Deck 4: Assessing Strengths and Weaknesses: Doing an Internal Analysis

Question 1

Doing an internal analysis is needed for making good strategic decisions.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

An external audit is a thorough assessment of an organization's various internal functional areas.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Preparing a current product-market profile emphasizes organization-customer interactions.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

An internal analysis involves an examination of

A) the organization's current vision.
B) the organization's mission.
C) the organization's strategic objectives.
D) the organization's strategies.
E) None of the above answer choices are true.

Question 5

An organization's tangible and intangible resources can be a source of competitive advantage and these resources play an important role in determining an organization's capabilities and competencies.

Question 6

Strengths are resources that the organization possesses and capabilities that the organization has developed, both of which can be exploited and developed into a sustainable competitive advantage.

Question 7

When customers purchase a product, they are not purchasing a bundle of attributes that they believe will satisfy their needs.

Question 8

Dynamic capabilities are an organization's ability to build, integrate, and reconfigure capabilities to address rapidly changing environments.

Question 9

Organizational capabilities are regular, predictable, and sequential patterns of work activity by organizational members.

Question 10

Identifying and agreeing on the key competencies and capabilities is critical to managing strategically for a sustainable competitive advantage.

Question 11

Customer value arises from the similarity of products to others, the product is low priced, and the ability of the organization to respond to customer needs.

Question 12

Every organization needs goals at all levels and in all functional areas that state what it hopes to accomplish by when.

Question 13

Core competencies are the organization's major value-creating skills and capabilities that are essential to their business.

Question 14

Distinctive organizational competencies are the common capabilities that do not distinguish an organization from its competitors.

Question 15

Value chain analysis is a systematic way of examining all the organization's functional activities and how well they create customer value.

Question 16

Weaknesses are resources and capabilities that are lacking or deficient and that prevent the organization from developing a sustainable competitive advantage.

Question 17

The first step in the capabilities assessment profile is to develop and leverage the organization's distinctive capabilities.

Question 18

An internal audit is similar to a financial audit, although it focuses on much more than just the financial aspects.

Question 19

Organizational capabilities are the special and unique processes that distinguish the organization from its competitors.

Question 20

One criterion that could be used to determine whether resources and capabilities are strengths or weaknesses is past performance trends.

Question 21

Factors like Coca-Cola's brand name "Coke" and Nike's "swoosh" symbol construct ________ resources for the organization.

A) physical
B) intangible
C) financial
D) invisible
E) human

Question 22

Resources that the organization possesses and capabilities that the organization has developed, both of which can be developed into a sustainable competitive advantage, are known as

A) weaknesses.
B) strengths.
C) opportunities.
D) threats.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 23

The ability of Hampton Inn to provide customers moderately-priced accommodation with all the amenities and conveniences travelers want is an example of

A) contributing to superior customer value.
B) a second-to-market philosophy.
C) operating under a benchmarking philosophy.
D) providing a system that is easily duplicated.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 24

Customer value is determined by

A) a unique and different product.
B) a low-priced product.
C) the ability to respond to specific or distinct customer needs.
D) All of the answer choices are correct.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 25

Characteristics of dynamic capabilities include all of the following except

A) timely responsiveness.
B) reactive responsiveness.
C) rapid and flexible product innovation.
D) coordinating and deploying organizational resources and capabilities.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 26

Core competencies cannot be a source of ________, but can contribute to the development of ________.

A) organizational goals; competitive advantage
B) dynamic capabilities; internal analysis.
C) competitive advantage; distinctive capabilities.
D) distinctive capabilities; organizational goals
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 27

Southwest's capability of quick gate turnaround time and exceptional employee-customer interactions is known as

A) a distinctive organizational capability.
B) an exceptional opportunity.
C) a superior customer value.
D) a distinguished service.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 28

A systematic way of examining all of the organization's functional activities and how well they create customer value is

A) core competency development.
B) value chain analysis.
C) organizational goal analysis.
D) organizational change.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 29

Special and unique capabilities that distinguish the organization from its competitors are called

A) distinguished organizational capabilities.
B) distinctive organizational capabilities.
C) demonstrated organizational capabilities.
D) denoted organizational capabilities.
E) delineated organizational capabilities.

Question 30

________ are the regular, predictable, and sequential patterns of work activities performed by organizational members.

A) Organizational capabilities
B) Accumulated knowledge
C) Actual work activities
D) Organizational routines and processes
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 31

Resources that are lacking or deficient and that prevent the organization from developing a sustainable competitive advantage, are known as

A) weaknesses.
B) strengths.
C) opportunities.
D) threats.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 32

The various organizational routines and processes that determine how efficiently and effectively the organization transforms its inputs into outputs are called

A) strengths.
B) core competencies.
C) capabilities.
D) customer value.
E) operations.

Question 33

The concept of the value chain was developed by

A) Milton Friedman.
B) Peter Drucker.
C) Alfred Chandler.
D) Tom Peters.
E) Michael Porter.

Question 34

All of the following constitute primary activities except

A) procurement.
B) marketing and sales.
C) outbound logistics.
D) operations.
E) customer service.

Question 35

The organization's major value-creating skills and capabilities that are shared across multiple product lines or multiple businesses are called

A) distinctive organizational capabilities.
B) competitive intelligence.
C) core weaknesses.
D) core competencies.
E) core opportunities.

Question 36

Identifying distinctive organizational capabilities involves

A) preparing an historical product/market profile.
B) describing top management organizational capabilities and competencies.
C) sorting the core capabilities and competencies according to functional level priorities.
D) identifying the functional strategies.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 37

All of the following constitute support activities except

A) technological development.
B) firm's infrastructure.
C) operations.
D) human resource management.
E) procurement.

Question 38

One activity in organizational routines and processes is

A) obtaining needed raw materials.
B) establishing various product pricing structures.
C) generating end-of-quarter financial reports.
D) generating operational statistical reports.
E) All of the answer choices are correct.

Question 39

The ability of Honda to use its fuel-efficient and reliable engines in automobiles, motorcycles, and power generators is an example of

A) contributing to superior customer value.
B) creating a product that is difficult for competitors to imitate.
C) developing an innovation that can be used in a number of ways.
D) simulating an effective system developed by a competitor.
E) making a product with a low amount of financial capital.

Question 40

Which of the following are considered to be primary activities in a value chain analysis as outlined by Porter?

A) Inbound logistics
B) Procurement
C) Human resource management
D) Firm's infrastructure
E) None of the answer choices is correct

Question 41

After a current product-market profile has been assessed, the next step is to

A) identify sources of competitive advantage and the disadvantage in the main product-market segments.
B) emphasize the interactions between the organization and customers.
C) conduct an external assessment of competitors.
D) All of the answer choices are correct.
E) None of the answer choices are correct.

Question 42

Northland Designs' ability to stay on the cutting edge of home interior trends throughout the company is called

A) a distinctive organizational capability.
B) a competitive intelligence.
C) a core weakness.
D) a core competency.
E) a core opportunity.

Question 43

Explain the characteristics of distinctive organizational capabilities.

Question 44

Which of the following is not an organizational function that internal audit looks at?

A) Production-operations
B) Marketing
C) Research and development
D) Financial-accounting
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 45

Northland Designs always seems to combine styles in compelling ways that distinguishes this company from its competitors. This ability is called

A) a distinguished organizational capability.
B) a distinctive organizational capability.
C) a demonstrated organizational capability.
D) a denoted organizational capability.
E) a delineated organizational capability.

Question 46

Ms. Krisak studies the internal audit to determine the availability or lack of critical ________ and the level of ________.

A) capital; skills
B) resources; capabilities
C) financial resources; management
D) skills; resources.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 47

The question, "Does the capability provide tangible customer benefits?" occurs under what step of the capabilities assessment profile which identifies distinctive organizational capabilities?

A) Sort the core capabilities and competencies according to strategic importance.
B) Identify and agree on the key capabilities and competencies.
C) Describe all the organizational capabilities and competencies.
D) Prepare current product-market profile.
E) None of the answer choices are correct.

Question 48

The internal audit answers the questions of

A) Do the various functions have the needed resources to perform their assigned work activities?
B) How well do they perform these assigned work activities?
C) What are the organization's primary opportunities and threats?
D) possessing the needed resources and then performing assigned work activities.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 49

The second step in identifying distinctive organizational capabilities through a capabilities assessment profile is

A) describe all the organizational capabilities and competencies.
B) identify and agree on the key capabilities and competencies.
C) identify sources of competitive advantage and disadvantage in the main product-market segments.
D) prepare a current product-market profile.
E) sort the core capabilities and competencies according to strategic importance.

Question 50

The key to using an ________ is to determine how well or poorly organizational functions are being performed.

A) internal audit
B) capabilities assessment profile
C) strategic audit
D) resource audit
E) core competency audit

Question 51

One criterion used to judge organizational strengths and weaknesses is

A) past performance trends.
B) comparison against competitors.
C) specific goals or targets.
D) personal opinions of strategic decision makers or consultants.
E) All of the answer choices are correct.

Question 52

Which of the following is one of the basic organizational functions managers should examine during an internal audit?

A) Production-operations
B) Marketing
C) Financial-accounting
D) Information systems
E) All of the answer choices are correct

Question 53

Performance of ________ activities would not be possible without ________ activities.

A) core; support
B) primary; support
C) support; primary
D) strategic; support
E) support; core

Question 54

Ms. Krisak asks the question, "Does the ability to stay on the cutting edge of home interior trends provide our customer tangible benefits?" Under which step of the capabilities assessment profile are distinctive organizational capabilities identified?

A) Sort the core capabilities and competencies according to strategic importance.
B) Identify and agree on the key capabilities and competencies.
C) Describe all the organizational capabilities and competencies.
D) Prepare current product-market profile.
E) None of the answer choices are correct.

Question 55

The internal audit concentrates on the availability or lack of critical ________ and the level of ________.

A) capital; skills
B) resources; capabilities
C) financial resources; management
D) skills; resources.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 56

Which of the following is not a criterion mentioned in the text for determining whether or not resources and capabilities are strengths or weaknesses?

A) Comparison against competitors
B) Current performance
C) Trends in market share
D) Financial ratios
E) All of the answer choices are correct.

Question 57

Why is an internal analysis important?

A) It is the only way to identify an organization's strengths and weaknesses.
B) It is needed for making good strategic decisions.
C) It establishes organizational goals.
D) It identifies strengths and weaknesses and it assists in decision making.
E) Answers B and D are correct.

Question 58

Statements of desired outcomes are known as

A) core competencies.
B) organizational goals.
C) distinctive competencies.
D) management vision.
E) directed action.

Question 59

All of the following reflect questions asked of the management function during the internal audit except

A) Are jobs effectively designed?
B) What is the level of employee turnover?
C) Is the organization able to raise long-term capital?
D) How does the organization treat its employees?
E) Does the organization effectively use work teams?

Question 60

According to the value chain analysis, the process connected to the acquisition and utilization of resources is known as

A) managing human resources.
B) technological development.
C) firm infrastructure.
D) purchasing.
E) None of the answer choices is correct.

Question 61

List some of the questions in an internal audit as it relates to information systems.

Question 62

Define the steps in the identification of distinctive organizational capabilities.

Question 63

Describe the criteria involved in judging organizational strengths and weaknesses.

Question 64

What are core competencies?