Business policy 4900 Chapter 8
GreenCure Pharma Inc. wanted its research partner, an R&D company, to develop a cancer vaccine. However, the project required huge capital investments, and its research partner was not ready to solely face the risks involved. Thus, to gain its partner's confidence and to prove its involvement, GreenCure Pharma invested $100 million in the project. This investment made by GreenCure Pharma will result in a
Credible commitment
_____ is best described as changes in an industry value chain that involve moving ownership of activities closer to the end (customer) point of the value chain.
Forward vertical integration
Coca-Cola was primarily known for its core competencies in marketing, bottling, and distributing aerated drinks. However, with the success of Gatorade, Coca-Cola developed competencies in the development and marketing of its own sports drink, Powerade. Which of the following is true of Coca-Cola?
It is building new core competencies to protect and extend its current market position.
When Toyota wanted to secure a long-term supply of lithium, it had to create a bond of trust with an Australian company, Orocobre Ltd. Orocobre wanted to establish the bond of trust before making huge investments in specialized equipment required to extract the high-quality lithium. What did Toyota do to instill this trust?
It made a credible commitment by taking an equity stake in Orocobre.
While KFC focuses on international markets, its competitor, Chick-fil-A, focuses on the domestic U.S. market. What is the reason behind this strategic difference?
KFC has more financial resources than Chick-fil-A since it is a publicly traded stock company.
Hitoro Inc. developed a superior touch screen technology for tablet computers that enabled multiple users to operate the screen at the same time. The technology was leased to Revox Inc., a consumer electronics company, for five years. Which of the following alternatives to integration does this best illustrate?
Licensing
About 20 years ago, Sturdy Light, Inc., produced a sturdy, lightweight backpack in a market that was rapidly growing. Sturdy Light became a leader in this market. Eventually, the backpack market reached the maturity stage and slowed down. However, by this time, Sturdy Light had developed a strong brand name and continued to steadily lead the market. Which of the following describes this scenario?
Sturdy Light was a star that developed into a cash cow.
TL & Co. is following a related-linked diversification strategy, and Soar Inc. is following a related-constrained diversification strategy. How do the two firms differ from each other?
TL & Co. pursues a differentiation strategy, and Soar Inc. pursues a cost-leadership strategy, to gain a competitive advantage.
The 3-D television division of a large consumer electronics company has been recognized as a question mark. The company's LCD television division has been categorized under dogs. Which of the following statements will hold well in this scenario?
The 3-D television division operates in a high-growth market, whereas the LCD television division operates in a low-growth market.
Which of the following companies will be considered as a conglomerate?
The Tata Group, active in industries such as tea, steel, IT, power, and automobiles
Which of the following is an example of an external transaction cost?
The cost of searching for a contract manufacturer
Grace Apparel Inc. has decided to procure fabrics required for its garments from external suppliers instead of maintaining its own dyeing and weaving facilities. How will this decision affect the firm?
The firm will have more flexibility in purchasing and comparing prices of goods and services.
BestDrive Inc. is a large automobile company. The company's petrol cars strategic business unit (SBU) has been recognized as a cash cow, and its hybrid electric cars SBU has been categorized under stars. Which of the following can be inferred from this scenario?
The petrol cars SBU operates in a low-growth market, whereas the hybrid electric cars SBU operates in a high-growth market.
which of the following statements is true of transaction costs?
Transaction costs are necessary to explain and predict the boundaries of a firm
Real Goods Inc. is a large conglomerate. The company's beverages strategic business unit (SBU) has been recognized as a cash cow, and its tobacco SBU has been categorized as a dog. Which of the following can be inferred from this scenario?
While the market share of the company in the beverages industry will be high, the market share in the tobacco industry will be low.
Red Empire Inc., a large multinational company owned by two partners, is active in the petroleum, capital market, chemicals, steel, beverages, hospitality, airlines, education, automobiles, and consumer electronics industries. The company has multiple brands and a large product portfolio under its banner. Which of the following terms would best describe this company?
a conglomerate
White Leo Motors (WLM) Inc. generates a major portion of its revenues by manufacturing luxury sports cars. However, the company also derives an insignificant percent of its annual revenues by selling its sports merchandise that includes apparel, shoes, and other accessories under the same brand name. Which of the following terms best describes WLM?
a dominant-business firm
Divina Pharma Inc. and MF Electronics Inc. have together invested and created a new organization, FirstHealth Inc., to focus on developing diagnostic devices. Through this new firm, both companies are attempting to combine their core competencies to innovate and reduce their risks associated with transaction-specific investments. However, the new organization operates independent of Divina Pharma and MF Electronics. Which of the following alternatives to integration does this scenario best illustrate?
a joint venture
Neon Electronics Inc. sourced touch screens required for its tablet computers, cell phones, and televisions from a manufacturer in China. But the demand for such components was high globally, and the supplier could not meet the quality standards of Neon Electronics. Thus, Neon Electronics decided to set up its own unit to develop and manufacture the required touch screens. What does this scenario best illustrate?
backward vertical integration
In 2007, Salesforce.com recognized an emerging market for platform as a service (PaaS) offerings and developed a new competency in delivering software development and deployment tools. This allowed its customers to either extend their existing CRM offering or build completely new types of software. This is an example of
building new core competencies to create and compete in markets of the future.
Vehmo Inc. is an automobile company whose core competency lies in manufacturing petrol- and diesel-based cars. The company realizes that more of its potential customers are switching to electric cars. The R&D department of the company acquires competencies in developing electric cars and launches its first hybrid car. In this scenario, Vehmo is primarily
building new core competencies to protect and extend current market position.
In the early 1990s, Gatorade dominated the market for sports drinks, a segment in which it had been the original innovator. For decades, Coca-Cola had been a leader in marketing, bottling, and distributing soft drinks. However these drinks did not include a sports drink. Soon after Gatorade appeared, Coca-Cola developed and marketed its own sports drink, Powerade. In this example, Coca-Cola
built new core competencies to protect and extend its current market position.
The managers at AHL Chemicals Inc. decided that their firm needed to diversify because of falling sales and lower performance in one sector. How does diversifying compensate for the lackluster performance in this sector?
by having higher performance in another sector
PrimoDisk Inc. holds the highest market share in the low-growth compact disk industry. With the introduction of flash drives, the market for compact disks has reduced. However, PrimoDisk has been able to generate sufficient revenues for the parent company by selling its products in less developed countries. In the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth-share matrix, PrimoDisk will be categorized under
cash cows
A _____ is best defined as a company that combines two or more strategic business units under one overarching corporation and follows an unrelated diversification strategy.
conglomerate
Win Goods Inc. is a large multinational conglomerate. As a single business unit, the company's stock price is estimated to be $200. However, by adding the actual market stock prices of each of its individual business units, the stock price of the company as one unit would be $300. What is Win Goods experiencing in this scenario?
diversification discount
ESB Group is the parent company of many related businesses under its banner. Each share of the parent company is quoted at $220. However, if this had to be assessed by adding the stock prices of each of its strategic business units, the value would only be $200 per share. In this scenario, what has ESB Group created?
diversification premium
ElectraSync Inc., a large consumer electronics company, has divided each product in its portfolio into a separate strategic business unit (SBU). The desktop SBU has been experiencing drastic decline in its cash flow, and its market share has also reduced to an insignificant 10 percent. This has been attributed to the low growth in the desktop market after the arrival of tablet computers and laptops. In the context of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth-share matrix, the desktop SBU will be categorized under
dogs
Today, many companies use PeopleSoft and EDS to avoid maintaining a human resource management system. By doing this, these firms are
engaging in strategic outsourcing
Silver Weave Inc., an apparel company, operates through a business model in which individuals can buy the rights to set up Silver Weave stores and sell the company's merchandise in return for a lump sum fee at the beginning of the contract and a percentage of revenues every month. The owners of the stores have to stock the collection approved from the company's headquarters and also maintain consistent customer service as expected in its flagship store. Which of the following alternatives to integration does this best illustrate?
franchising
Symphon Times Inc., a Swiss-based premium watch brand, has recently started selling its watches through company-owned retail outlets in major cities of the emerging nations. Which of the following types of diversification strategies is the firm pursuing?
geographic diversification strategy
In the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth-share matrix, strategic business units categorized under dogs
hold a small market share in a low-growth market.
A(n) _____ is best used to depict the transformation of raw materials into finished goods and services along distinct vertical stages.
industry value chain
_____ are best described as costs that occur due to political maneuvering by managers to control capital and resource allocation and the resulting inefficiencies stemming from suboptimal allocation of scarce resources.
influence costs
Chao is in an interview for a sales job that requires no experience. He is trying to portray himself as a highly enthusiastic, energetic person with high-level communication and interpersonal skills. The interviewer is convinced that Chao should be hired as a salesperson in the company. However, in his resume, Chao had not mentioned his previous work experience as he was fired from that job because he used illegal drugs. Which of the following does this scenario best illustrate?
information asymmetry
Stellar Products Inc. is a U.S.-based consumer electronics company. It owns smaller firms in Japan and Taiwan where most of its cell phone technology is developed and manufactured before being released worldwide. Which of the following alternatives to integration does this best illustrate?
parent-subsidiary relationship
Which of the following alternatives on the make-or-buy continuum allows for most integration?
parent-subsidiary relationship
Caring Ketchup Inc. makes organic ketchup. To promote its products, this firm decided to make bottles in the shape of tomatoes. To accomplish this, Caring Ketchup worked with its bottle manufacture to create a set of unique molds for its bottles. Which of the following specialized assets does this example demonstrate?
physical-asset specificity
Managers in a firm hired to improve the firm's profitability and ultimately the shareholders' value will add to the overall costs if they pursue their own self-interests. What does this best illustrate?
principal-agent problem
Amazon.com has decided to enter the college bookstore market. The goal of "Amazon Campus" is to offer co-branded university-specific web sites that offer textbooks and paraphernalia, such as logo sweaters and baseball hats. This development shows Amazon's relentless pursuit of
product diversification
BM Goods Inc. is a large conglomerate that operates only in its home country. The company competes in industries like the consumer electronics, health care, hotel, airlines, education, and steel industries. Which of the following diversification strategies does this best illustrate?
product diversification
PepsiCo operates in many countries and sells a wide variety of aerated drinks, other beverages, different types of chips, and Quaker Oats goods to achieve continuous growth. From this data, we can conclude that PepsiCo has been involved in
product-market diversfication
Fantastica Industries, a U.S.-based large conglomerate, competes in the hospitality, education, telecommunications, entertainment, airlines, and chemical industries. It currently operates in about 30 nations, and is planning to expand its portfolio by investing in rapidly developing countries. Which of the following strategies is Fantastica Industries pursuing?
product-market diversification strategy
TimeEnough Inc. entered the low-priced digital watch market several years ago. This firm's earnings have been unsteady, but might be growing. According to the BCG growth matrix, TimeEnough is a
question mark
The solar-powered car division of a large automobile company has been experiencing negative cash flows though the market growth for such cars is predicted to be high. If the company invests further resources into this division, it can increase its relative market share in the future. However, if due to technological changes the car cannot create sufficient consumer demand, then the division can prove to be unprofitable. In the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth-share matrix, the solar-powered car division will be categorized under
question marks
The core competency of MotorCraft Inc. is its fuel-efficient engine found in its cars. These engines are developed and built in-house. The company realizes that there is a new market opportunity to diversify. Thus, it produces the car engines on a large scale and sells them to other automobile companies. In this scenario, MotorCraft is
redeploying and recombining existing core competencies to compete in future markets.
In 2009, ExxonMobil bought XTO Energy, a natural gas company, for $31 billion. XTO Energy is known for its core competency to extract natural gas from unconventional places such as shale rock—the type of deposits currently being exploited in the United States. ExxonMobil hopes to leverage its core competency in the exploration and commercialization of oil into natural gas extraction. Based on this example, ExxonMobil is engaging in
related-constrained diversification
When executives of a firm consider business opportunities only where they can leverage their existing competencies and resources, it can be concluded that the firm is using
related-constrained diversification
Evara Inc. started as a luxury brand for designer apparel. Soon, the company expanded by launching its own line of premium perfumes, watches, bags, and home furnishings. This expansion allowed the businesses under the company to share a few, if not all, of the common competencies in products, services, technology, and distribution. Which of the following corporate strategies is Evara pursuing in this scenario?
related-linked strategy
The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth-share matrix locates a firm's individual strategic business units (SBUs) in which two dimensions?
relative market share and speed of market growth
WJ Group Inc., a large multinational conglomerate, had begun to experience declining revenues over the years. The top management at the headquarters of the company decided that it was important for the company to avoid deviating from its core competencies. Thus, a few of the company's key businesses like energy, telecommunications, and automobiles were centralized, giving the top management more control over them. Also, relatively newer businesses like beverages and food processing were divested. In this scenario, WJ Group is involved in
restructuring
_____ is best described as the process of reorganizing and divesting business units and activities to refocus a company in order to leverage its core competencies more fully.
restructuring
RoboToys, Inc. is involved in the production of robotic toys. This firm produces the raw materials, including metals and oils for plastic; creates the integrated circuits, displays, and batteries; and assembles the toys. Which of the following stages of the industry value chain is RoboToys involved in?
stage 1,2, and 3
The smartphone division of the large consumer electronics company, True Electra Inc., has a significant market share in the fast-growing cell phone market. If the company invests further into this division, it will be able to reap increased cash flows. In the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth-share matrix, the smartphone division of True Electra will be categorized under
stars
_____ are best described as voluntary arrangements between firms that involve the sharing of knowledge, resources, and capabilities with the intent of developing processes, products, or services to lead to competitive advantage.
strategic alliances
Apple and Nike have their own retail outlets and also use other independent retailers, both the brick-and-mortar type and online, to sell their products. This is an example of
taper integration
Virtue Products Inc., a large conglomerate, procures a few component parts from external suppliers and also manufactures some of the key raw materials in its own subsidiaries. This apart, the company does not solely depend on outside distributors to reach its customers. In fact, it has its own retail stores to distribute its products. In this scenario, which of the following alternatives to vertical integration is Virtue Products applying?
taper integration
_____ is best described as a firm's ownership of its production of needed inputs or of the channels by which it distributes its outputs
vertical intergration
