate? A) perfect competition B) monopolistic competition C) monopoly D) oligopoly
D
Curry Rush is a premium Asian restaurant chain that differentiates itself from a large number of competitors by providing exclusively organic Vietnamese cuisine. It has some pricing power because it provides differentiated products and therefore, has some entry barriers in place. In this scenario, Curry Rush is most likely operating in a(n): A) oligopoly. B) monopoly. C) perfectly competitive industry. D) monopolistically competitive industry.
C
Economies of scale are cost advantages that accrue for firms with: A) high fixed costs. B) low employee turnover. C) larger output. D) high capital risks.
D
Demand for traditional fast-food providers such as McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's has been on a decline in recent years. Consumers have become more health conscious and demand has shifted to alternative restaurants like Subway, Chick-fil-A, and Chipotle. Attempts by McDonald's and Wendy's to steal customers from one another include frequent discounting tactics such as dollar menus. Such competitive actions are indicative of: A) profitability increases. B) perfect competition. C) natural monopolies. D) cutthroat competition.
C
Due to economic regression in Freedonia, the profitability of the large corporation Happiness Products Inc. (HPI) was poor. An analysis of the company's business showed that the company could become profitable if it divested a few strategic business units under its banner. From which of the following businesses would HPI find it most easy to exit? A) the automobile industry, where the company has contractual obligations with suppliers B) the airline business, where the company's strategic commitments are long-term C) the e-commerce retail business, where investments on assets are low D) the pharmaceutical business, where the company has a large number of fixed costs
B
During an interview for a CEO position, Elena's potential employers ask her, "If you get this job, will you focus more on industry effects or firm effects?" What should her answer be? A) "Neither. I would focus on unexplained variances. They are the most mysterious effects and the most powerful." B) "Firm effects. I will be able to have the most impact on those." C) "Industry effects. They have the most substantial effect on superior firm performance." D) "Neither. I would focus on business cycle effects. These are the most predictable, so they are worth the most effort."
B
Eon Inc., Electravia Inc., and FC Inc., the three largest firms in the consumer electronics industry, hold close to 85 percent of the industry's market share. These companies mainly compete against each other by providing unique features in their products rather than pricing them low. These firms are interdependent, and each firm must consider the strategic actions of its competitors. Which of the following industry competitive structures does this scenario best illustrate? A) monopolistic competition B) oligopoly C) monopoly D) perfect competition
A
Etsuro is a management consultant. Baker Corp. asks him to evaluate their company, and he finds that the difference between the cost of producing the firm's products and the value of those products is extremely narrow. What should Etsuro suggest that Baker Corp. management do? A) Find a way to widen the gap between cost and value. B) Find a way to pass on as much profit as possible to suppliers and customers. C) Shore up the company's strong position by erecting entry barriers. D) Encourage customers to buy complements to their products.
C
Euan manages product design and development at a toy company. The junior managers who report to him tell him that new complementors for the firm's products are available. What should Euan's reaction be? A) He should consult lawyers about the possibility of suing for copyright infringement. B) If the industry barriers to entry are low, he doesn't need to do anything. C) He needs to find out if his company as well as other companies can provide the complements. D) If the industry barriers to entry are high, he doesn't need to do anything.
B
Fadia Ammunition Inc., a firm controlled and managed by the government of Fadia, is the only company that has the license to produce defense arms in the country. Which of the following industry competitive structures does this best illustrate? A) monopolistic competition B) monopoly C) oligopoly D) perfect competition
D
Fran owns Consolidated Auto Parts, a company that got its start making auto parts related for hybrid vehicles, but her firm has had difficulty establishing itself as a maker of parts for the more-profitable internal combustion engine. What is most likely contributing to Consolidated's problem in this area? A) Newcomers cannot use existing assets or reconfigure their value chains. B) New competitors usually ignore stakeholders who are not stockholders. C) It is difficult for outsiders to gauge which stage of the "life cycle" that industry is in. D) Entry barriers usually protect the incumbent players in a profitable industry.
B
Given the structure of the automobile industry, entering the auto manufacturing industry seemed risky. Yet Tesla Motors joined the fray. Rather than attempting to compete head-on with internal combustion engines, Tesla Motors entered the all-electric car segment, a much less crowded niche in the overall car industry. Which of the following is Tesla most hoping to benefit from in this market niche? A) network effects B) economies of scale C) customer switching costs D) capital requirements
B
How do low interest rates affect a business? A) Firms tend to defer investments until rates rise. B) Firms can easily borrow money to finance future growth. C) Consumer demand slows down. D) Business credit is harder to obtain.
B
In a firm's external environment, ________ primarily capture population characteristics related to age, gender, family size, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, and socioeconomic class. A) political trends B) demographic trends C) ecological trends D) economic trends
A
In an industry, the threat of entry is high when: A) capital requirements are low. B) expected returns are low. C) technological know-how is industry specific. D) switching costs are high.
A
In the aircraft manufacturing industry, at least for large commercial jets, Boeing and Airbus are the only competitors. There is not a significant threat of entry because: A) entering the aircraft manufacturing industry requires huge capital investments. B) there is expected to be a huge return on investment within this industry. C) there is no credible threat of retaliation from the incumbents. D) entering the aircraft manufacturing industry means violating government policies.
D
In which of the following situations is a company that exists in the telecommunications industry most likely to face the highest threat of entry? A) if the company is able to put up a credible threat of retaliation B) if the capital requirements in the industry are high C) if the customer switching costs in the industry are high D) if the industry has recently become deregulated
D
In which of the following situations is the power of suppliers high in an industry? A) Suppliers offer products that are undifferentiated. B) Suppliers can credibly threaten to backward integrate into the industry. C) Suppliers depend heavily on the industry for their revenues. D) Suppliers' industry is more concentrated than the industry it sells to.
A
Jamie is a manager in an industry that has a few large players and that has remained relatively stable over the past few years. He finds out that legislators are proposing new laws to deregulate the industry. If the laws pass, which of these scenarios will Jamie most likely face? A) many new competitors B) technological innovation C) the end of globalization D) across-the-board price increases
A
Keeping in mind the five forces in the airline industry, which of the following best explains the difficulty airlines have in generating a profit? A) Substitutes are readily available in the form of trains, buses, and cars, thus reducing the profit potential in the industry. B) Suppliers have weak bargaining power because they offer products that are not differentiated. C) Entry barriers in the industry are high, resulting in hardly any new airlines popping up. D) Consumers in the industry make decisions based on price, thus reducing the intensity of rivalry in the industry.
D
Kimba Inc. is a manufacturer of smart watches that track the wearer's heart rate and sleep patterns. Which of the following is most likely an implication of new firms entering this industry? A) The bargaining power of buyers will reduce. B) The industry's overall profit potential and sales will increase. C) The rivalry among existing competitors will reduce. D) The incumbent firms will spend more to satisfy their existing customers.
D
Lu runs a company that manufactures satellites for commercial and government use. It has few rivals. At the moment, the power of buyers, the power of suppliers, and the threat of substitutes are all low. Based on this information, what can Lu conclude? A) The manufacturer is likely to see little profit until the power of buyers improves. B) In this scenario, suppliers are likely to create and sell effective substitutes. C) This firm is an example of near-perfect competition. D) The company is likely to be very profitable as long as the threat to entry is low.
D
Luz manages a chain of bars and restaurants in a tri-county area that has recently experienced an economic boom because of fracking and high oil prices. What is most likely to happen when there is too much money in the tri-county economy? A) too many goods and services B) a drop in interest rates C) high economic growth D) an increase in prices
A
Magical Productions is a large production company that controls a major portion of the television industry's market share along with two other firms. Despite its competitiveness with the two other firms, it is influenced by their actions and often has to consider their strategic actions before acting on its own. In this scenario, Magical Productions is most likely functioning in a(n) ________ industry. A) oligopolistic B) monopolistic C) perfectly competitive D) monopolistically competitive
D
Managers at Sandburg Real Estate are surprised to hear that interest rates are likely to remain low for the next six months. Which of the following is an implication of low interest rates? A) Cost of capital for firms will be high. B) Firms will invest less in future growth. C) Economic growth rate will fall. D) Consumer demand will increase.
B
Mara is a management consultant for a soda manufacturer that wants to expand into health drinks such as green tea and after-workout drinks. Based on what you have read, which of these is sensible advice for Mara to offer her client? A) "Pinpoint the best time to enter this new market, and then make a yes-or-no decision quickly." B) "Carefully consider the entry choices over time before making a decision." C) "Your best bet is to undercut competitors' prices and lure them into a price war." D) "Focus on what your company does well rather than trying to expand into untried areas."
B
Marina manages the supply chain for a company that sells diamond watches. She learns that economists are predicting a moderate to severe recession in the next six to eight months. Based on that information, what action should Marina recommend to the company's owner? A) Increase supply. During recessions, businesses that focus on low-cost solutions make significant profits. B) Reduce supply. Customers generally reduce their purchases of luxury items when the economy falters. C) Maintain the supply at its current rate. Economic forecasts are rarely accurate. D) Wait six months and see what happens. Recessions rarely affect consumer spending.
B
National Safety Inc., an insurance firm, replaced its existing project management software with new software from another supplier. Since the new software has different features and abilities, National Safety has had to spend $10,000 on training its employees to use it. In this scenario, $10,000 represents National Safety's: A) opportunity cost. B) switching cost. C) octroi charge. D) excise duty.
B
Peerless Inc., a large conglomerate, wants to liquidate its business in certain industries to improve its overall profitability. Which of the following industries would Peerless Inc. find it most difficult to exit? A) the management consultancy industry in which the company's fixed costs are low B) the steel industry in which the company has obligations like severance pay toward employees C) the corporate training industry in which the company's commitments are mostly short-term D) the e-commerce industry where the company has no long-term contractual agreements with suppliers
C
Pure Carat Inc. is a company that sells 24-carat gold biscuits to companies that manufacture jewelry. Since the company operates in an industry where many other suppliers sell standardized products, it can most likely: A) easily achieve a temporary competitive advantage. B) easily achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. C) only achieve competitive parity. D) maintain its absolute advantage for long time.
B
Quick Market Inc. is a food supply company that wants to sell its products directly to consumers through mail order instead of going through supermarkets and other stores. However, supermarket chains want to make this transaction either illegal or more difficult for Quick Market. To accomplish this, they are using ________ to influence the political process. A) ecological factors B) lobbying forces C) interest rates D) demographic research
A
Samsung and Google cooperate as complementors to compete against Apple's strong position in the mobile device industry, while at the same time Samsung and Google are increasingly becoming competitive with one another. This scenario best illustrates the process of: A) co-opetition. B) perfect competition. C) monopolization. D) conglomeration.
D
Soapsuds Inc., a manufacturer of cleaning agents, supplies its products to All Needs Inc., a supermarket chain. It demands that All Needs create more shelf space in its stores for Soapsuds' products. However, All Needs Inc. refuses to do this. Instead, it decides to produce its own range of cleaning agents with its own label "All Wash." In this scenario, All Needs Inc. has exercised its bargaining power as a buyer through: A) price stability. B) retroactive market share. C) enhanced technology. D) backward integration.
D
The government of Filvia has mandated that the standard minimum wage in the country be increased to $8,000 per year. Which of the following factors in a firm's general environment does this mandate best indicate? A) ecological factors B) sociocultural factors C) technological factors D) legal factors
B
The internet service provider industry in the country of Megalopolis is an industry characterized by the presence of strong network effects, high brand loyalty, high economies of scale, and proprietary technology among incumbent firms. Thus, in the internet service provider industry, the: A) threat of substitutes is most likely high. B) threat of new entrants is most likely low. C) bargaining power of buyers is most likely low. D) entry barriers are most likely nonexistent.
D
Three large firms dominate the telecommunication industry of United Canava: AD Telecom Inc., Mystic Telecom Corp., and Total Talk Inc. Instead of cutting prices competitively, these firms have resorted to non-price competition through branding and product differentiation. Which of the following industry competitive structures are these companies most likely in? A) monopoly B) perfect competition C) monopolistic competition D) oligopoly
C
When companies that manufacture shipping containers want to buy iron ore, the purchase decision is solely based on price. This is because there are a large number of sellers in the iron ore industry, and iron ore is a highly undifferentiated commodity. Which of the following industry competitive structures does the iron ore industry best illustrate? A) monopoly B) oligopoly C) perfect competition D) monopolistic competition
A
Which of the following external forces is a part of a firm's task environment? A) the composition of the strategic group to which the firm belongs B) the interest rates prevalent in the economy in which the firm operates C) the inflation level in the economy in which the firm operates D) the recent innovations in process technology, including lean manufacturing
C
Which of the following factors most contributes to the U.S. automotive industry being characterized by high entry barriers? A) New auto companies create electric cars powered by simpler motors and gearboxes. B) New entrants in the automotive industry expect that incumbents will not or cannot retaliate. C) Car manufacturers require large-scale production in order to be cost-competitive. D) Few industrial products are as easy to build as cars powered by internal combustion engines.
D
Which of the following features about a buyer indicates that the buyer has high bargaining power? A) when the buyer cannot credibly threaten to backwardly integrate into the industry B) when the buyer cannot purchase specific products from other sellers C) when the buyer faces high switching costs D) when the buyer operates in an industry where products are undifferentiated
C
Which of the following is a macroeconomic factor that can affect a firm's strategy? A) power of buyers B) power of suppliers C) levels of employment D) threat of substitutes
D
Which of the following is a primary feature of the five forces model? A) It is concerned exclusively about the intensity of rivalry among direct competitors. B) It takes into account a firm's internal resources, capabilities, and core competencies. C) It helps managers determine the changing speed of an industry or the rate of innovation. D) It views competition within an industry broadly to include forces such as buyers, suppliers, and the threat of substitutes.
B
Which of the following is the best characterization of sociocultural forces? A) a firm's culture, norms, and values B) a society's culture, norms, and values C) a competitor's culture, norms, and values D) a focus group's culture, norms, and values
D
Which of the following statements accurately brings out the difference between monopolistic competition and an oligopoly? A) Sellers in an oligopoly provide highly differentiated products; in monopolistic competition, the products sold are undifferentiated or standardized. B) In an oligopoly, the number of buyers is large; in monopolistic competition, the number of buyers is limited to three or four. C) Firms in an oligopoly have no pricing power; firms in a monopolistically competitive industry have the ability to raise prices. D) In monopolistic competition, many firms compete against each other; in an oligopoly, there are few large firms competing against each other.
C
Which of the following statements with regard to industry structures is true? A) They are stable over time, not dynamic. B) Having a large number of competitors generally equates to higher industry profitability. C) A consolidated industry tends to be more profitable than a fragmented one. D) Having few but large competitors increases the threat of strong competitive forces such as supplier or buyer power.
A
While Tender Chicken Inc. operates in a monopolistically competitive industry, Future Wireless Inc. operates in a monopoly. Keeping this information in mind, which of the following statements is most likely true? A) The threat of new entrants will be higher for Tender Chicken than for Future Wireless. B) Tender Chicken will have more pricing power than Future Wireless does. C) Tender Chicken will have more profit potential than Future Wireless. D) The number of buyers will be limited for both Tender Chicken and Future Wireless.
A
With the emergence of smartphones, users no longer have to carry a separate music player, a video game, a laptop, or a magazine to keep themselves entertained when traveling. A smartphone is loaded with a variety of applications to satisfy all the customer needs that different industries or products individually satisfied earlier. As a result, the smartphone industry has been posing a threat to a lot of other unrelated industries. What is this phenomenon best known as? A) industry convergence B) backward integration C) product differentiation D) customer myopia
A
Years ago, the travel industry was controlled by a few large travel companies that booked holidays, air tickets, bus tickets, and hotels for their customers. However, with the emergence of the internet, smaller travel agencies started mushrooming in the industry and customers started making their own reservations. Which of the following can be inferred from this information? A) The travel industry changed from a consolidated structure to a fragmented one. B) The pricing power of the incumbent firms in the travel industry has increased. C) The bargaining power of buyers in the travel industry has decreased. D) The structure of the travel industry changed from monopolistic competition to an oligopolistic one.
C
Zoom Zoom Car Rental follows a cost-leadership strategy. Which of the following firms will most likely be its direct competitor? A) Classic Car Rentals Inc., which follows a cost-increase strategy B) Paul Bunyan Car and Truck Rentals, which follows a differentiation strategy C) Reliable Rental Cars, which follows a low-cost strategy D) Rent-an-Auto LLC, which follows a standardization strategy