Deck 1: Strategic Management: Creating Competitive Advantages: an Overview

Question 1

Members of boards of directors are

A) appointed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
B) elected by the shareholders as their representatives.
C) elected by the public.
D) only allowed to serve one term of four years.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

To increase their competitiveness, organizations must continually analyze their strategy and their competitive environments. Strategy analysis includes:

A) assessing intellectual capital as well as analyzing the internal and external environment.
B) formulating Internet and international-level strategy.
C) strategic leadership and fostering entrepreneurship.
D) strategy implementation and strategic controls.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

All of the following innovations are about operational effectiveness, except:

A) benchmarking.
B) strategic management.
C) business process re-engineering.
D) just-in-time.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

While working to prioritize and fulfill their responsibilities, members of an organization's board of directors should

A) represent their own interests.
B) represent the interests of the shareholders.
C) direct all actions of the CEO.
D) emphasize the importance of short-term goals.

Question 5

Which of the following is among the four key attributes of strategic management?

A) Strategy must be directed toward overall organizational goals and objectives.
B) Strategy must be focused on long-term objectives.
C) Strategy must be focused on one specific area of an organization.
D) Strategy must be focused on competitor strengths.

Question 6

Firms must be aware of goals other than short-term profit maximization. One area of concern should be social responsibility which is:

A) the expectation that business will strive to improve the overall welfare of society.
B) the idea that organizations are solely responsible to local citizens.
C) the fact that court costs could impact the financial bottom line.
D) the idea that businesses are responsible to maintain a healthy social climate for their employees.

Question 7

A manager's capacity to both align resources to take advantage of existing product markets, as well as proactively explore new opportunities is called:

A) targeting
B) altitudes
C) ambidexterity
D) ambition

Question 8

Stakeholder symbiosis means that:

A) stakeholders are dependent on each other for their success.
B) stakeholders look out for their individual interests.
C) one can only gain at the expense of someone else.
D) all stakeholders want to maximize shareholder returns.

Question 9

Peter Senge referred to the need to incorporate both short-term and long-term perspectives into strategic management as:

A) Creative destruction
B) Creative tension
C) Sustainable advantage
D) Competitive advantage

Question 10

Shared value creation focuses on:

A) reciprocal relationships in the distribution channel
B) reconciling profits with economic externalities
C) identifying and expanding the connections between societal and economic progress.
D) assimilating interests of multiple stakeholders.

Question 11

Which of the following reflect the nature of the customer's claims as a key stakeholder group?

A) Value, warranties, honesty
B) Payment of interest, repayment of capital
C) Returns, dividends, capital appreciation
D) Taxes, compliance with regulations, employment opportunities for citizens

Question 12

Which of the following reflect the nature of the government's claims as a key stakeholder group?

A) Value, warranties, honesty
B) Payment of interest, repayment of capital
C) Returns, dividends, capital appreciation
D) Taxes, compliance with regulations, employment opportunities for citizens

Question 13

An organization is responsible to many different entities. In order to meet the demands of these groups, organizations must participate in stakeholder management. Stakeholder management means that

A) interests of the shareholders are not the only interests that matter.
B) stakeholders are second in importance to the shareholders.
C) stakeholders and managers inevitably work at cross-purposes.
D) all stakeholders receive financial rewards.

Question 14

The four key attributes of strategic management include all of the following, except

A) Strategic management should include multiple stakeholder interests in decision making.
B) Strategic management should incorporate both short-term and long-term perspectives.
C) Strategic management should recognize the trade-off between effectiveness and efficiency.
D) Strategic management should emphasize the attainment of short-term objectives.

Question 15

The strategic management of an organization entails which three ongoing processes?

A) Performance, motivation, and evaluation
B) Analysis, decisions, and actions
C) Vision, objectives, and goals
D) Evaluation, appraisal, and adjustment

Question 16

Stakeholders are:

A) a new way to describe shareholders.
B) individuals, groups, and organizations who have a stake in the success of the organization.
C) creditors who hold a lien on the assets of the organization.
D) attorneys and their clients who sue the organization.

Question 17

ABC Corp. has developed a sophisticated quantitative model and found that there were positive relationships between employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and financial results. According to the text, this is an example of:

A) zero-sum relationship among stakeholders.
B) stakeholder symbiosis.
C) rewarding stakeholders.
D) emphasizing financial returns.

Question 18

Which of the following reflect the nature of the shareholder's claims as a key stakeholder group?

A) Value, warranties, honesty
B) Payment of interest, repayment of capital
C) Returns, dividends, capital appreciation
D) Taxes, compliance with regulations, employment opportunities for citizens

Question 19

According to Henry Mintzberg, the realized strategies of a firm:

A) are a combination of deliberate and emergent strategies.
B) are a combination of deliberate and differentiation strategies.
C) must be based on a company's strategic plan.
D) must be kept confidential for competitive reasons.

Question 20

According to Mintzberg, decisions deriving from analysis constitute:

A) the deliberate strategy of the firm
B) the unrealized strategy of the firm
C) the realized strategy of the firm
D) the intended strategy of the firm

Question 21

Vision statements are used to create a better understanding of the organization's overall purpose and direction. Vision statements

A) are very specific.
B) provide specific objectives.
C) set organizational structure.
D) evoke powerful and compelling mental images.

Question 22

Peter Senge, of MIT, recognized three types of leaders. _____ are individuals that, although having little positional power and formal authority, generate their power through the conviction and clarity of their ideas.

A) Local line leaders
B) Executive leaders
C) Internal networkers
D) Shop floor leaders

Question 23

As our world increases in complexity, the global environment is increasingly competitive and challenging. The key to effective globalization is:

A) managing the flow of goods.
B) more people speaking more languages.
C) managing the flow of capital, people, and information.
D) governmental regulations.

Question 24

Effective vision statements include:

A) all strategic directions of the organization.
B) a brief statement of the company's direction.
C) strategic posturing and future objectives.
D) financial objectives and projected figures.

Question 25

Many organizations have many functional areas with very diverse, and sometimes competing, interests. Such organizations will be most effective if:

A) each functional area focuses on achieving their own goals.
B) functional areas work together to attain overall goals.
C) goals are defined at the bottom and implemented at the top.
D) management and employees have separate goals.

Question 26

The hierarchy of organizational goals follows which of the following orders (from least specific to most specific)?

A) Vision statements, strategic objectives, and mission statements.
B) Mission statements, strategic objectives, and vision statements.
C) Vision statements, mission statements, and strategic objectives.
D) Mission statements, vision statements, and strategic objectives.

Question 27

Corporate social responsibility calls on firms to consider the changing relationships among business, society, and government and:

A) To restrict the practice of outsourcing the production process to countries with human rights violations
B) to reduce the number of foreign suppliers in the organization's distribution channel
C) to act in a fiscally responsible manner
D) to act in a socially responsible manner

Question 28

Wellpoint Health Networks states: "Wellpoint will redefine our industry through a new generation of consumer-friendly products that put individuals back in control of their future." This is an example of a:

A) strategic objective.
B) vision statement.
C) vague statement of direction.
D) line manager's individual goal.

Question 29

According to the text, the "triple bottom line" approach to corporate accounting includes which three components?

A) financial, environmental, and customer.
B) financial, organizational, and customer.
C) financial, environmental, and social.
D) financial, organizational, and psychological.

Question 30

When a vision fails because senior management's behaviour is not consistent with the vision, this is referred to which of the following failures?

A) Not the Holy Grail
B) Irrelevance
C) The Walk Does Not Match the Talk
D) Tunnel Vision

Question 31

The text argues that a strategic perspective in an organization should be emphasized:

A) at the top of the organization.
B) at the middle of the organization.
C) throughout the organization.
D) from the bottom up.

Question 32

As firms work to become more efficient and effective in the global business environment, they are forced to continually innovate. Innovation in an organization:

A) will always increase a firm's performance.
B) may enhance or destroy a firm's capabilities.
C) should not be pursued by industry leaders.
D) happens only incrementally.

Question 33

When a vision fails because there is an absolute, unwavering focus on a concrete vision, with no room for flexibility, this is referred to which of the following failures?

A) Not the Holy Grail
B) Irrelevance
C) The Walk Does Not Match the Talk
D) Tunnel Vision

Question 34

Which "organizational vision" did the text credit belonging to BCE Bell Canada Enterprises?

A) "Restoring patients to full life."
B) "Providing Canadians with a one-stop destination in meeting their needs."
C) "Clear, Simple, First, True, Profitable, Proud."
D) "The world's best quick service restaurant."

Question 35

In contrast to an organization's vision, its mission should:

A) be shorter in length.
B) encompass both the purpose of the company as well as the basis of competition.
C) encompass all the major rules and regulations of the corporate work force.
D) be less detailed.

Question 36

Leadership is a necessary (but not sufficient) condition for organizational success. Leaders should emerge at which level(s) of an organization?

A) Only at the top
B) In the middle
C) Throughout the organization
D) Only during times of change

Question 37

Fortune Brands states they will "cut corporate costs by $30 million a year." This is an example of a

A) nonfinancial strategic objective.
B) financial strategic objective.
C) vision statement.
D) mission statement.

Question 38

Firms must be concerned with many types of capital. In the broader sense, these could include:

A) employee goals.
B) organizational vision.
C) mission statements.
D) ecological, material, and social.

Question 39

"To be the happiest place on earth" (Disney) exemplifies which of the following?

A) vision statements
B) mission statements
C) strategic objectives
D) operational objectives

Question 40

When a vision fails because managers are searching for that one elusive solution that will solve their firm's problem this is referred to which of the following failures?

A) Not the Holy Grail
B) Irrelevance
C) The Walk Does Not Match the Talk
D) Tunnel Vision

Question 41

Social responsibility for Suncor Energy of Calgary means accountability to customers but NOT to employees.

Question 42

Intellectual capital is becoming increasingly important in today's economy. It is a concern of managers across many organizations.

Question 43

Strategic management includes strategy analysis, strategy formulation, and strategy implementation.

Question 44

Shareholders, employees, and the community at large are among a firm's stakeholders.

Question 45

Symbiosis is the ability to recognize interdependencies among the interests of multiple stakeholders within and outside an organization.

Question 46

Crowdsourcing diminishers interdependence between stakeholders and the firm.

Question 47

A good example of shared value is fair trade whereby a greater proportion of revenue goes to poor farmers by paying them higher prices for their crops.

Question 48

Which of the following SMART criteria is satisfied when an objective contains indicators that explicitly measure progress toward fulfilling the objective?

A) Specific
B) Measurable
C) Appropriate
D) Realistic

Question 49

XYZ Corporation has developed a sophisticated quantitative model that can predict the relationship between employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and financial results. This is an example of a symbiotic approach to strategic management.

Question 50

Strategic management consists of the analysis, decisions, and actions an organization undertakes to create and sustain competitive advantages.

Question 51

Which of the following SMART criteria is satisfied when an objective is challenging, but doable?

A) Specific
B) Realistic
C) Appropriate
D) Realistic.

Question 52

The strategic management process should be addressed only by top-level executives. Mid-level and low-level employees are best equipped to implement the organization's strategies.

Question 53

Shared value is widely viewed as a redistribution approach.

Question 54

Social responsibility is the idea that organizations are not only accountable to shareholders but also to the community at large.

Question 55

Shareholders in a company are the only individuals with an interest in the financial performance in the company.

Question 56

Globalization is the flow of capital, people, and information throughout the world.

Question 57

Decisions by boards of directors are always consistent with shareholder interests.

Question 58

A McKinsey survey of more than 400 senior executives found that 92 percent do not view environmental challenges as one of the central issues in the twenty-first century.

Question 59

Which of the following SMART criteria is satisfied when an objective is consistent with the vision and mission of the organization?

A) Specific
B) Measurable
C) Appropriate
D) Realistic

Question 60

According to the text, formulating strategy includes taking into consideration strategy at the business, international, digital, and corporate levels.

Question 61

Organizational vision statements are the beginning point for the hierarchy of goals throughout the organization. An organization's vision statement should be massively inspiring, overarching, and long-term.

Question 62

Describe the focus of shared value creation.

Question 63

Peter Senge noted that there is no need for executive leaders in a successful organization, rather, local line leaders are more effective when they are not under the gaze of executive management.

Question 64

A firm has a variety of different stakeholders. Identify several possible stakeholders a firm may have and discuss how the firm may achieve stakeholder symbiosis.

Question 65

The strategic management process includes strategy analysis, strategy formulation, and strategy implementation. Discuss each of these steps.

Question 66

A mission statement encompasses both the purpose of the company as well as the basis of competition and competitive advantage.

Question 67

Outline the three ongoing processes in the strategic management process.

Question 68

Organizational goals and objectives should be vague to provide flexibility within a specific strategy.

Question 69

Strategy implementation is, in large part, about leadership. Explain.

Question 70

Provide an example that illustrates how shared value is about expanding the total pool of economic and social value.

Question 71

The text discusses several characteristics of effective strategic objectives. List several of these and discuss why a firm's strategic objectives should meet these criteria.

Question 72

According to the text, a mission statement is an overarching statement that is massively inspiring, long-term, and only discusses the purpose of the company.

Question 73

Strategic management should only include short-term objectives. Long-term objectives are covered in the organization's vision statement.

Question 74

Who are the three critical types of leaders identified by Peter Senge?

Question 75

What are the implications for other stakeholders when managers focus continuously, and exclusively, on a select stakeholder group?

Question 76

Although vision statements vary from organization to organization, vision statements are intended to motivate and inspire employees to work toward a general goal.

Question 77

Objectives in organizations should be clear, stated, and known by employees throughout the organization.

Question 78

Globalization is impacting most firms today. Discuss what "globalization" means and how and why it impacts today's firms.

Question 79

It is important for organizations to primarily focus on financial objectives and be less concerned about other objectives and goals.

Question 80

Strategic objectives should be measurable, specific, appropriate, and realistic, but not constrained by time deadlines.