Question 1

A situational analysis is also known as

Accepted Answer

SWOT analysis, also known as a situational analysis, is a search for the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats affecting the organization.

Question 2

Recently ConocoPhillips, America's third-biggest oil company, spun off its refineries, pipelines, and chemicals division to form a new company called Phillips 66.Now ConocoPhillips will concentrate on its upstream operations.This is a variation of which of these grand strategies?

Accepted Answer

A defensive strategy or a retrenchment strategy, is a grand strategy that involves reduction in the organization's efforts.In a variation of this strategy, it can divest part of its business, as in selling off entire divisions or subsidiaries.

Question 3

______ consists of monitoring the execution of strategy and making adjustments, if necessary.

Accepted Answer

Strategic control consists of monitoring the execution of strategy and making adjustments, if necessary.

Question 4

When analyzing the "S" in a SWOT analysis, a manager might take note of

Accepted Answer

Strengths of a company can include financial resources and requirements, which are an internal factor.

Question 5

A grand strategy that involves reduction in the organization's efforts is the ______ strategy.

Accepted Answer

A defensive strategy or a retrenchment strategy, is a grand strategy that involves reduction in the organization's efforts.

Question 6

Rafaela is interested in learning more about what one of her competitors is doing so that she can anticipate its upcoming moves and react quickly.Which of the following would you suggest to her for this purpose?

Accepted Answer

Gaining competitive intelligence isn't always easy, but there are several avenues and, surprisingly, most of them are public sources including the public prints and advertising, investor information, and informal sources such as trade show gossip and tidbits from salespeople.

Question 7

Computer technology corporation Dell recently acquired Quest software, an IT management software provider, in order to expand upon its software expertise and offerings.Dell is pursuing a(n) ______ strategy.

Accepted Answer

A growth strategy is a grand strategy that involves expansion, as in expanding sales revenues, market share, number of employees, or number of customers or (for nonprofits) clients served.In a variation of this strategy, it can acquire similar or complementary businesses.

Question 8

The process of choosing among different strategies and altering them to best fit the organization is called

Accepted Answer

Strategy formulation is the process of choosing among different strategies and altering them to best fit the organization's needs.

Question 9

The common grand strategies are

Accepted Answer

Three common grand strategies are growth, stability, and defensive.

Question 10

A fine luggage maker was struggling with heavy debt and a sharp decline in customers, and it eventually declared bankruptcy.The company followed which grand strategy?

Accepted Answer

A defensive strategy or a retrenchment strategy, is a grand strategy that involves reduction in the organization's efforts.In a variation of this strategy, it can declare bankruptcy.

Question 11

Which of the following is not one of Bryan Barry's recommendations to keep a strategic plan on track?

Accepted Answer

To keep a strategic plan on track, suggests Bryan Barry, you need to do the following: Engage people.Keep it simple.Stay focused.Keep moving.

Question 12

Which of the following is not a likely source of information for competitive intelligence?

Accepted Answer

Gaining competitive intelligence isn't always easy, but there are several avenues and, surprisingly, most of them are public sources including the public prints and advertising, investor information, and informal sources.A competitor's customer records are not available publicly, nor would they yield much information about upcoming plans.

Question 13

Which of the following is a question that should be answered by a company's mission statement?

Accepted Answer

Good mission statements should answer the question, "Who is our customer?" .

Question 14

Careful monitoring of an organization's internal and external environment to detect early signs of opportunities and threats that may influence the firm's plans is called

Accepted Answer

Environmental scanning is careful monitoring of an organization's internal and external environments to detect early signs of opportunities and threats that may influence the firm's plans.

Question 15

An Iowa ethanol production company has been suffering from a combination of lower demand for gasoline (into which its product is mixed) and higher corn prices (which is the largest input cost).It has responded by selling off land, buildings, and some of its reserve product inventory.This is a variation of which of these grand strategies?

Accepted Answer

A defensive strategy or a retrenchment strategy, is a grand strategy that involves reduction in the organization's efforts.In a variation of this strategy, it can sell off (liquidate) assets like land, buildings, inventories, and the like.

Question 16

Faisal has been running a commercial real estate business for nearly 30 years.As he approaches retirement, he is content to simply lease the commercial space he currently has, rather than make new deals to develop additional properties.Faisal is using which grand strategy?

Accepted Answer

A stability strategy is a grand strategy that involves little or no significant change.

Question 17

Gaining information about one's competitors' activities so that you can anticipate their moves and react appropriately is called

Accepted Answer

Practicing competitive intelligence means gaining information about one's competitors' activities so that you can anticipate their moves and react appropriately.

Question 18

Actively selling strategic plans to middle and supervisory managers, rather than just announcing them, is helpful for

Accepted Answer

Often strategy implementation means overcoming resistance by people who feel the plans threaten their influence or livelihood.Thus, top managers can't just announce the plans; they have to actively sell them to middle and supervisory managers.

Question 19

After film manufacturer Kodak failed to reinvent itself and declared bankruptcy in 2012, it decided to focus on its business of making inkjet printers as part of a ______ strategy.

Accepted Answer

A defensive strategy or a retrenchment strategy, is a grand strategy that involves reduction in the organization's efforts.In variations of this strategy, it can declare bankruptcy or gradually phase out product lines or services.

Question 20

High Peaks Skate and Snowboard is a small shop that provides equipment for Utah snowboarders in winter months.It has decided to increase advertising during this period in the Salt Lake Tribune and the Park Record in Park City, as well as to sponsor a new on-mountain competition.It is following which strategy?

Accepted Answer

A growth strategy is a grand strategy that involves expansion, as in expanding sales revenues, market share, number of employees, or number of customers or (for nonprofits) clients served.In a variation of this strategy, it can increase its promotion and marketing efforts to try to expand its market share.

Quiz 6: Strategic Management: How Exceptional Managers Realize a Grand Design