Deck 2: Identifying Competitive Advantages

Question 1

Competitive advantages provide the same product or service either at a lower price or with additional value that can fetch premium prices.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

FedEx created a first-mover advantage by developing its customer self-service software, which allows people to request parcel pickups, print mailing slips, and track parcels online.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

In a SWOT analysis, strengths and weaknesses originate inside an organization, or internally. Opportunities and threats originate outside an organization, or externally, and cannot always be anticipated or controlled.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

To combat business challenges, leaders communicate and execute business strategies (from the Greek word stratus for army and ago for leading).

Question 5

Mark Peterson identified the Porter's Five Forces Model which analyzes the competitive forces within a business environment.

Question 6

A SWOT analysis evaluates an organization's strengths, worries, opportunities, and technologies to identify significant influences that work for or against business strategies.

Question 7

Businesses rarely need to update business strategies as the business environment remains relatively stable.

Question 8

Increasing costs and decreasing sales are examples of business strategies.

Question 9

A SWOT analysis evaluates an organization's strengths, weaknesses, objectives, and threats.

Question 10

A SWOT analysis will evaluate potential internal strengths, internal weaknesses, and external opportunities.

Question 11

In a SWOT analysis, potential external threats are harmful when they identify all threats or risks detrimental to your organization, including new market entrants, substitute products, employee turnover, differentiating products, shrinking markets, adverse changes in regulations, and economic shifts.

Question 12

Increasing sales, decreasing costs, entering new markets, or developing new products or services are all examples of successful business strategies.

Question 13

In a SWOT analysis, potential external opportunities are helpful when they identify all significant trends along with how the organization can benefit from each, including new markets, additional customer groups, legal changes, innovative technologies, population changes, and competitor issues.

Question 14

A SWOT analysis evaluates an organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to identify significant influences that work for or against business strategies.

Question 15

In a SWOT analysis, potential internal strengths are helpful when they identify all key strengths associated with the competitive advantage, including cost advantages, new and/or innovative services, special expertise and/or experience, proven market leader, and improved marketing campaigns.

Question 16

When a company is the first to market with a competitive advantage, it gains a particular benefit known as competitive intelligence.

Question 17

A leadership plan that achieves a specific set of goals or objectives is a business strategy.

Question 18

A first-mover advantage is the process of gathering information about the competitive environment, including competitors' plans, activities, and products, to improve a company's ability to succeed.

Question 19

In a SWOT analysis, potential internal weaknesses are harmful when they identify all key areas that require improvement. Weaknesses focus on the absence of certain strengths, including absence of an Internet marketing plan, damaged reputation, problem areas for service, outdated technology, and employee issues.

Question 20

Porter's Five Forces Model outlines the process for a sales strategy.

Question 21

Supplier power is one of Porter's five forces and it measures the suppliers' ability to influence the prices they charge for supplies (including materials, labor, and services).

Question 22

According to Porter it is recommended to adopt only one of the three generic strategies.

Question 23

The threat of substitute products or services refers to the power of customers to purchase alternatives.

Question 24

Value chain analysis views a firm as a series of business processes that each adds value to the product or service.

Question 25

A business process is a standardized set of activities that accomplishes a specific task, such as processing a customer's order.

Question 26

Porter has identified three generic business strategies including focused, broad cost leadership, and switching strategy.

Question 27

Product differentiation occurs when a company develops unique differences in its products or services with the intent to influence demand.

Question 28

There are many challenges to changing doctors, including transferring medical records and losing the doctor-patient relationship along with the doctor's knowledge of the patient's history. Changing doctors provides a great example of switching costs.

Question 29

With the Five Forces Model, companies should watch the forces in the market. If the forces are strong, competition generally increases, and if the forces are weak, competition typically decreases.

Question 30

Buyer power is included as one of Porter's three generic strategies.

Question 31

Buyer power is the ability of buyers to affect the price they must pay for an item.

Question 32

According to Porter's three generic strategies, Walmart is following a business strategy that focuses on broad market and low cost.

Question 33

Polaroid had a unique competitive advantage for many years until it forgot to observe competitive intelligence. The firm went bankrupt when people began taking digital pictures. Polaroid provides a great example of Porter's supplier power.

Question 34

The value chain will group a company's activities into two categories: primary value activities and support value activities.

Question 35

A standardized set of activities that accomplishes a specific task is called a supply chain component.

Question 36

Tiffany & Company competes in the marketplace by offering high-cost custom jewelry. Tiffany & Company is following a broad market and cost leadership strategy.

Question 37

Primary value activities are standardized activities that accomplish a specific task, such as processing a customer's order.

Question 38

Inbound logistics and operations are part of the primary value activities.

Question 39

The threat of substitute products or services refers to the power of competitors to enter a new market.

Question 40

Rivalry among existing competitors refers to the ability of buyers to affect the price they must pay for an item.

Question 41

In terms of system thinking, what is feedback?

A) Data entered in a computer
B) Controls to ensure correct processes
C) The resulting information from the computer program
D) The computer program that processes the data

Question 42

In terms of system thinking, what is data entered in a computer?

A) Input
B) Output
C) Process
D) Feedback

Question 43

A system is a collection of parts that link to achieve a common purpose. Systems thinking is a way of monitoring ________.

A) The entire system.
B) A division within the sales role.
C) The executive team.
D) The company's competitors.

Question 44

MIS can be an important enabler of business success and innovation. Which of the below statements is accurate when referring to MIS?

A) MIS equals business success and innovation.
B) MIS represents business success and innovation.
C) MIS is not a valuable tool that leverages talent.
D) MIS is a valuable tool that can leverage the talents of people who know how to use and manage it effectively.

Question 45

What are material items or products that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need?

A) Goods
B) Services
C) Production
D) Productivity

Question 46

MIS is a business function. Which of the following does MIS perform to help aid the company in decision making and problem solving?

A) Moves information about people.
B) Moves processes across the company to improve systems.
C) Moves information about products.
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 47

In terms of system thinking, what is output?

A) Data entered in a computer
B) Controls to ensure correct processes
C) The resulting information from the computer program
D) The computer program that processes the data

Question 48

What is the name of a company's internal computer department?

A) Management information systems (MIS)
B) Information systems (IS)
C) Information technology (IT)
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 49

Inbound logistics and operations are part of the support value activities.

Question 50

Feedback is information that returns to its original transmitter and modifies the transmitter's actions. What would the original transmitter include?

A) Input, Transform, Output.
B) Input, Transform, Outnumber.
C) Output, Input, Performer.
D) Input, Process, Transform.

Question 51

In terms of system thinking, what is the computer program that processes the data?

A) Input
B) Output
C) Process
D) Feedback

Question 52

Firm infrastructure and human resource management are part of the primary value activities.

Question 53

In terms of system thinking, what controls to ensure correct processes?

A) Input
B) Output
C) Process
D) Feedback

Question 54

Firm infrastructure and human resource management are part of the support value activities.

Question 55

What is a way of monitoring the entire system in a company, by viewing the multiple inputs being processed to produce outputs?

A) Feedback thinking.
B) Systems thinking.
C) Output management.
D) Operational thinking.

Question 56

In terms of system thinking, what is the resulting information from the computer program?

A) Input
B) Output
C) Process
D) Feedback

Question 57

In terms of system thinking, what is input?

A) Data entered in a computer
B) Controls to ensure correct processes
C) The resulting information from the computer program
D) The computer program that processes the data

Question 58

Which of the following statements is true?

A) MIS equals business success.
B) MIS equals business innovation.
C) MIS represents business success and innovation.
D) MIS enables business success and innovation.

Question 59

In terms of system thinking, what is process?

A) Data entered in a computer
B) Controls to ensure correct processes
C) The resulting information from the computer program
D) The computer program that processes the data

Question 60

What are tasks performed by people that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need?

A) Goods
B) Services
C) Production
D) Productivity

Question 61

Which of the following is considered a service?

A) Teaching
B) Waiting tables
C) Cutting hair
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 62

What is the rate at which goods and services are produced based upon total output given total inputs?

A) Goods
B) Services
C) Production
D) Productivity

Question 63

Which of the following is considered a good?

A) Milk and eggs
B) Managing a team
C) Selling groceries
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 64

Assume you are in the business of producing and selling cars. If you could produce more cars with the same input what would happen to your productivity and profits assuming the price of your cars remains the same?

A) Increase in productivity, decrease in profits
B) Increase in productivity, increase in profits
C) Decrease in productivity, decrease in profits
D) Decrease in productivity, increase in profits

Question 65

What are goods?

A) Material items or products that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
B) Tasks performed by people that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
C) The process where a business takes raw materials and processes them or converts them into a finished product for its goods or services
D) The rate at which goods and services are produced based upon total output given total inputs

Question 66

Which of the following is considered a good?

A) Cars
B) Teaching
C) Waiting tables
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 67

Cars, groceries, and clothing belong in which category?

A) Goods
B) Services
C) Production
D) Productivity

Question 68

What is production?

A) Material items or products that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
B) Tasks performed by people that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
C) The process where a business takes raw materials and processes them or converts them into a finished product for its goods or services
D) The rate at which goods and services are produced based upon total output given total inputs

Question 69

Which of the following is considered a service?

A) Cars
B) Groceries
C) Cutting hair
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 70

Assume you are in the business of producing and selling t-shirts. If you could produce more t-shirts with the same input what would happen to your productivity and profits assuming the price of your t-shirts remains the same?

A) Increase in productivity, decrease in profits
B) Increase in productivity, increase in profits
C) Decrease in productivity, decrease in profits
D) Decrease in productivity, increase in profits

Question 71

The lettuce, tomatoes, patty, bun, and ketchup are included in which category of making a hamburger?

A) Input
B) Process
C) Output
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 72

The actual hamburger is included in which category of making a hamburger?

A) Input
B) Process
C) Output
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 73

Which of the following is considered a service?

A) Selling groceries
B) Managing a team
C) Cutting hair
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 74

Teaching, waiting tables, and cutting hair belong in which category?

A) Goods
B) Services
C) Production
D) Productivity

Question 75

Which of the following is considered a good?

A) Cars
B) Groceries
C) Clothing
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 76

Cooking a patty and putting the ingredients together are included in which category of making a hamburger?

A) Input
B) Process
C) Output
D) All of the choices are correct

Question 77

What is the process where a business takes raw materials and processes them or converts them into a finished product for its goods or services?

A) Goods
B) Services
C) Production
D) Productivity

Question 78

Assume you are in the business of producing and selling hamburgers. If you could produce more hamburgers with the same input what would happen to your productivity and profits assuming the price of your hamburgers remains the same?

A) Increase in productivity, decrease in profits
B) Increase in productivity, increase in profits
C) Decrease in productivity, decrease in profits
D) Decrease in productivity, increase in profits

Question 79

What are services?

A) Material items or products that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
B) Tasks performed by people that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
C) The process where a business takes raw materials and processes them or converts them into a finished product for its goods or services
D) The rate at which goods and services are produced based upon total output given total inputs

Question 80

What is productivity?

A) Material items or products that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
B) Tasks performed by people that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need
C) The process where a business takes raw materials and processes them or converts them into a finished product for its goods or services
D) The rate at which goods and services are produced based upon total output given total inputs