WPC 480 Midterm

______ provide information about the results of past actions, but do not communicate the drivers of the firm's future performance.

Financial controls

The rate of technological diffusion is increasing. Which of the following was fastest in penetrating 25 percent of homes in the U.S. market?

Internet

A company's ability to acquire knowledge is:

an important source of competitive advantage in virtually all industries.

The communications industry is broadly defined as encompassing all of the following EXCEPT:

book retailers.

The ultimate test of the value of a corporate-level strategy is whether the:

businesses in the portfolio are worth more under the management of the company in question than they would be under any other ownership.

A competitive advantage:

can be identified when competitors are unable to duplicate or find it too costly to try to imitate.

Historically, women have paid more for dry cleaning than men. Signature Cleaners advertises "equal price" for all customers. Signature Cleaners appeals to women, which is market segmentation by _____________ factors.

demographic

Two key strategic leadership actions include:

determining strategic direction and establishing balanced organizational controls.

Monahegan Plasma Company is facing a performance downturn and realizes that a major rethinking of its strategy is in order. Under these circumstances, Monahegan Plasma would benefit from a(n):

external CEO with a heterogeneous top management team.

Competitor analysis focuses on:

firms with which the company competes directly.

An owner of a stable of racehorses has been earning below-average returns for more than 15 years. To a colleague, he expressed his determination to stay in horse racing until he died because "racing is in my blood." This individual is probably still racing horses because of:

high barriers to exit.

A CEO's breadth of knowledge base is constrained by:

his or her long tenure with the firm.

The purchasing of firms in the same industry is called:

horizontal acquisition.

When firms use core competencies to implement value-creating strategies they are answering the "________" question.

how

A nationwide chain of pet stores wishes to identify the tradeoffs that its customers are willing to make between low-cost products such as generic pet foods and differentiated features such as pick-up and delivery of pets for grooming. The best technique for the firm to learn this information would be to use:

information networks.

Value chain analysis is a tool used to:

understand the parts of the firm's operation that create value and those that do not.

Research suggests that____________ has decreased while _____________ has increased possibly due to the restructuring that took place in the 1990s and early twenty-first century.

unrelated diversification; related diversification.

PorkPride Foods produces hams and other meat products. It owns hog raising operations. This is an example of a business that is:

vertically integrated.

An analysis of income distribution would include all of the following EXCEPT:

wage differentials between male and female employees working for a large manufacturer.

The term "stuck in the middle":

means that the firms's cost structure is not low enough to allow it to attractively price its products that its products are not sufficiently differentiated to create value for its target customer.

Compared to intangible resources, tangible resources are ____________ constrained because they are _________ to leverage.

more; harder

A general environmental analysis can be expected to produce all of the following EXCEPT:

objective answers.

A noted professional art academy has founded an "artists and friends" travel company specializing in tours for artists to scenic locales, using its faculty as traveling teachers. In addition, the art academy has purchased a framing company to make frames for academy art works, and to sell museum-quality framing services to the public. The art academy is engaging in diversification based on ___________ relatedness.

operational

The book The Dyslexic Advantage appeals to a market of educators, people with dyslexia, their friends, family, and coworkers. This is customer segmentation by _________ factors.

psychological

Outsourcing is the:

purchase of a value-creating activity from an external supplier.

To successfully implement a firm's strategy, the workforce must be viewed as a:

resource to be maximized.

The lowest level of diversification is the _______ level

single-business

________ is a capacity for a set of resources to perform a task or an activity in an integrative manner.

A capability

Charmed by Claire is a successful retail boutique that sells women's accessories. Claire, the owner/manager, knows that women have many options when buying jewelry. When customers enter her store they are greeted by name and given prompt, friendly attention. Customers return to the store because the service is excellent. Claire says the most important decision she makes is hiring the best staff because customer service is vital to her business. Customer service is:

A core competency.

All of the following are tangible resources EXCEPT:

A firm's reputation.

Which of the following is NOT required for a firm to achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns from its core competencies?

Core competencies must be internationalized.

Which of the following is NOT an activity used in the external environmental analysis process?

Decrypting

Which of the following is NOT one of the four perspectives in the balanced scorecard framework?

Entrepreneurial

The aircraft industry has long been dominated by two large aircraft manufacturers, Boeing and Airbus. The demand for major aircraft is low, and Boeing and Airbus aggressively compete for orders from airlines. What effect will these conditions have on the domestic airline industry?

It will make the airline industry more attractive because of decreased supplier power.

Amazon has built capabilities around Internet technology and e-commerce to facilitate information exchanges with its customers in a cost effective manner. This represents which of the three service dimension?

Richness

Media content has moved from paper, tape, and film to a digital world based on Internet technology. From the perspective of the five forces model, which force is most relevant here?

Substitutes

The Enron employee who reported the financial manipulations at the company to her superiors can be considered to have engaged in:

an act of courage.

An investor is considering buying a restaurant that has been in operation for a number of years. The restaurant has a highly regarded chef and many long-term kitchen and wait staff who work together smoothly. It has a reputation for dishes of consistently high quality and an appealing dining atmosphere. What should the investor consider when making a decision?

The investor will find that the restaurant's financial statements undervalue the true value of its resources.

The most effective leadership style is__________ leadership.

Transformational

A cost leadership strategy provides goods or services with features taht are:

acceptable.

An office management firm has developed a system for efficiently organizing small medical and dental practices both through proprietary software and through unique training programs for staff. IT has recently acquired a firm specializing in providing management services for veterinary practices. The office management firm is hoping to:

achieve economies of scope.

By examining the _________ of Southwest Airlines, one can identify the strategic themes around which it has developed its business strategy. These themes include limited passenger service, high aircraft utilization, and highly productive ground and gate crews.

activity map

Faced with declining enrollment and increased competition from not-for-profit organizations offering inexpensive art courses for new hobbyists, the for-profit Delta Academy of Art has steadfastly stayed true to its mission of offering high-quality classical art instruction for both beginners and advanced artists at high tuition. Delta has been noted for the excellence of its artistic training for decades. This is an example of:

adhesion to the status quo.

In the strategic management process ASP stands for

analysis, strategies, and performance.

Tangible resources include:

assets that can be observed and quantified.

Organizational stakeholders are usually satisfied when

companies provide a dynamic, stimulating, and rewarding work environment.

In order to meet and exceed customer's expectations, firms must:

continuously improve, innovate, and upgrade their core competencies.

Capabilities that other firms cannot develop easily are classified as:

costly to imitate.

Mercedes mass produces luxary vehicles at a premium price. It uses a(n) ___________ strategy.

differentiation

New markets created by iPods, PDAs, and Wi-Fi are a result of:

disruptive technologies.

As the threat of corporate failure increases due to relatedness between a firm's business units, firms may decide to:

diversify into less risky environments.

Competitor intelligence could ethically come from all of the following EXCEPT:

eavesdropping.

Strategic leaders are:

located in different areas and levels.

Understanding how new knowledge can develop new products, processes, or materials is a result of analyzing the _______ segment of the general environment.

technological

A local restaurant, Farm Fresh Ingredients, has become highly successful through its menu, based solely on organically raised chicken and beef, and organic seasonal produce. It has opened new locations in other cities, and these new locations are becoming highly profitable. Farm Fresh can expect that, at best, its competitive advantage will be:

temporary.

In smaller, new venture films, returns are sometimes measured in terms of:

the amount and speed of growth.

The strategic management process is:

the formulation and implementation of a full set of commitments, decisions, and actions required for the firm to achieve above-average returns and strategic competitiveness.

The more "constrained" the relatedness of diversification:

the more links there are among the businesses owned by an organization.

Organizational controls provide:

the parameters within which strategies are to be implemented.

One method of facilitating the transfer of competencies between firms is to:

transfer key people into new management positions.