CH 1

44. What is the foremost question in running a business enterprise?

A. What must managers do, and do well, to make a company a winner in the marketplace?

6. Every strategy needs

A. a distinctive element that attracts customers and produces a competitive edge.

27. Which one of the following does NOT account for WHY a company's strategy evolves from one version to another?

A. a need to promote stability and retain the status quo

50. Changing circumstances and ongoing managerial efforts to improve the strategy

A. account for why a company's strategy evolves over time.

32. Management's blueprint for how and why the company's business approaches will generate revenues sufficient to cover costs and produce attractive profits and returns on investment

B. best describes what is meant by a company's business model.

36. A winning strategy must pass which three tests?

B. the Fit Test, the Competitive Advantage Test, and the Performance Test

18. Which of the following companies would have the LEAST bargaining power with its suppliers?

E. a company that offers high-cost specialized products that could be used only by customers of a certain age group

19. Winning a sustainable competitive edge over competitors does NOT hinge on which of the following?

E. building products and distributing them at low prices to a broad customer base irrespective of manufacturing cost

21. Managers must be prepared to modify their strategy in response to all of the following EXCEPT

E. public pronouncements from rivals about monthly profit margins.

28. In the course of crafting a strategy which of the following is NOT a common management function?

E. sharing the strategy with the public to gain additional customer and shareholder support

3. __________ is the set of actions that its managers take to outperform the company's competitors and achieve superior profitability.

A. A strategy

20. Managers of every company should be willing and ready to modify the strategy because

A. market conditions and circumstances are changing over time or the current strategy is clearly failing.

13. A company achieves a competitive advantage when it

A. provides buyers with superior value compared to rival sellers or offers the same value at a lower cost.

2. A company's strategy consists of the action plan management takes to

A. stake out a unique market position and achieve superior profitability.

43. Excellent execution of an excellent strategy is

A. the best test of managerial excellence and the best recipe for making a company a standout performer.

29. Strategy is about competing differently than rivals thus strategy success is about

A. the sources of sustained advantages and superior profitability.

40. Why are crafting and executing business strategies the foremost tasks of any organization?

B. Because a good strategy coupled with a good strategy execution are the most telling signs of good management and allow a company to be a standout performer in the marketplace

1. Which of the following is NOT one of the managerial considerations in determining how to compete successfully?

B. How can a company modify its entire product line to emphasize its internal service attributes?

48. A company achieves sustainable competitive advantage when

B. a sufficiently large number of buyers have a lasting preference for its products or services as compared to the offerings of competitors.

30. A company's business model

B. is management's blueprint for how it will generate revenues sufficient to cover costs and yield an attractive profit.

45. In evaluating proposed or existing strategies managers should

B. scrutinize the company's existing strategies on a regular basis to ensure they offer a good strategic fit, create a competitive advantage, and result in above-average performance.

7. A company's strategy is NOT concerned with management's choices about how to

B. stake out the same market position as successful rival companies.

26. A company's realized strategy evolves from one version to the next due to

B. the proactive efforts of company managers to improve the current strategy, a need to respond to changing customer requirements and expectations, and a need to react to fresh strategic maneuvers on the part of rival firms.

24. Crafting a deliberate strategy involves developing strategy elements that

C. consist of a blend of proactive new planned initiatives plus ongoing strategy elements continued from prior periods.

17. Which of the following is NOT a frequently used strategic approach to set a company apart from rivals and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage?

C. simply trying to mimic the successful strategies of rivals

35. A winning strategy is one that

C. fits the company's internal and external situation, builds sustainable competitive advantage, and improves company performance.

42. The most significant signs of a well-managed company are

C. good strategy-making combined with good strategy execution.

14. A creative and distinctive strategy that sets a company apart from rivals and that gives it a sustainable competitive advantage

C. is a company's most reliable ticket to above-average profitability.

39. Crafting and executing a strategy is a top-priority managerial task because

C. it is management's prescription for doing business, its roadmap to competitive advantage, a game plan for pleasing customers, and its formula for improving performance.

8. A company's strategy stands a better chance of succeeding when

C. it is predicated on competitive moves aimed at appealing to buyers in ways that set the company apart from rivals.

11. The pattern of actions and business approaches that would NOT define a company's strategy include actions to

D. gain sales and market share with lower prices despite increased costs.

25. Which of the following statements about a company's strategy is true?

D. A company's strategy is typically a blend of proactive and reactive strategy elements.

31. Why is it important to craft a business model?

D. Because it sets forth the key components of the enterprise's business approach, indicates how revenues will be generated, and makes a case for why the strategy can deliver value to customers in a profitable manner.

38. Which of the following questions tests the merits of the firm's strategy and distinguishes it as a winning strategy?

D. Is the strategy helping the company achieve a sustainable competitive advantage and is it resulting in better company performance?

23. It is normal for a company's strategy to end up being

D. a blend of proactive actions to improve the company's competitiveness and financial performance, and adaptive reactions to unanticipated developments and fresh market conditions.

4. Strategy at its essence is about

D. developing lasting success that can support growth and secure the company's future over the long term.

46. A winning strategy is one that

D. fits the company's internal and external situation, builds sustainable competitive advantage, and improves company performance.

41. Good strategy combined with good strategy execution

D. is the clearest indicator of good management.

15. What separates a powerful strategy from a run-of-the-mill or ineffective one?

D. management's ability to forge a series of actions, both in the marketplace and internally, that sets the company apart from rivals and produces sustainable competitive advantage

22. A company's strategy is a "work in progress" and evolves over time because of the

D. ongoing need of company managers to react and respond to changing market and competitive conditions.

34. The customer value proposition lays out the company's approach to

D. satisfying customer wants and needs at a price customers will consider a good value.

33. The difference between a company's strategy and a company's business model is that

D. strategy relates broadly to a company's competitive moves and business approaches while its business model relates to whether the revenues flowing from the strategy are sufficient to cover costs and realize a profit.

37. Which of the following questions can be used to distinguish a winning strategy from a mediocre or losing strategy?

E. How well does the strategy fit the company's situation?

10. The heart and soul of a company's strategy-making effort is determining how to

E. come up with moves and actions that produce a durable competitive edge over rivals.

47. Which of the following is a seldom used strategic approach to setting a company apart from rivals and achieving a sustainable competitive advantage?

E. copying the attributes of a popular product or service

49. Which of the following is not an element of a company's business strategy?

E. management's actions to revise the company's financial and strategic performance targets

5. To improve performance there are many different avenues for outcompeting rivals such as

E. strengthening competitiveness by pursuing strategic alliances and collaborative partnerships.

16. Which of the following is NOT a frequently used strategic approach to set a company apart from rivals and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage?

E. striving to be the industry's high-price provider

12. A creative

distinctive strategy that delivers a sustainable competitive advantage is important because ,C. crafting a strategy that yields a competitive advantage over rivals is a company's most reliable means of achieving above-average profitability and financial performance.

9. In crafting a company's strategy

managers ,D. need to come up with a sustainable competitive advantage that draws in customers and produces a competitive edge over rivals.