chapter 6
Which of the following must be met if a firm's resources are to be used to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage? a. differentiation b. imperfectly imitable resources c. related diversification d. unrelated diversification e. a matrix organizational structure
b. imperfectly imitable resources
A competitive advantage becomes a sustainable competitive advantage when other companies have found it very expensive to duplicate the what the firm is providing to customers.
false
An analysis of an organization's external environment begins with an assessment of the company's distinctive competencies and core capabilities.
false
Companies use their resources to improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness.
true
Corporate-level strategy is the overall organizational strategy that addresses the question "What business or businesses are we in or should we be in?"
true
From a competitive standpoint, resource similarity means that the strategic actions your company takes could probably be matched by your direct competitors.
true
Portfolio strategy is a corporate-level strategy that minimizes risk by diversifying investment among various businesses or product lines.
true
Strategic dissonance is a discrepancy between upper management's intended strategy and the strategy actually implemented by the lower levels of management.
true
The threat of substitute products or services is a measure of the ease with which customers can find substitutes for an industry's goods or services.
true
The three positioning strategies are cost leadership, differentiation, and focus.
true
The three steps of the strategy-making process are (1) assess the need for strategic change, (2) conduct a situational analysis, and (3) choose the strategic alternatives
true
There are four conditions that must be met if a firm's resources are to be used to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. The resources must be valuable, rare, imperfectly imitable, and nonsubstitutable.
true
When making travel plans, many tourists have selected Thomas Cook, a British tour operation, because they perceive that no other tour company can duplicate the customer service and satisfaction that Thomas Cook has provided over its years of operation. Thomas Cook has apparently created a sustainable competitive advantage by using resources. a. synergistic b. valuable c. tangible d. nonsubstitutable e. rare
d. nonsubstitutable
A sustainable competitive advantage exists for an organization when other companies have tried unsuccessfully to duplicate the advantage and . a. those companies have been prohibited from duplicating the advantage by federal law b. those companies have, for the moment, stopped trying to duplicate the advantage c. the organization is able to implement exclusive distribution d. the organization operates in the international marketplace e. the organization has a follower strategic stance
b. those companies have, for the moment, stopped trying to duplicate the advantage
are the assets, capabilities, processes, information, and knowledge that an organization uses to improve its effectiveness and efficiency, to create and sustain competitive advantage, and to fulfill a need or solve a problem. a. grand strategies b. distinctive competencies c. competitive advantages d. resources e. strategic stances
d. resources
. If retrenchment works, it is typically followed by a stability strategy
false
Bargaining power of buyers tends to be higher when a company sells a popular product to multiple buyers than when a company is dependent on just a few high-volume buyers.
false
Companies face very little uncertainty in their strategic business environments.
false
Companies that succeed are often constantly re-examining strategies or competitive practices that have been successful in the past in order to ascertain their probable future success.
false
Differentiation is the positioning strategy of producing a product or service of acceptable quality at consistently lower production costs than competitors.
false
Industry-level strategy is a corporate strategy that addresses the question "How should we compete against a particular firm in our industry?"
false
Most companies compete directly with all the firms in their industry.
false
Reactors follow the consistent strategy of anticipating and reacting to potential external opportunities and threats prior to their occurrence.
false
The greater the market commonality, the less intense the direct competition between two companies.
false
The only kinds of adaptive strategies are defending, analyzing, and reacting.
false
When companies are performing above or better than their strategic reference points, top management is more likely to choose a daring, risk-taking strategy.
false
. The two factors that determine the extent to which firms will be in direct competition with each other are market commonality and resource similarity
true
A focus strategy entails using either a cost leadership or a differentiation approach to producing a good or service.
true
A strategic group is a group of other companies, within an industry, that top managers choose for comparing, evaluating, and benchmarking their company's strategic threats and opportunities.
true
Based on the research evidence, related diversification appears to be a better strategy for portfolio management than unrelated diversification.
true
Character of the rivalry is a measure of the intensity of competitive behavior between companies in an industry.
true
Companies often choose a stability strategy when their external environment doesn't change much or after they have struggled with periods of explosive growth.
true