Deck 16: Strategic Leadership

Question 1

Leadership as displayed by those individuals at the top of organizations has come under increasing scrutiny and, at times justified, criticism since The Enron scandal of 2000 and the general mayhem caused by the financial crisis of 2008.
This has caused some to question whether strategic leadership, if it is not capable of making correct decisions, is actually needed at all. Is this true?

Answer 1

True

Question 2

What is meant by 'strategic leadership' brings with it many different views and opinions.
What is the best explanation of the role from three overlapping activities progressed by Adair (1990)?

A) That organizations keen to ensure their senior people, whilst remunerated appropriately, are seen to be delivering value-for-money adhering to a complex and changing set of values.
B) The people who have overall responsibility for an organization, the characteristics of those people, what they do and how they do it.
C) Giving the business direction, building a successful team, being creative in terms of solving complex problems.
D) Showing the way through strategies, informed by shared values, in the pursuit of a vision and purpose.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Is it true that the direction and nature of organizations are a direct function of the values, experiences, and cognitive abilities of those at the top of the organization?

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The nature of the environment in which today's leaders operate so that the extent to which the current challenges facing strategic leaders can be assessed.
What best describes elements that make today's world different from previous eras?

A) Working patterns have changed with many individuals and organizations operating from factories which are incapable of communicating instantly with colleagues.
B) Production has moved back to simple automation with manual tasks Making work quicker, better, and cheaper by machines previously seen by a world of 'informating'.
C) The relationship between a customer and company has moved from a virtual environment to one based in physical exchange.
D) The influence of technology and rise to an acceptance of individualism where individuals focus on defending their own interests rather than considering the impact on their immediate neighbours.

Question 5

Finkelstein et al. (2007) produced a model that has four distinct elements that attempt to summarize the complexity that exists at the head of a modern organization.
What are the four elements they have identified?

A) Strategic direction, strategic thinking, strategic advantage, and strategic enactment.
B) Strategic distinctiveness, strategic thinking, strategic advantage, and strategic enactment.
C) Strategic definition, strategic thinking, strategic alignment, and strategic enactment.
D) Strategic definition, strategic thinking, strategic alignment, and strategic externality.

Question 6

Is it true that a strategic leader needs to be able to answer the question: 'What is it that makes our company better than a competitor?'

Question 7

Is it correct that Bass 2008 asserts that systems thinking means developing a focus that the purely functional role occupied by many managers within the organization would suffice?

Question 8

Senge's ideas resulted in the Fifth Discipline book, is where he determined the nature of learning organizations where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire.
What five 'disciplines' (competencies) did he argue for
Mastery of?

A) System thinking, personal mastery, mental models, building shared vision, and team learning.
B) System thinking, team mastery, mental models, building singular vision, and personal learning.
C) Systematic thinking, team mastery, mapped models, building systems vision, and team learning.
D) Systematic thinking, personal mastery, mapped models, building systems vision, and team learning.

Question 9

Strategic Alignment is about ensuring the organization is in a fit and ready state to engage with their chosen market.
Why is the need to control employees' activities a difficult balance to get right?

A) Organizations have a legitimate interest in the activities of their employees but no legal obligation to ensure actions carried out in their name are safe.
B) Companies need to be careful, as it has been shown that restriction on autonomy can demotivate employees.
C) Employees need not be trusted and a draconian micromanagement approach is likely to foster a feeling of necessary control of employees by managers
D) There is a real encouragement of creativity and innovation if employees feel safe through a close watch over their behaviour.

Question 10

The strategic leader is connecting the overall strategy with the necessary business tactics. Change management is a key skill to be deployed, for as the strategy evolves, so too will different parts of the organization.
What ideas are claimed to have addressed the need to consider the wider impact of business decisions including ethical matters?

A) Corporate social responsibility, triple bottom line restructuring, and balance sheet collective.
B) Change social reengineering, triple bottom line restructuring, and balanced score card.
C) Triple bottom line reporting, balanced score card and change social re-engineering.
D) Corporate social responsibility, triple bottom line reporting, and balanced score card.