Business Strat Ch. 9-10, 12

The three components of building a capable organization are

staffing the organization, building core competencies and competitive capabilities, and structuring the organization and work effort.

A company's strategy needs to be ethical because

(1) a strategy that is unethical in whole or in part is morally wrong and reflects badly on the character of the company personnel involved and (2) an ethical strategy is good business and in the best interest of shareholders.

A company's culture is in part defined and identified by: A. a company's internal work climate and personality—as shaped by its shared values, work practices, traditions, and ingrained attitudes and behaviors that define "how we do things around here." B. whether it employs a low-cost provider, best-cost provider, differentiation or focused strategy. C. whether decision-making is centralized or decentralized and whether it is a single-business company or a diversified company. D. how strongly its strategic vision is linked to the company's core values. E. whether it is a well-known industry leader, an up-and-coming company that is gaining market share, a middle-of-the-pack company unlikely to move up in the industry ranks, or an industry also-ran that may or may not survive.

A

A company's values statement and code of ethics: A. helps to mold the culture and communicate what kinds of actions and behaviors are expected of all company personnel. B. helps prevent it from coming across to customers and the general public as greedy. C. serve the valuable purpose of making its suppliers hesitant to engage in business practices that are unethical. D. are the most important factors determining its reputation with customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, and society at large. E. should always be made a prominent and visible part of the company's strategic intent and strategy.

A

A strongly implanted culture provides huge assist in executing strategy because company managers can use the tradition, beliefs, values, common bonds, or behavioral norms: A. as levers to mobilize commitment to executing the chosen strategy. B. as reinforcement for convincing staff that the strategy is sound and molded in tradition. C. to ensure the staff will embrace the new strategy like they have in the past. D. to manipulate jobholders into thinking traditions are important. E. All of these.

A

Changing a problem culture is A. never a short-term exercise. B. always a short-term exercise. C. requires a determined effort by a limited number of employees. D. usually easier than it is to instill a strategy-supportive culture from scratch. E. achieved by overnight transformations.

A

Changing a problem culture: A. is one of the toughest managerial tasks because of the heavy anchor of ingrained behaviors and ways of doing things. B. is best done by instituting an aggressive program to train employees in the ways and beliefs of the new culture to be implanted. C. is best done by selecting a team of key employees to lead the culture change effort. D. requires writing a new statement of core values, having a series of lengthy meetings with employees to explain the new culture and the reasons why cultural change is needed, and then having both employees and shareholders vote to ratify and adopt the new culture. E. can be done quickly only if managers tie incentive compensation to exhibiting the desired new cultural behaviors and if managers visibly praise people who exhibit the desired new cultural traits.

A

In a strong culture company, A. values and behavioral norms are like crabgrass—deeply rooted and hard to weed out. B. there is wide support for high ethical standards among both managers and employees. C. a company has more strategy flexibility because it can change its strategy and be confident that the culture will welcome the strategy changes and be an ally in implementing whatever changes are called for. D. there is little room for employee empowerment, because independent-thinking empowered employees may well make decisions or engage in actions that weaken the culture. E. management insists that official policies and procedures be followed religiously.

A

Once established, company cultures can be perpetuated by: A. relying on word-of-mouth indoctrination and the power of tradition to instill the culture's fundamentals, as well as frequent reiteration of core values by senior managers and group members, and regular ceremonies honoring members who display desired cultural behaviors. B. avoiding frequent or dramatic reorganizations that could disturb existing relationships and networking among departments and company personnel. C. making adherence to cultural beliefs and cultural norms the defining features of the company's strategic vision. D. rewarding departments that observe cultural norms with above-average budget increases and penalizing those who don't with budget cuts. E. making cultural values and beliefs the centerpiece of the company's competitive strategy.

A

The most important symbolic actions are those that top executives take to A. lead by example. B. lead by influence. C. follow by example. D. follow the majority. E. lead to the contrary.

A

The place for management to begin in trying to change a problem culture is A. identifying facets of the present culture that are obstacles to executing the company's strategy and meeting performance targets. B. by spending heavily on programs to train employees in the ways and beliefs of the new culture to be implanted. C. to visibly praise and reward people who exhibit traits and behaviors that undermine the existing culture. D. writing a new values statement and describing in highly motivating terms the kind of culture that is needed. E. to institute incentive compensation programs that generously reward employees for adopting best practices.

A

Which of the following is NOT an example of leadership actions or managerial practices taken to foster a results-oriented, high-performance culture? A. Treating employees as individuals with no regard for their rank or contributions. B. Building morale and fostering pride. C. Setting stretch objectives and clearly communicating expectations for reaching targets. D. Using motivational techniques and compensation incentives to inspire employees. E. None of these.

A

Which of the following techniques are utilized by leaders to stay informed on how well strategy execution process is progressing? A. Managing by walking around (MBWA). B. Managing business with action (MBWA). C. Multi-business warning actions (MBWA). D. Managers being well-advised (MBWA). E. None of these.

A

Which one of the following is something to look for in identifying a company's culture? A. The atmosphere, spirit and character that pervades the work climate and the values, business principles, and ethical standards that management preaches and practices. B. The track record in meeting or beating its financial and strategic performance targets. C. The intensity and make-up of the company's value chain. D. The strategic intent and competitive strategy inherent within the company's efforts for successful strategy execution. E. The resource strengths, core competencies, and competitive capabilities that permeate the organization.

A

Which one of the following statements about a high performance culture is true? A. Results-oriented, high performance cultures are permeated with a spirit of achievement and have a good track record in meeting or beating performance targets. B. High performance cultures often have a low regard for high ethical standards (because some disregard for ethics is a normal part of meeting or beating performance targets). C. The challenge in creating a high performance culture is to come up with a strategic vision and strategy that wins enthusiastic support from most all company personnel. D. In a high performance culture, the clear and unyielding expectation is that all company personnel will strictly follow company policies and procedures. E. In high performance cultures, there's strong managerial commitment to paying big bonuses and granting generous stock options.

A

Which of the following statements regarding a company's social responsibility and sustainability strategy is false?

A company is not demonstrating an adequate degree of social responsibility or endeavoring to be a model corporate citizen unless it spends 5% (or more) of pretax profits on social responsibility initiatives.

Which one of the following falsely characterizes a centralized organizational structure?

A company that draws on the combined intellectual capital of all of its people can outperform a company that relies on command-and-control.

Which of the following is a basic structural form of organization?

A. A functional structure where function is a major step in the firm's value chain. B. A simple structure where all major decisions and oversight are a duty of the central executive. C. A multidivisional structure where each division of the firm is an independent profit center. D. A matrix structure where there are two or more divisions organized to enhance cross-communication. E. All of these.

Which of the following should be on a company's menu of actions to consider in crafting a strategy of social responsibility?

A. Actions to ensure that the company's strategy is ethical and that ethical principles will be observed in operating the business B. How much and what kinds of resources it will allocate to charitable contributions, community service endeavors, various worthy causes, and helping the disadvantaged C. Actions (over and above what is required) to protect or enhance the environment, including both those environmental problems stemming from the company's own business activities and those problems outside the company's immediate sphere of operations D. Actions to create a work environment that enhances employee well-being and makes the company a great place to work E. All of these.

Which of the following represents a justifiable reason for why a company's strategy should be ethical?

A. An unethical strategy reflects badly on the character of the company personnel involved. B. A strategy that is unethical in whole or in part is morally wrong. C. Pursuing an unethical strategy damages a company's reputation and can have costly consequences. D. An ethical strategy is good business and is in the best interest of shareholders. E. All of these.

Which one of the following must a company do to match structure to strategy?

A. Choose a basic design to fit the company's particular business. B. Supplement the design structure with coordinating mechanisms. C. Institute networking and communication arrangements to support strategy execution. D. None of these. E. All of these.

Which of the following are traits of the capability-building process?

A. Evolving changes in customer needs and competitive conditions often require tweaking and adjusting a company's portfolio of competencies and intellectual capital to keep its capabilities freshly honed and on the cutting edge. B. Normally, a core competence or capability emerges incrementally out of company efforts either to bolster skills that contributed to earlier successes or to respond to customer problems, new technological and market opportunities, and the competitive maneuverings of rivals. C. Core competencies or capabilities are most often bundles of skills and know-how that grow out of the combined efforts of cross-functional work groups and departments performing complementary activities at different locations in a firm's value chain. D. The key to leveraging a core competence into a distinctive competence (or transforming a capability into a competitively superior capability) is concentrating more effort and talent than rivals on deepening and strengthening the competence or capability so as to achieve the dominance needed for competitive advantage. E. All of these.

Visible costs which are incurred by companies and imposed for ethical wrongdoing can include

A. Government fines and penalties. B. Civil penalties arising from class-action lawsuits or other litigation. C. Lower dividends for shareholders. D. Lower stock prices. E. All of these.

Which one of the following is not a key element of integrated social contracts theory?

A. Universal ethical principles apply in those situations where most all societies—endowed with rationality and moral knowledge—have common moral agreement on what is wrong and thereby put limits on what actions and behaviors fall inside the boundaries of what is right and which ones fall outside. B. Commonly held views about what is morally right and wrong form a "social contract" (contract with society) that is binding on all individuals, groups, organizations, and businesses in terms of establishing right and wrong and in drawing the line between ethical and unethical behaviors C. Universal ethical principles or norms leave some "moral free space" for the people in a particular country (or local culture or even a company) to make specific interpretations of what other actions may or may not be permissible within the bounds defined by universal ethical principles. D. Universal ethical norms always take precedence over local ethical norms. E. Integrated social contracts theory rejects the slippery slope of ethical relativism and embraces ethical universalism.

The strength of the beliefs underlying the moral case for an ethical strategy

A. begins with managers who themselves have strong character (for example, who are honest, have integrity, and truly care about how they conduct a company's business). B. starts with managers who walk the talk in displaying the company's stated values. C. involves managers with high ethical principles and standards who are advocates of a corporate code of ethics and strong ethics compliance and are genuinely committed to certain corporate values and business practices. D. starts with managers who understand there is big difference between adopting values statements and codes of ethics that serve merely as window dressing and those that truly paint the white lines for a company's actual strategy and business conduct. E. All of these.

When high ethical principles are deeply ingrained in the corporate culture of a company, culture can

A. function as a powerful mechanism for communicating ethical behavioral norms. B. function as a powerful mechanism for gaining employee buy-in to the company's moral standards. C. function as a powerful mechanism for gaining employee buy-in to the company's business principles. D. function as a powerful mechanism for gaining employee buy-in to the company's corporate values. E. All of these.

Executing strategy

A. is primarily an operations-driven activity revolving around the management of people and business processes. B. tests a manager's ability to direct organizational change and achieve continuous improvement in operations and business processes. C. tests a manager's ability to create and nurture a strategy-supportive culture. D. tests a manager's ability to consistently meet or beat performance targets. E. All of these.

The business case for why companies should act in a socially responsible manner includes such reasons as

A. it generates internal benefits (as concerns employee recruiting, workforce retention, employee morale, and training costs). B. it reduces the risk of reputation-damaging incidents. C. it is in the best interest of shareholders. D. it can lead to increased buyer patronage. E. All of these.

The organizational characteristics of a network structure include

A. links between a number of independent organizations. B. a central firm that is charged with coordination of cross-network activities. C. organizations working together in a common undertaking. D. extensive collaborative efforts among people in different specialties and different geographic locations. E. All of these.

To organize the work effort around the needs of good strategy execution, management needs to

A. make those strategy-critical activities/capabilities that are to be performed internally the main building blocks in the internal organization structure. B. determine whether some value chain activities can be outsourced more efficiently or effectively than they can be performed internally. C. decide how much authority to centralize at the top and how much to delegate to down-the-line managers and employees. D. provide for coordination and collaboration across the various organizational units and also with outside partners. E. All of these.

Unethical managerial behavior tends to be driven by such factors as

A. the pervasiveness of immoral and amoral businesspeople. B. overzealous pursuit of personal gain, wealth, and other selfish interests. C. a company culture that puts the profitability and good business performance ahead of ethical behavior. D. heavy pressures on company managers to meet or beat earnings targets. E. All of these.

A well-managed network structure typically includes one firm in a more central role, with

A. the responsibility of ensuring that the right partners are included and the activities are coordinated. B. more effective collaboration and cooperation among partners. C. a hand-picked, integrated network of suppliers. D. an arrangement of independent organizations involved in a common undertaking. E. All of these.

If one accepts the tenets of the school of ethical relativism, then it follows that

A. there are multiple sets of ethical standards rather than a single universal set. B. at least some ethical standards are governed by local norms, religious doctrines, and social customs rather than by absolute standards of right and wrong. C. what constitutes ethical or unethical behavior on the part of businesses must in some cases be judged in the light of local customs and social mores. D. it is inappropriate to hold businesses accountable for observing a universal set of ethical standards. E. All of these.

In a highly centralized organizational structure,

A. top executive retain authority for most strategic and operating decisions. B. the thesis is that strict enforcement of detailed procedures backed by rigorous managerial oversight is the most reliable way to keep the daily execution of strategy on track. C. tight control from the top makes it easy to fix accountability when things do not go well. D. one of the basic tenets is that most company personnel have neither the time nor the inclination to direct and properly control the work they are performing and, further, that they lack the knowledge and judgment to make wise decisions about how best to do their work. E. All of these.

According to integrated social contracts theory,

A. universal ethical principles apply in those situations where most all societies—endowed with rationality and moral knowledge—have common moral agreement on what is wrong and thereby put limits on what actions and behaviors fall inside the boundaries of what is right and which ones fall outside. B. commonly held views about what is morally right and wrong form a contract with society that is binding on all individuals, groups, organizations, and businesses in terms of establishing right and wrong and in drawing the line between ethical and unethical behaviors C. universal ethical principles or norms leave some "moral free space" for the people in a particular country (or local culture or even a company) to make specific interpretations of what other actions may or may not be permissible within the bounds defined by universal ethical principles. D. universal ethical norms always take precedence over local ethical norms. E. All of these.

Striving to be socially responsible entails touching such bases as

A. what actions to take to enhance workforce diversity and make the company a great place to work. B. whether to make charitable contributions and donate money and the time of company personnel to community service endeavors. C. what, if any, actions to take to protect or enhance the environment (beyond what is legally required). D. exerting conscious efforts to ensure that all elements of the company's strategy are ethical and actions to make the company a great place to work. E. All of these.

Which one of the following is not part of the moral case for why a company should actively promote the betterment of society?

Acting in a socially responsible manner is in the overall best interest of shareholders.

Which one of the following is false as concerns the merits of why acting in a socially responsible manner is "good business"?

Acting in a socially responsible manner nearly always results in higher profits and a higher stock price for shareholders.

Which of the following is not something a company should usually consider in crafting a strategy of social responsibility?

Actions to benefit shareholders (such as raising the dividend or boost the stock price)

A company's social responsibility strategy is typically comprised of all but which one of the following elements?

Actions to keep prices low enough that the company's profits will not be viewed by the general public as obscenely high or exorbitant

Which of the following is not generally on a company's menu of actions to consider in crafting a strategy of social responsibility?

Actions to look out exclusively for the best interests of shareholders

A company's corporate culture is BEST defined and identified by: A. the integration of the strategy and business model that a company has adopted. B. by the company's shared values, ingrained attitudes, core beliefs and company traditions that determine norms of behavior, accepted work practices of "how we do things around here," and styles of operating. C. its ingrained statement of core values and its internal code of ethics. D. its internal politics that influence the dedication to ethical conduct and accepted work practices. E. the formal traditions that company executives are committed to maintaining to ensure the company strategy-supportive culture is change resistant.

B

A work environment where the culture is in sync with the chosen strategy and is conducive to good strategy execution it is considered a valuable managerial ally because: A. there is much less risk of embarrassing ethical violations. B. it provides company personnel with clear guidance regarding "how we do things around here and produces significant peer pressures from co-workers to conform to culturally acceptable norms". C. there is reduced need to incorporate negative motivational practices and punitive-type incentives into the reward structure and in the company's approach to people management. D. there is reduced need to employ benchmarking, best practice programs, reengineering, Six Sigma, and TQM to achieve competitive advantage. E. the culture can be readily incorporated into the company's strategic vision and facilitate the achievement of stretch objectives.

B

Codes of ethics and statements of core values: A. are the single most effective measure of enforcing ethical behavior and cultural norms, provided they are written down and every employee is given a copy. B. serve as yardsticks for gauging the appropriateness of particular actions, decisions and behaviors. C. serve as the best benchmarks for judging whether the corporate culture is deeply ingrained, planted and accepted or not. D. need to be personally written and presented by the CEO to reinforce the company values and convictions so that employees will take it seriously. E. serve to give top priority emphasis to every employee in training program a company conducts.

B

Companies with change-resistant cultures A. are typically opposed to performance-based incentive compensation and employee empowerment. B. are prone to be preoccupied with avoiding risks, are unlikely to pursue actions to capture emerging opportunities, are frequently lax when it comes to product innovation and continuous improvement in performing value chain activities, and prefer following rather than leading market change. C. are often overly gung-ho about looking outside the company for best practices, new managerial approaches, and innovative ideas. D. tend to be preoccupied with making sure the company has a safe, follow-the-industry-leader type of strategic vision and avoids risky business strategies. E. are typically run by amoral managers who have little regard for high ethical standards.

B

Companies, especially ones with multinational operations and/or newly acquired businesses, typically have A. strong cultures B. multiple cultures (or subcultures) rather than a single culture. C. weak cultures. D. adaptive cultures. E. low performance cultures.

B

Frequently, a significant part of a company's culture is captured in: A. the company's strategic vision and strategic intent. B. the stories that get told over and over again to illustrate the importance of certain values and the depth of commitment that various company personnel have displayed. C. how much stretch is built into the company's financial and strategic performance targets. D. the vigor and enthusiasm with which it engages in benchmarking and seeks out best practices. E. the company's track record in taking market share away from rivals.

B

Leading the drive for good strategy execution and operating excellence calls upon senior executives to A. be very personable, an effective communicator, and skilled in the empowerment of company personnel. B. be out front personally leading the implementation process and driving the pace of progress. C. delegate little to subordinates and, instead, personally exert a strong, highly visible influence on the company's approaches to strategy execution. D. be creative in establishing policies and procedures that will instill high standards of operating excellence. E. be charismatic, a decisive decision-maker, and make inspiring speeches at company events.

B

The hallmarks of a high performance corporate culture include: A. a deep commitment to employee training, and unusually attractive fringe benefit packages for company personnel and frequently revised and updated values and ethics statements,. B. a "can-do" spirit, pride in doing things right, no-excuses accountability, and a pervasive results-oriented work climate where people go the extra mile to meet or beat stretch objectives. C. a strong emphasis on teamwork, strict enforcement of company policies and procedures, and incentive compensation for all employees aligned with a balanced scorecard approach to measuring performance,. D. a deep commitment to pioneering new best practices, a preference for being a fast-follower as opposed to a first-mover or late-mover, and across-the-board bonuses for all personnel when the company meets or beats stretch objectives. E. a deep commitment to top-notch quality and superior customer service, dedicated use of TQM and/or Six Sigma quality control programs, and the payment of big performance bonuses and stock options.

B

The single most visible factor that distinguishes successful culture-change efforts from failed attempts is A. forceful management actions to empower employees to adopt new operating practices. B. competent leadership at the top. C. de-layering the management hierarchy. D. developing a new values statement that inspires company personnel to put forth their best efforts to achieve performance targets. E. convincing employees that top management is genuinely committed to high ethical standards and the exercise of corporate social responsibility.

B

To deeply ingrain core values and ethical standards, a company must: A. provide every employee with a copy of the company's statement of core values and code of ethics. B. turn the espoused core values and ethical standards into strictly enforced cultural norms. C. encourage company personnel to observe the core values and ethical standards. D. give big pay raises and bonuses to individuals and groups who display the company's core values and observe its ethical standards. E. fire employees who do not live up to the core values or who are found guilty of violating the code of ethics.

B

What defines an insular, inwardly focused culture? A. The firm never underestimates rivals because of their proven track record in defending challenges. B. The firm believes they have all the answers because of their past great market success and is thus, overconfident. C. The firm's unflinching belief in the company's superiority breeds a champion's attitude and thus they thrive on doing better by adapting to fresh thinking from outside the company. D. The firm values their customer's opinions and fully understands their needs and expectations. E. All of these.

B

When trying to change a problem culture, management should undertake such steps as A. selecting a team of key employees to lead the culture change effort and design a plan for cultural change. B. identifying facets of the present culture that are supportive of good strategy execution and which ones are not and then specifying what new actions, behaviors, and work practices are needed in the new culture to improve performance. C. drawing up an action plan to change the present culture and then persuading company personnel why this plan of action is good and will be successful. D. conducting an employee survey to determine the organization's cultural norms and what company personnel like and dislike about the current culture. E. employing a consultant with expertise in culture change and following his/her advice on how to proceed.

B

Which of the following is NOT an integral part of transforming core values and ethical standards into cultural norms? A. Instituting procedures for enforcing ethical standards. B. Immediately dismissing any employee caught violating the company's code of ethics or disregarding core values. C. Screening out job applicants who do not exhibit compatible character traits. D. Periodically having ceremonial occasions to recognize individuals and groups who display the values and ethical principles. E. Having senior executives frequently reiterate the importance and role of company values and ethical principles at company events and internal communications to employees.

B

Which of the following statements about adaptive corporate cultures is false? A. The hallmark of adaptive corporate cultures is willingness on the part of organizational members to accept change and take on the challenge of introducing and executing new strategies. B. The standout cultural traits are a "can-do" spirit, pride in doing things right, no-excuses accountability, and a pervasive results-oriented work climate where people go the extra mile to meet or beat stretch objectives. C. Company personnel share a feeling of confidence that the organization can deal with whatever threats and opportunities come down the pike; they are receptive to risk taking, experimentation, innovation, and changing strategies and practices. D. Adaptive cultures are exceptionally well-suited to companies with fast-changing strategies and market environments. E. For an adaptive culture to remain intact over time, top management must orchestrate organizational changes in a manner that (1) demonstrates genuine care for the well-being of all key constituencies and (2) tries to satisfy all their legitimate interests simultaneously.

B

Which one of the following is NOT something to look for in identifying a company's culture? A. The company's defined spirit and character that pervades the work climate. B. The company's resource strengths, core competencies, and competitive capabilities. C. The company's revered traditions and oft-repeated stories about "heroic acts" and "how we do things around here". D. The company's approach to people management and the official policies, procedures, and operating practices that paint the white lines for the behavior of company personnel. E. The company's shared values, business principles, and ethical standards that management preaches and practices.

B

Which one of the following is a substantive culture-changing action that a company's managers can undertake to alter a problem culture? A. Identifying aspects of the present culture that pose problems. B. Revising policies and procedures in ways that will help drive cultural change and replacing senior executives who are resisting and obstructing needed organizational and cultural changes. C. Empowering employees to adopt whatever new work practices they believe will be an improvement. D. Making a concerted effort to turn the company's core competencies into distinctive competencies. E. Shifting from decentralized to centralized decision-making so as to give senior executives more authority and control in driving cultural change.

B

Which one of the following statements about a high performance culture is false? A. Results-oriented, high performance cultures are permeated with a spirit of achievement and have a good track record in meeting or beating performance targets. B. High performance cultures often have a low regard for high ethical standards, a strong preference for high-risk strategies, and a slow and methodical approach to responding to changes in the marketplace. C. The challenge in creating a high performance culture is to inspire high loyalty and dedication on the part of employees, such that they are both energized and preoccupied with putting forth their very best efforts to do things right and be unusually productive. D. In a high performance culture, the clear and unyielding expectation is that all company personnel, from senior executives to front-line employees will display high performance behaviors and a passion for making the company successful. E. In high performance cultures, there's a strong sense of involvement on the part of company personnel and emphasis on individual initiative and creativity.

B

Which of the following statements about developing organizational competencies and capabilities is false?

Building organizational capabilities is best and most cost-effectively accomplished by hiring a cadre of people with the right talent and expertise, putting them together in a single work group, and then teaming the work group with key strategic allies/partners to mesh the skills, expertise, and competencies needed to perform the desired capabilities with some proficiency.

The hallmark of a strong-culture company is A. strictly enforced policies and procedures. B. a strongly entrenched competitive strategy. C. the dominating presence of certain deeply-rooted values, norms of behavior that are widely shared and operating approaches that "regulate" the conduct of a company's business and the climate of its workplace. D. decentralized decision-making and empowered employees. E. a deep commitment to benchmarking, best practices, and operating excellence.

C

The leadership challenges that top executives face in making corrective adjustments when things are not going well include A. knowing when to replace poorly performing workers and when to do a better job of coaching them to do the right things. B. being able to discern whether to emphasize adjustments that will promote better achievement of strategic performance targets or whether to emphasize adjustments that will promote better achievement of financial performance targets. C. undertaking a thorough analysis of the situation, exercising good business judgment in deciding what actions to take and then ensuring good implementation of the corrective actions that are initiated. D. having the analytical skills to separate the problems due to a bad strategy from the problems due to bad strategy execution. E. deciding whether the company would be better off making adjustments that curtail the achievement of strategic objectives or that curtail the achievement of financial objectives or that curtail the achievement of some of both.

C

The task of top executives in making corrective adjustments includes A. knowing when to continue with the present corporate culture and when to shift to a different and better corporate culture. B. being good at figuring out whether to arrive at decisions quickly or slowly in choosing among the various alternative adjustments. C. a thorough analysis of the situation and exercising good business judgment in deciding what actions to take. D. deciding whether to try to fix the problems of poor strategy execution or simply shift to a strategy that is easier to execute correctly. E. deciding how to identify the problems that need fixing.

C

The principal managerial components of the strategy execution process include which of the following

Instituting policies and procedures that facilitate strategy execution and tying rewards to the achievement of strategic and financial targets

Unhealthy company cultures typically have such characteristics as: A. tight budget controls, overly strict enforcement of longstanding policies and procedures, and low ethical standards. B. a preference for conservative strategies, an aversion to incentive compensation, and excessive emphasis on profitability. C. a politicized internal environment, hostility to change and an aversion to looking outside the company for best practices, new managerial approaches, and innovative ideas. D. overemphasis on employee empowerment, a complacent approach to building competencies and capabilities, no coherent business philosophy, and excessively bureaucratic policies and procedures. E. too little emphasis on innovation, a strong preference for hiring managers from outside the company, very few core values and traditions, and a weakly enforced code of ethics.

C

What is the hallmark of an adaptive corporate culture? A. A shared willingness to adapt core values to fit the changing requirements of an evolving strategy. B. A conservative strategy, prudent risk-taking, and strong peer pressures to observe cultural norms. C. A clear willingness on the part of organizational members to accept change and take on the challenge of introducing and executing new strategies. D. A commitment to the types of core values and ethical standards that make a company a great place to work. E. A strong preference for performance-based compensation systems—especially the payment of bonuses and stock options.

C

Which of the following contribute to the emergence and sustainability of a strong culture? A. Senior executives that walk the talk of high ethical standards. B. A strong emphasis on developing innovative core competencies and competitive capabilities. C. A sincere, long-standing company commitment to operating the business according to established traditions, thereby creating an internal environment that supports decision making and strategies based on cultural norms. D. Centralized decision-making and strict enforcement of company policies. E. A longstanding commitment to strict enforcement of established policies and procedures and steadfast unwillingness to change these policies and procedures.

C

Which of the following is a benefit of closely aligning the corporate culture with the requirements for proficient strategy execution? A. A good strategy-culture alignment makes it possible to establish a much bolder strategic vision and strategic intent. B. A good strategy-culture alignment enhances a company's cost competitiveness. C. A tight strategy-culture fit steers company personnel into displaying behaviors and adopting operating practices that promote good strategy execution. D. A tight strategy-culture alignment enhances the creation of core competencies and distinctive competencies. E. A tight strategy-culture alignment makes it easier to change a company's culture over time—as a company's strategy evolves, the culture automatically evolves also.

C

Which of the following topics would least likely be contained in a company's statement of its core values? A. A commitment to having fun and creating a fun work environment. B. A commitment to operating excellence and superior results. C. Mandating full compliance with all laws and regulations. D. Exhibiting such qualities as integrity, fairness, trustworthiness, pride of workmanship, Golden Rule behavior, respect for co-workers, and ethical behavior. E. Exhibiting teamwork and cooperative attitudes.

C

Which one of the following is NOT likely to be an effective management action (making a compelling case to employees) about culture-remodeling efforts that can create a better strategy-culture fit? A. Citing reasons why and how certain behavioral norms and work practices in the current culture pose obstacles to good execution of new strategic initiatives B. Explaining how new behaviors and work practices that are to be introduced and have important roles in the new culture will be more advantageous and produce better results C. Calling upon first-level supervisors and rank-and-file employees to identify cultural barriers to good strategy execution and then lead the cultural change effort D. Granting pay raises to individuals who step out front, lead the adoption of the desired work practices, display the new-style behaviors, and achieve pace-setting results E. Revising policies and procedures in ways that will help drive cultural change

C

Which one of the following is Not a typical characteristic of a weak company culture? A. A lack of values and principles that are consistently preached or widely shared. B. A tendency among employees to view their jobs as a just a way of making a living. C. A complicated value chain and a very diverse set of core competencies—both of which act to create multiple subcultures. D. Few widely-revered traditions and few culture-induced norms. E. No strong employee allegiance to what the company stands for or to operating the business in well-defined ways.

C

Which one of the following is not an appropriate step management can take to change a problem culture? A. Identifying which aspects of the present culture are supportive of good strategy execution and which ones are not B. Specifying what new actions, behaviors, and work practices should be prominent in the "new" culture C. Appointing a team of key managers and employees to design a plan for cultural change and then lead the internal effort to change the culture D. Talking openly about the problems of the present culture and how new behaviors will improve performance E. Employing visible, forceful actions—both substantive and symbolic—to ingrain a new set of behaviors, practices and cultural norms

C

Which one of the following statements about a company's culture is false? A. The more new employees a company is hiring the more important it becomes to screen job applicants every bit as much for how well their values, beliefs, and personalities match up with the culture as for their technical skills and experience. B. The longer people stay at an organization, the more that they come to embrace and mirror the corporate culture—their values and beliefs tend to be molded by mentors, fellow workers, company training programs, and the reward structure. C. A company's culture, once established, tends to remain stable and entrenched over time. D. Typically, key elements of the culture originate with a founder or certain strong leaders who articulated them as a set of business principles, company policies, operating approaches, and ways of dealing with employees, customers, vendors, shareholders, and local communities where the company has operations. E. Company cultures can be perpetuated by the telling and retelling of company legends, by regular ceremonies honoring members who display desired cultural behaviors, and by visibly rewarding those who display cultural norms and penalizing those who don't.

C

Which one of the following is not one of the major drivers of unethical managerial behavior?

Intense competitive pressures

Which one of the following statements about a weak company culture is true? A. In a weak culture company, there is virtually no employee support for the company's strategic vision and strategy. B. Weak culture companies do not usually have a code of ethics and have little regard for high ethical standards. C. Weak cultures provide little assistance in executing strategy because there are no traditions, values, or behavioral norms that management can use as levers to mobilize commitment to executing the chosen strategy. D. Weak culture companies are fairly receptive to change and to people who champion new ways of doing things. E. In a weak culture company, there is usually little teamwork, a dearth of intellectual capital, and inattention to building core competencies.

C

Changing a problem culture to create better alignment with strategy generally does not involve A. replacing old-culture managers with new-breed managers. B. designing compensation incentives that boost the pay of teams and individuals who display the desired cultural behaviors and hit change-resisters in the pocketbook. C. altering the company's strategic vision and/or its strategic and financial objectives. D. using company gatherings and ceremonial occasions to praise individuals and groups that display the desired new cultural traits and behaviors. E. both symbolic and substantive actions by executives to implant new cultural behaviors.

C.

In companies where intellectual capital is crucial to good strategy execution, which of the following is generally not among the practices that companies use to establish a talented knowledge base?

Coaching average performers to improve their skills and capabilities, while weeding out underperformers and benchwarmers

Which of the following is not one of the traits of core competencies and/or competitive capabilities?

Core competencies generally grow out of company efforts to master a strategy-critical technology or to invent and patent a valuable technology.

Which of the following is not one of the traits of the capability-building process?

Core competencies or capabilities are usually the product of astute company efforts to hire and train talented employees.

A corporate culture founded on ethical business principles and socially approved values: A. virtually guarantees that a company will be (or soon become) the acknowledged industry leader because of the ethical and socially approved manner in which its business is being conducted. B. doesn't necessarily impact a company's long-term strategic success favorably or unfavorably. C. does more to detract from a company's chances for strategic success and market leadership than to help it. D. is a positive force underlying a company's long-term financial success and reduces the likelihood of lapses in ethical and socially approved behavior that can damage the company's reputation. E. is seldom more than window-dressing and is generally regarded by customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, and society at large as nothing more than good public relations.

D

A company's culture is typically grounded in and shaped by: A. its core competencies and competitive capabilities. B. its long-term strategic success or lack thereof. C. the degree to which top management is committed to achieving market leadership. D. its core values and the bar it sets for ethical standards. E. its strategic intent and its reward system.

D

A company's stated core values and ethical principles: A. are important because of their role in ensuring that company executives will not engage in unethical behavior or behave in a manner that is contrary to the company's core values. B. are typically tightly linked to its strategic vision and strategy. C. are the best indicators of a company's social responsibility strategy. D. are fostering a work climate where company personnel share common and strongly-held convictions about how the company's business is to be conducted and provide guidance in displaying the core values in their actions and behaviors. E. are strictly enforced in strong culture companies and weakly enforced in weak culture companies.

D

Which one of the following is a typical characteristic of a weak company culture? A. Very little cultural support for the company's strategic vision and strategy. B. No code of ethics and deep hostility to change and to people who champion new ways of doing things. C. A complicated value chain that acts to create multiple subcultures. D. A lack of values and principles that are consistently preached or widely shared. E. No strong sense of teamwork.

D

At companies where executives believe in the merits of practicing the values and ethical principles that have been espoused: A. the executives have usually personally written the statement of core values and the code of ethics. B. the company's pursuit of higher profits is tempered, so that the company will not come across to customers and the general public as greedy. C. the company's chances for strategic success and market leadership are substantially reduced because company personnel are hesitant to engage in business practices that are unethical. D. the stated core values and ethical principles are the foundation of the corporate culture. E. the core values and ethical standards are made a prominent and visible part of the company's strategic intent and strategy.

D

In adaptive corporate cultures, A. the prevailing view is that the best way of looking out for the interests of employees is to change core values and cultural norms in whatever ways are needed to fit the changing requirements of an evolving strategy. B. company personnel are amenable to changing policies and operating practices as long as the core elements of the company's strategic vision and strategy remain intact. C. members are willing to embrace a proactive approach to trying new ideas, altering operating practices, and changing pieces of the strategy provided it doesn't imperil their job security, entail cuts in compensation, or require different work practices. D. there's a spirit of doing what's necessary to ensure long-term organizational success provided that core values and business principles are not compromised and provided top management undertakes the changes in a manner that exhibits genuine concern for the legitimate interests of stakeholders. E. there is little need for policies and procedures because group members willingly accept experimentation and innovation.

D

The retelling of legendary stories does a lot for establishing a company's core values, but they should NOT: A. place pressure on company personnel to display core values and to do their part in keeping the companies traditions alive. B. illustrate the kind of behavior the company reveres. C. inspire company personnel to perform similarly and reinforce the depth of commitment that people have displayed. D. communicate the company's good intentions towards ethical behavior. E. steer company personnel toward both doing things right and doing the right thing.

D

The two culture-building roles of a company's stated values and ethical standards are to: A. communicate the company's good intentions and establish a corporate conscience. B. confirm the integrity of company personnel and signal the above-board nature of the company's business principles and operating methods. C. steer company personnel toward doing the right thing and convince outsiders that the company is socially responsible. D. foster a work climate where company personnel share common and strongly held convictions about how the company's business is to be conducted and to provide them with guidance about how to do their jobs- steering them toward both doing things right and doing the right things. E. provide a basis for designing culture-supportive incentive compensation plans and reinforcing the appropriateness of particular ethical and moral actions.

D

When a company's culture is out of sync with what is needed for strategic success and good strategy execution, A. the strategy has to be changed to fit the culture as rapidly as possible. B. the company's strategic vision, strategic intent, and strategy have to be adjusted to better reflect ingrained core values and cultural norms. C. management needs to go on the offensive to reinterpret the culture and explain to company personnel why there really is good overall cultural fit with the strategy. D. the culture has to be changed to accommodate the requirements of good strategy execution as rapidly as can be managed. E. management must urge company to participate in an all-out effort to create a different portfolio of competencies and capabilities that will permit the strategy to be changed in ways that will fit the culture.

D

When is a subculture MOST problematic? A. When the multiple subcultures are compatible with the overarching corporate culture and are supportive of strategy-execution. B. When the multiple subcultures clash and coordinating efforts to craft and execute strategy within each subculture is relatively easy. C. When the multiple subcultures foster team work and support a collaborative approach to strategy execution. D. When multiple subcultures have embraced conflicting business philosophies which are inconsistent with superior strategy execution. E. All of these.

D

When management is leading the drive for good strategy execution and operating excellence it calls for the following actions on their part, EXCEPT A. staying on top of what is happening. B. monitoring progress closely. C. Putting constructive pressure on the organization to execute the strategy with excellence. D. Initiating corrective actions to improve strategy execution, when necessary. E. None of these.

D

When should a culture be changed as rapidly as it can be managed? A. Never, because the actions and behaviors needed to execute the new strategy successfully are well entrenched, and thus are not changeable. B. Changing a culture is among the toughest management tasks and therefore it should not be done hastily for it is natural for company personnel to cling to existing practices and to be wary of new approaches. C. When the leadership at the top wants to establish a new culture that replicates the existing cultural behaviors in meeting the needs of successful strategy-execution. D. When a strong culture is unhealthy or otherwise out of sync with the actions and behaviors needed to execute the strategy successfully. E. When the case for cultural reform is not credible, symbolic nor substantive.

D

Which of the following is NOT a common trait of an unhealthy company culture? A. A politicized internal environment and empire-building managers who jealously guard their turf. B. Hostility to change and a wariness of people who champion new ways of doing things. C. An aversion to looking outside the company for best practices, new managerial approaches, and innovative ideas. D. An aversion to incentive compensation, failure to recruit the best and brightest employees, subpar support for employee training, overemphasis on working in teams, and low ethical standards. E. Overzealous pursuit of wealth and status on the part of key executives.

D

Which of the following is not among the principal managerial components of the strategy execution process?

Deciding which core competencies and value chain activities to leave as is and which ones to overhaul and improve

Which one of the following is not part of organizing the work effort in ways that promote successful strategy execution?

Determining which functions and organizational units require superior intellectual capital

Which of the following is NOT a factor in contributing to the emergence and sustainability of a strong culture? A. Continuity of leadership, small group size, stable group membership, geographic concentration, and considerable organizational success. B. A founder or strong leader who establishes values, principles, and practices that are consistent and sensible in light of customer needs, competitive conditions, and strategic requirements. C. A sincere, long-standing company commitment to operating the business according to established traditions, thereby creating an internal environment that supports decision making and strategies based on cultural norms. D. Centralized decision-making, strict enforcement of company policies, and a strong commitment to being the market share leader. E. A genuine concern for the well-being of the organization's three biggest constituencies—customers, employees, and shareholders.

D

Which of the following is NOT one of the leadership roles that senior managers have to play in pushing for good strategy execution and operating excellence? A. Learning the obstacles in the path of good execution and clearing the way for progress. B. Being out in the field, seeing how well operations are going. C. Being out front personally leading the execution process and driving the pace of progress. D. Weeding out managers who are consistently in the ranks of the lowest performers (the bottom 10 percent) and who are not enthusiastic about the strategy or how it is being executed. E. Delegating authority to middle and lower-level managers and creating a sense of empowerment among employees to move the implementation process forward.

D

Which of the following is the best test of good strategic leadership? A. Whether the company has a good strategy and business model. B. Whether the enterprise is meeting or beating its performance targets. C. Whether the strategy is being completely executed. D. All of these. E. None of these.

D

Which of the following statements about a strong-culture company is false? A. In a strong-culture company, culturally-approved behaviors and ways of doing things are nurtured while culturally-disapproved behaviors and work practices get squashed. B. In strong culture companies, senior managers make a point of reiterating key principles and core values to organization members; more importantly, they make a conscious effort to display these principles and values in their own actions and behavior and they insist that company values and business principles be reflected in the decisions and actions taken by all company personnel. C. Continuity of leadership, small group size, stable group membership, geographic concentration, and considerable organizational success all contribute to the emergence and sustainability of a strong culture. D. Centralized decision-making, strict enforcement of company policies, diligent pursuit of a distinctive competence, and a bold strategic intent are the hallmarks of a strong-culture company. E. In a strong-culture company, values and behavioral norms are like crabgrass: deeply rooted and hard to weed out.

D

Which of the following statements about the match between a company's culture and its strategy is false? A. When a company's present work climate promotes attitudes and behaviors that are well suited to first-rate strategy execution, its culture functions as a valuable ally in the strategy execution process. B. A deeply embedded culture tightly matched to the strategy aids the cause of competent strategy execution by steering company personnel to culturally-approved behaviors and work practices and thus making it far simpler to root out operating practices that are a misfit. C. It is in management's best interest to dedicate considerable effort to embedding a corporate culture that encourages behaviors and work practices conducive to good strategy execution. D. A tight strategy-culture alignment facilitates building core competencies and distinctive competencies that lead to low operating costs and a cost-based competitive advantage. E. When a company's culture is grounded in many of the needed strategy-executing behaviors, employees feel genuinely better about their jobs and what the company is trying to accomplish; as a consequence, greater numbers of company personnel exert their best efforts to execute the strategy and achieve performance targets.

D

Which of the following topics would least likely be contained in a company's code of ethics? A. Prohibiting giving or accepting bribes, kickbacks, or gifts. B. Expecting all company personnel to display honesty and integrity in their actions and avoid conflicts of interest. C. Barring dealing with suppliers that employ child labor or engage in other unsavory practices. D. Committing to a no-layoff policy and to adequate funding of employee retirement programs. E. Avoiding use of company assets, resources, and property for personal or other inappropriate purposes.

D

Which one of the following is NOT a fundamental part of a company's culture? A. The work practices and behaviors that define "how we do things around here". B. The company's standard of what is ethically acceptable and what is not, along with the "chemistry" and "personality" that permeates its work environment. C. The core values and business principles that management preaches and practices. D. The company's strategic vision, strategic intent, and culture strategy. E. The legends and stories that people repeat to illustrate and reinforce the company's core values, traditions, and business practices.

D

Which one of the following is NOT a substantive culture-changing action that a company's managers can undertake to alter a problem culture? A. Promoting individuals who are known to possess the desired cultural traits, who have stepped forward to advocate the shift to a different culture, and who can serve as role models for the desired cultural behavior B. Appointing outsiders with the desired cultural attributes to high-profile positions C. Screening all candidates for new positions carefully, hiring only those who appear to fit in with the new culture D. Urging company personnel to search outside the company for work practices and operating approaches that may be an improvement over what the company is presently doing and paying sizable bonuses to those employees who identify practices that the company ends up adopting E. Designing compensation incentives that boost the pay of teams and individuals who display the desired cultural behaviors and hit change-resisters in the pocketbook

D

Which one of the following is NOT particularly helpful in perpetuating a company's culture? A. Systematic indoctrination of new members in the culture's fundamentals. B. Frequent reiteration of core values by senior managers and group members. C. Visibly rewarding those who display cultural norms and penalizing those who don't. D. Maintaining a consistent strategic vision and strategic intent over time. E. Telling and retelling of company legends and regular ceremonies honoring members who display desired cultural behaviors.

D

A company's culture is NOT manifested in which one of the following? A. Its approaches to people management and problem-solving and in the "chemistry" and "personality" that permeates the work environment. B. Its revered traditions and the stories that get told over and over to illustrate the importance of certain values. C. Its acceptance of the peer pressures that exist to do things in particular ways and conform to expected norms. D. Its approach to people management and its official policies, procedures, and operating practices that paint the white lines for the behavior of company personnel. E. Its strategic vision, strategic intent, and strategy.

E

A strongly implanted corporate culture has a powerful influence on behavior because A. most corporate personnel have acknowledged and accepted the cultural traditions. B. of management's expectations and co-worker peers pressure to conform. C. over-time people who do not like the culture tend to leave. D. over-time achieving low-workforce-turnover is a catalyst for conformity and acceptance. E. All of these.

E

In leading the push for proficient strategy execution and operating excellence, the roles of top-level managers include A. Being out in the field, seeing how well operations are going. B. Delegating authority to middle and lower-level managers and creating a sense of empowerment among employees to move the implementation process forward. C. Gathering information firsthand and gauging the progress being made. D. Learning the obstacles in the path of good execution and clearing the way for progress. E. All of these

E

In moving to alter a problem culture, management should A. identify which aspects of the present culture are supportive of good strategy execution and which ones are not. B. specify what new actions, behaviors, and work practices should be prominent in the "new" culture. C. talk openly about the problems of the present culture and how new behaviors will improve performance. D. employ visible, forceful actions—both substantive and symbolic—to ingrain a new set of behaviors, practices and cultural norms. E. All of these.

E

Symbolic culture changing actions include A. displaying a "lead by example" philosophy. B. reinforcing and celebrating culture-change successes. C. praising individuals and groups that exemplify the new desired behavior. D. ensuring actions match the rhetoric E. All of these.

E

The character of a company's corporate culture is a product of: A. the shared values and core business principles and beliefs that management preaches and practices. B. its standards of what is ethically acceptable and what is not and the stories that get told over and over to illustrate and reinforce the company's shared values, business practices, and traditions. C. the company's approach to people management and the "chemistry" and "personality" that permeates its work environment. D. the work practices and behaviors that define "how we do things around here." E. All of these.

E

The characteristics of a strong culture company include: A. deeply-rooted values and operating approaches that "regulate" the conduct of a company's business and the climate of its workplace. B. strong managerial commitment to display company values and principles in their own actions and behavior. C. dedicated efforts on the part of management to communicating values and business principles to organization members and explaining how they relate to the company's business environment. D. ingrained shared values and business principles guide management in making decisions. E. All of these.

E

The corporate strategy process does NOT entail A. crafting, implementing and executing plans. B. fine-tuning and adjusting corporate vision and objectives. C. a continuous process of crafting and executing strategy to fit changing circumstances. D. recycling the linked stages of executing strategy. E. None of these.

E

What defines an unethical and greed-driven culture? A. Company managers and staff have little regard for ethical standards. B. Companies run by executives that are driven by greed and ego gratification. C. Executives exude the "ends-justify-the-means" mentality in pursuing overambitious operating and financial targets. D. Companies that adopt accounting principles that make their financial performance appear better than it really is. E. All of these.

E

What is the distinctive characteristic of an unhealthy corporate culture? A. The presence of counterproductive cultural traits that adversely impact the work climate and company performance. B. The preoccupation with risk management and capitalizing on related market opportunities. C. The decision-making effort is broad-based and subject to rapid -change environment pressure. D. The ethical behavior is driven by subcultures that can drive performance. E. All of these.

E

What makes a politicized internal environment so unhealthy? A. The fact that political infighting consumes a great deal of organizational energy. B. The continuous empire-building is common practice as managers pursue their own agendas. C. The building of autonomous fiefdoms pervades the work climate. D. The overabundance of political maneuvering takes away from efforts to execute strategy. E. All of these.

E

Which of the following is NOT a technique that companies employ to hammer in and ingrain core values and ethical standards? A. Incorporating the statement of values and the code of ethics into orientation programs for new employees and training courses for managers and employees. B. Making the display of core values and ethical principles a factor in evaluating each person's job performance. C. Encouraging everyone to use their influence in helping enforce observance of core values and ethical standards. D. Using ceremonial occasions to recognize individuals and groups who display the values and ethical principles. E. Instituting standard practices and procedures for employees to follow as a foundation for maintaining ethical and cultural norm conflict clashes and behavioral lapses.

E

Which of the following is NOT one of the positive impacts that a company's stated values and ethical standards have on its corporate culture? A. Communicating the company's good intentions. B. Validating the integrity and above-board nature of the company's business principles and operating methods. C. Steering company personnel toward both doing things right and doing the right thing. D. Establishing a corporate conscience. E. None of these.

E

Which of the following is an example of leadership actions or managerial practices taken to foster a results-oriented, high-performance culture? A. Treating employees as valued partners. B. Utilize people-management practices to build morale and foster pride. C. Setting stretch objectives and clearly communicating expectations for reaching targets. D. Using motivational techniques and compensation incentives to inspire employees. E. All of these.

E

Which of the following is not an example of an unhealthy company culture? A. Insular inwardly-focused cultures. B. Change-resistant cultures. C. Unethical and greed-driven cultures. D. Politicized cultures. E. Hyper-adaptive cultures.

E

Which of the following managerial practices are used to successfully lead the effort to foster a results-oriented, high-performance culture? A. Using empowerment to help create a fully engaged workforce. B. Making champions out of the people who spearhead new ideas and/or turn in winning performances. C. Celebrating individual, group, and company successes. D. Treating employees as valued partners in the drive for operating excellence and good business performance. E. All of these.

E

he menu of actions management can take to change problem culture does NOT include which one of the following? A. Making a compelling case for why the company's new strategic direction and culture-remodeling efforts are in the organization's best interests and why company personnel should wholeheartedly join the effort to doing things somewhat differently. B. Replacing senior executives who are strongly identified with the old culture and who may be stonewalling needed organizational and cultural changes. C. Promoting individuals who are known to possess the desired cultural traits, who have stepped forward to advocate the shift to a different culture, and who can serve as role models for the desired cultural behavior. D. Revising policies and procedures in ways that will help drive cultural change. E. Shifting from decentralized to centralized decision-making so as to give senior executives more authority and control in driving the cultural change.

E

Which of the following is unlikely to be a primary building block in a company's organizational structure?

Empowered employee departments

Which one of the following is not a part of the business case for why companies should act in a socially responsible manner?

Every business has a moral duty to be a good corporate citizen

Which of the following statements about implementing and executing a new strategy is true?

Executing strategy is a job for a company's whole management team, not just a few senior managers; moreover, all employees are participants in the strategy execution process.

Which of the following is not something a company should consider in crafting an environmental sustainability strategy?

Making contributions to the Global Environmental Council which are distributed based on a competitive basis

Which of the following is not one of the chief advantages of a decentralized organizational structure?

Making it easy to fix accountability when company performance targets are not met and enhanced capture of cross-business strategic fits

Which of the following is not a particularly sound or valid reason why a company's strategy should be ethical?

Most all shareholders believe it is honorable for their company to pursue an ethical strategy (even though it usually entails making less profit) and are turned off by company efforts to make greater profits via unethical means.

Which one of the following statements about outsourcing the performance of value-chain activities to outside specialists is false?

Outsourcing support services often has cost-saving benefits but outsourcing primary value chain activities has the disadvantages of raising fixed costs, reducing variable costs, and making it harder to develop distinctive competencies.

Which one of the following is not a reason why companies might use outsourcing to improve performance of strategy-critical activities?

Promoting quick establishment of a total quality culture

Which one of the following statements about recruiting and retaining capable employees is false?

Recruiting and retaining capable employees is usually much more important to good strategy execution and the achievement of true operating excellence than is assembling a capable top management team

Which of the following is not among the principal managerial components of the strategy execution process?

Selecting and retaining capable employees, thereby enhancing the company's intellectual capital resources

Which of the following occurs when managers take advantage of their position to further their own private interests rather than those of the firm?

Self-dealing

Which one of the following statements about the ethical relativism school of thinking is false?

The best and fairest way for a multinational company to approach the enforcement of ethical standards companywide is to reject ethical universalism and pursue ethical relativism.

Which one of the following statements falsely characterizes the managerial task of executing strategy?

The challenge of successfully implementing new strategic initiatives principally involves employing managerial techniques to overcome resistance to change.

Which of the following is generally not among the practices that companies use to staff jobs with the best people they can find, particularly if intellectual capital greatly aids good strategy execution?

Weeding out the 20% lowest performing employees each year

Which of the following is not accurate as concerns a company's competencies and capabilities?

When a company succeeds in hiring talented employees and training them properly, competencies and capabilities tend to blossom quickly and, once put in place, can last for a decade or more.

In which one of the following instances is the training and retraining of employees likely to make the least important contribution to good strategy execution?

When the strategy execution effort is based on tried and true operating practices that vary little from year to year.

Which of the following is not a key question that senior executives must ask whenever a new strategic initiative is under review?

Would the potential outcome of the proposed action pose a risk of embarrassment?

Ultimate responsibility for seeing that strategy is executed successfully primarily falls upon the shoulders of

a company's chief executive officer, its chief operating officer, and the heads of major units (business divisions, functional departments, and key operating units).

The notion of social responsibility as it applies to businesses concerns

a company's duty to operate in an honorable manner, provide good working conditions for employees, be a good steward of the environment, and actively work to better the quality of life in the local communities where it operates and in society at large.

In devising an action agenda to implement and execute a new or different strategy, the place for managers to start is with

a probing assessment of what the organization must do differently and better to carry out the strategy successfully.

The strength of integrated social contracts theory is that it

accommodates the best parts of ethical universalism and ethical relativism.

Integrated social contracts theory maintains that

adherence to universal ethical norms always take precedence over local ethical norms.

Building organizational bridges with external allies is aided by

appointing "relationship managers" and giving them responsibility for making particular strategic partnerships or alliances generate the intended benefits.

According to integrated social contracts theory, the ethical standards a company should try to uphold

are governed both by (1) a limited number of universal ethical principles that are widely recognized as putting legitimate ethical boundaries on actions and behavior in all situations and (2) the circumstances of local cultures, traditions, and shared values that further prescribe what constitutes ethically permissible behavior and what does not—but universal ethical norms always take precedence over local norms.

Ethical principles as they apply to business conduct and business decisions

are not materially different from ethical principles in general.

Ethical principles in business

are not materially different from ethical principles in general.

Notions of right and wrong, fair and unfair, moral and immoral, ethical and unethical

are present in all societies, organizations, and individuals; some of the most important concepts (for example, being truthful) of what is right and what is wrong resonate with people of most cultures, and are thus universal.

Core competencies and competitive capabilities

are usually bundles of skills and know-how that most often grow out of the combined efforts of cross-functional work groups and departments performing complementary activities at different locations in a firm's value chain.

The overriding aim in building a management team should be to

assemble a critical mass of talented managers who can function as agents of change, work well together as a team, and produce organizational results that are dramatically better than what one or two star managers acting individually can achieve.

The moral case for why a company should actively promote the betterment of society and act in a manner benefitting all its stakeholders

boils down to "it's the right thing to do."

Outsourcing critics contend that shifting responsibility for performing value-chain activities to outside specialists

can hollow out a company's knowledge base and capabilities, leaving it at the mercy of outsider suppliers, and short of the resource strengths to be a master of its own destiny

The primary building blocks within a company's organizational structure

can include process departments, traditional functional departments, geographic organizational units, and divisional units performing one or more major processing steps along the value chain (components manufacture, assembly, distribution), and individual businesses (in the case of a diversified company).

Once company managers have decided on a strategy, the emphasis turns to

converting the strategy (and any associated strategic plan) into actions and good results.

Delegating greater authority to subordinate managers and employees

creates a more horizontal or flatter organization structure with fewer management layers and usually acts to shorten organizational response times.

Organizing a company's work effort to promote successful strategy execution involves

deciding which value chain activities to perform in-house and which to outsource and making internally performed strategy-critical value chain activities the main building blocks in the organization structure.

A decentralized organizational structure is predicated on a belief that

decision-making authority should be pushed down to the lowest organizational level capable of making timely, informed, competent decisions.

A decentralized organizational structure is predicated on a belief that

decision-making authority should be put in the hands of the people closest to and most familiar with the situation, and these people should be trained to exercise good judgment.

When a company uses outsourcing to zero in on even better performance of those truly strategy-critical activities where its expertise is most needed, then it may also be able to

decrease internal bureaucracies, flatten its organizational structure, shorten the time it takes to respond to changing market conditions, and capitalize on its partnerships with outsiders to enhance its arsenal of capabilities and thus contribute to better strategy execution.

The contention that since different societies and cultures have divergent values and standards of right and wrong it is appropriate to judge behavior as ethical/unethical in the light of local customs and social mores rather than according to a single set of ethical standards

defines what is meant by ethical relativism.

The "triple bottom line" refers to what three performance metrics?

economic, social, environmental.

Sometimes a company can short-circuit the task of building an organizational capability in-house by

either acquiring a company that has already developed the capability or else acquiring the desired capability through collaborative efforts with outsiders having the requisite skills, know-how, and expertise.

The business case for an ethical strategy

emphasizes that pursuing unethical strategies not only damages a company's reputation but can also have costly consequences that are wide ranging.

Putting together a capable top management team

entails filling key managerial slots with smart people who are clear thinkers, good at figuring out what needs to be done, and skilled in "making it happen" and delivering good results.

The major drivers of unethical managerial behavior include

ethically corrupt corporate cultures, heavy pressures on company managers to meet or beat performance targets, and overzealous pursuit of personal gain, wealth, and other self interests.

The classic way to coordinate the work efforts of internal organization units is to

have closely related activities report to a single executive who has the authority and organizational clout to coordinate, integrate, and arrange for the cooperation of units under their supervision.

Outsourcing value chain activities to strategic partners can yield such advantages as

lower costs, less internal bureaucracy, speedier decision-making, more flexibility, and heightened strategic focus.

The organizing challenge of a decentralized structure which stresses employee empowerment is

how to exercise control over the actions and decisions of empowered employees so that the business is not put at risk while trying to capture the benefits of empowerment.

Management's handling of the strategy implementation/execution process can be considered successful

if and when the company meets or beats its performance targets and shows good progress in achieving its strategic vision for the company.

According to the advocates of ethical relativism,

if the use of underage labor and/or the payment of bribes/kickbacks are acceptable in a particular culture/society/country, then a case can be made that it is morally correct and ethical for a company to use these practices in conducting its business activities in that culture/society/country.

The strategic importance of deliberately trying to develop organizational competencies and capabilities is

improved strategy execution and a potential for competitive advantage

The contention that ethical standards should be governed both by (1) a limited number of universal ethical principles that are widely recognized as putting legitimate ethical boundaries on actions and behavior in all situations and (2) the circumstances of local cultures, traditions, and shared values that further prescribe what constitutes ethically permissible behavior and what does not are the basic principles of

integrated social contracts theory.

Implementing and executing a company's strategy

is a task for every manager and the whole management team but ultimate responsibility for success or failure falls upon the top senior executives.

Recruiting and retaining capable employees

is important because the quality of an organization's people is always an essential ingredient of successful strategy execution—knowledgeable, engaged employees are a company's best source of creative ideas for the nuts-and-bolts improvements that lead to operating excellence.

Paying bribes and kickbacks to grease business transactions

is one of the thorniest ethical problems that multinational companies face because paying bribes is normal and customary in some countries and ethically or legally forbidden in others.

The strength of the beliefs underlying ethical universalism is that

it draws upon the collective views of multiple societies and cultures to put some clear boundaries on what constitutes ethical business behavior and what constitutes unethical business behavior no matter what country market or culture a company is operating in.

The disadvantages of a centralized organizational structure include

lengthening response times and discouraging lower-level managers and rank-and-file employees from exercising initiative.

Outsourcing value chain activities has such strategy-executing advantages as

less internal bureaucracy, speedier decision-making, quicker responses to changing market conditions, and heightened focus on performing a select few value chain activities (which can improve performance of those activities).

If one concurs with the school of ethical universalism, then one believes that

many basic moral standards travel well across cultures and countries and really do not vary significantly according to local cultural beliefs, social mores, religious convictions, and/or the circumstances of the situation.

An environmental sustainability strategy consists of a company's deliberate actions to

meet the current needs of customers, suppliers, shareholders, employees and other stakeholders in a manner that protects the environment, provides for the longevity of natural resources, maintains ecological support systems for future generations, and guards against ultimate endangerment of the planet.

Larger firms with more complex organizational structures are

more decentralized in their decision making than smaller firms.

When it is difficult or impossible to out-strategize rivals (beat them with a superior strategy), the other main avenue to competitive advantage is to

out execute them (beat them by performing certain value chain activities in superior fashion).

Good corporate citizens

pursue discretionary activities that contribute to the betterment of society, especially in areas where government has chosen not to focus its efforts or has fallen short.

The chief disadvantages of a decentralized organizational structure include

putting the organization at risk if many "bad" decisions are made at lower levels in the organization—top management lacks "full control."

Companies that adopt the principle of ethical relativism in providing ethical guidance to company personnel

quickly find themselves on a slippery slope with no higher order moral compass if they operate in countries where ethical standards vary considerably from country to country.

The chief advantages of a decentralized organizational structure include

reducing the layers of management and encouraging lower-level managers and rank-and-file employees to exercise initiative and act responsibly.

The capability-building process

requires first developing the ability to do something, however imperfectly or inefficiently; second, translating this ability into a competence and/or capability by learning to do the activity consistently well and at an acceptable cost; and then continuing to polish and refine its know-how in an effort further improve its performance, ideally striving to match or beat rivals in performing the activity.

The capability-building process

requires first developing the ability to do something, however imperfectly or inefficiently; second, translating this ability into a competence by learning to do the activity consistently well and at an acceptable cost; and then continuing to polish and refine its know-how in an effort to further improve its performance, ideally striving to match or beat rivals in performing the activity.

The school of ethical universalism holds that

some concepts of what is right and what is wrong resonate with peoples of most societies regardless of local traditions and cultural norms—hence common ethical standards can be used to judge the conduct of personnel at companies operating in a variety of country markets and cultural circumstances.

Building an organization capable of good strategy execution entails

staffing the organization, building core competencies and competitive capabilities, and structuring the organization and work effort.

Multinational companies that forbid the payment of bribes and kickbacks in their codes of ethical conduct and that are serious about enforcing this prohibition

still have considerable difficulty in preventing the payments of bribes and kickbacks when such payments are entrenched as normal and customary in locations where they do business.

One of the big weaknesses of organization structures that do not have cross-business collaboration is

that pieces of strategically relevant activities and capabilities often end up scattered across many departments each pursuing its own priorities, projects and agendas.

Business ethics concerns

the application of general ethical principles and standards to the actions and decisions of companies and the behavior of company personnel.

What makes the managerial task of executing strategy so challenging and demanding is

the demanding people-management skills required, the resistance to change that has to be overcome, and the perseverance necessary to get a variety of initiatives launched and kept moving along

The litmus test of a company's code of ethics is

the extent to which it is embraced in crafting strategy and in the day-to-day operations of the business.

A firm's organizational structure is comprised of

the formal and informal arrangement of tasks, responsibilities, lines of authority, and reporting relationships by which the firm is administered.

The contentions that (1) many of the same standards of what's ethical and what's unethical resonate with peoples of most societies regardless of local traditions and cultural norms and (2) to the extent there is common moral agreement about right and wrong actions, common ethical standards can be used to judge the conduct of personnel at companies operating in a variety of country markets and cultural circumstances are defining beliefs of

the school of ethical universalism.

Short-termism is defined as

the tendency for managers to focus excessive attention on short-term performance objectives

The rationale for making strategy-critical value chain activities the primary building blocks in a company's organizational scheme is based on

the thesis that if activities crucial to strategic success are to have the resources, decision-making influence, and organizational impact they need, they have to be centerpieces in the organizational scheme.

According to the school of ethical relativism,

there are important occasions when local cultural norms and the circumstances of the situation determine whether certain behaviors are right or wrong.

According to the ethical relativism school of thinking,

there can be no one-size-fits-all set of authentic ethical norms against which to gauge the conduct of company personnel.

According to the school of ethical universalism,

to the extent there is common moral agreement about right and wrong actions and behaviors across multiple cultures and countries, there exists a set of universal ethical standards to which all societies, all companies, and all individuals can be held accountable.

While ultimate responsibility for implementing and executing strategy falls upon the shoulders of senior executives,

top-level managers still have to rely on the active support and cooperation of middle and lower-level managers in pushing needed changes in functional areas and operating units.

According to the school of ethical universalism,

universal ethical principles or norms put limits on what actions and behaviors fall inside the boundaries of what is right and which ones fall outside—such universal norms include honesty, respecting the rights of others, practicing the Golden Rule, and not acting in a manner that harms others or pillages the environment.

The school of ethical relativism holds that

when there are cross-country or cross-cultural differences in what is deemed fair or unfair, what constitutes proper regard for human rights, and what is considered ethical or unethical in business situations, it is appropriate for local moral standards to take precedence over what the ethical standards may be elsewhere.

A belief in ethical relativism leads to the conclusion that

whether the use of underage labor and the payment of bribes/kickbacks should be deemed ethical or unethical depends on the moral standards, values, and business norms that prevail in particular cultures, societies, countries, or circumstances.