Deck 5: The Opportunity: Creating,shaping,recognizing,seizing

Question 1

The vast majority of radical innovation occurs in new and smaller firms.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Asset-intensive,high-margin businesses generate the highest profits and sustainable growth.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Being opportunity-focused means never lose sight of what?

A) Competitive advantages
B) The customer and the marketplace
C) The economic and funding metrics of the venture
D) Distinctive competencies

Answer 3

B

Question 4

For owners of small businesses,extremely long hours of 70,80,or even 100 hours a week,and rare vacations,are often the rule rather than the exception.

Question 5

New ideas are the drivers of entrepreneurial success.

Question 6

The enterprise value of an R&D stage venture is typically under $1 million.

Question 7

To gain market entry with high-value-added products or services in a growing market,it is best to price slightly below competitors.

Question 8

"Window of opportunity" is the time when the best management teams develop a solid strategy and meet with investors.

Question 9

What do Federal Express and Cingular Wireless have in common with regard to how those opportunities came about?

A) Early venture capital commitment
B) Regulatory changes
C) Entrepreneurial leadership
D) Fragmented industries

Question 10

Which of the following was most pivotal in the success of upstart Cellular One over communications giant NYNEX?

A) The team
B) Marketing and service
C) Hardware supremacy
D) Innovative technologies

Question 11

Which minimum return on investment would a professional investor expect with a superior business opportunity?

A) 20 percent
B) 25 percent
C) 30 percent
D) 50 percent

Question 12

The impact on firm performance of industry structure is strongly mitigated by controllable factors such as the strategy selected for entry.

Question 13

The primary reason that first-time entrepreneurs run out of cash at a faster rate than they bring in customers and profitable sales is that they have not focused on the right opportunity.

Question 14

One of the big differences between the growth- and equity-minded entrepreneur and the traditional small business owners is that the entrepreneur is willing to use leverage financing.

Question 15

Marketplaces dominated by large,multibillion-dollar players are impenetrable by smaller,entrepreneurial companies since they are unable to compete with entrenched,resource-rich,established companies.

Question 16

The vast majority of startup entrepreneurs spend inordinate amounts of time chasing inappropriate funding sources for their venture.

Question 17

Data available about market characteristics,competitors,and the like are frequently inversely related to the real potential of an opportunity.

Question 18

In a free enterprise system,opportunities are held up and prevented by such factors as changing circumstances,chaos,confusion,inconsistencies,and information gaps.

Question 19

Which of the following is not a reality of new ventures?

A) It's best to avoid large solo projects
B) The key to success is failing quickly
C) Luck is involved
D) All are new venture realities

Question 20

When searching for a major opportunity,the best management teams stay away from fragmented industries that have a craft or mom-and-pop character.

Question 21

Analyzing market structure would include all of the following except:

A) Product differentiation
B) Demand sensitivity
C) Number of sellers
D) Payback to the customer

Question 22

Success is highly situational and requires a substantial amount of ________.

Question 23

According to research,what is the primary reason companies lose customers?

A) Product quality issues
B) Competitive offers
C) Customer service issues
D) Changing needs

Question 24

Thinking creatively and expansively about how new technology can drive the next new industries is a critical aspect of ________ recognition.

Question 25

With regard to the capital markets,what is most critical in initial public offerings?

A) Audited documentation
B) Timing
C) Market adoption
D) The underwriter(s)

Question 26

The best entrepreneurs specialize in making ________ mistakes only.

Question 27

Attractive opportunities are ones that have potential for a moderate-to-strong degree of control over which of the following?

A) Barriers to entry
B) Exit mechanism
C) Channels of distribution
D) Strategic differentiation

Question 28

Which of the following would not be a good source for an entrepreneur seeking viable opportunities?

A) Patent brokers
B) Bankruptcy judges
C) Trust officers
D) All are good sources

Question 29

Which of the following is not likely barrier to entry in highly concentrated markets?

A) Distribution
B) Legal
C) Regulations
D) Pricing

Question 30

The United States has a _________-dominated economy.

Question 31

Which of the following has research shown to be the most important determinant of competitive success?

A) Customer service
B) Product differentiation
C) Flexibility
D) Payback to the customer

Question 32

Earnings before interest but after taxes (EBIAT)is driven by all the following except:

A) Liquidity
B) Profitability
C) Sales
D) Asset intensity

Question 33

Which of the following relates to effective opportunity recognition?

A) Doing it first
B) Doing it better
C) Cross-association
D) All of the above

Question 34

Moore's Law and Metcalf's Law are most closely associated with what concept of opportunity recognition?

A) Sea changes
B) Irrational exuberance
C) Value chain disruption
D) Venture investor criteria

Question 35

Which of the following is a right-mode brain characteristic?

A) Verbal: Using words to name,describe,and define
B) Concrete: Relating to things as they are at the present moment
C) Rational: Drawing conclusions based on reason and facts
D) Linear: Thinking in terms of linked ideas

Question 36

While an intense level of psychological ownership and involvement is certainly a prerequisite for creating a new business,the fatal flaw in attachment to an invention or product is a _________.

Question 37

What annual growth rate is indicative of a thriving and expansive industry-one that offers opportunities for new entrants to create niches?

A) 5 to 10 percent
B) 10 to 20 percent
C) 30 to 50 percent
D) Depends on the industry

Question 38

Having a favorable window of opportunity is most closely related to:

A) Barriers to entry
B) Exit mechanism
C) Channels of distribution
D) Strategic differentiation

Question 39

Which of the following is related to the development of the value chain and channels of distribution?

A) Financial services
B) Telecommunications
C) Moore's Law
D) Superstores

Question 40

With the exception of the real estate they may own for their business,small business owners rarely build much ________.

Question 41

What minimum annual growth rate is characteristic of a high-potential venture opportunity?

Question 42

The inability to achieve and sustain a position as a ________ producer shortens the life expectancy of a new venture.

Question 43

What minimum level of after-tax profit potential do venture investors expect to see in a superior opportunity?

Question 44

In order for an entrepreneur to estimate and communicate sustainable value to potential stakeholders,an opportunity should have a minimum market size of ________.

Question 45

Abstract thinking-taking out a small bit of information and using it to represent the whole thing-is associated with the ________ side of the brain.

Question 46

With higher potential businesses,what is the potential payback to the user or customer of a given product or service through cost savings or other value-added or valued-created properties?

Question 47

The context in which the sale or acquisition of a company occurs is largely driven by the ________ at that particular time.

Question 48

What is a critical early step to avoid wasting time chasing venture capitalists,angels,and others when there is not a match between the venture the entrepreneur is pursuing and the interests or capacities?

Question 49

The highly organic and situational nature of the entrepreneurial process underscores the criticality of determining fit and the balancing of what?

Question 50

Price-cutting and other competitive strategies in highly concentrated markets can present a significant ________ for new entrants.

Question 51

Spontaneous,facilitated collaboration with no criticisms and negative is a creative group process referred to as ________.

Question 52

The viable time frame within which a venture can be developed is called the ________.

Question 53

In general,when do business plans become obsolete?

Question 54

________ is the process of linking knowledge in one field or marketplace with quite different technical,business,or market know-how from others.

Question 55

Of utmost importance with new venture creation is the fit of the ________ and the management team with the opportunity.

Question 56

Ventures that generate after-tax profits of less than ________ percent are quite fragile.

Question 57

In the 'Circle of Venture Capital Ecstasy',what attracts the "best venture capitalists,board members,and other mentors and advisors" who can add value to the venture?

Question 58

Superior opportunities solve a significant problem,remove a serious pain-point,or meet a significant want or need--for which someone is willing to pay a _________.

Question 59

What minimum level of gross margin is characteristic of a superior opportunity?

Question 60

The attractiveness of an opportunity diminishes when the time to breakeven and achieve positive cash flow exceeds ________ years.

Question 61

At a 20 percent gross margin,for every $1 increase in fixed costs (e.g. ,insurance,salaries,rent,and utilities),sales need to increase by how many dollars just to stay even?

Question 62

If an idea is not an opportunity,what is an opportunity?

Question 63

Discuss how the Capital Markets Food Chain concept pertains to fund raising strategies for the startup entrepreneur.

Question 64

In the medical and life sciences,what is the minimum market size in sales opportunity seekers should be looking for?