Deck 12: Strategic Entrepreneurship

Question 1

For firms to be entrepreneurial,they must stress individualism in their employees above all other characteristics.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

A society's cultural characteristics influence a nation's rate of entrepreneurship and its related practices.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Joseph Schumpeter suggested that firms engage in three types of innovative activity when managing the innovation process - imitation,invention,and innovation.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

An entrepreneurial mindset is necessary for developing successful internal innovation.

Question 5

Political activity that is centered on the allocation of resources to the different functions may limit the effective use of cross-functional teams.

Question 6

A product champion should come from outside the organization in order to ensure that the entrepreneurial vision has the support it needs.

Question 7

Invention is defined as the adoption of innovation by a population of similar firms.

Question 8

Transferring knowledge can be difficult because the person receiving it must have the capacity to understand it.

Question 9

Joseph Schumpeter condemned the "creative destruction" that lies at the core of entrepreneurship.

Question 10

Horizontal organizations seek to manage their functional hierarchies upward and downward.

Question 11

International entrepreneurship allows firms to discover and exploit opportunities in domestic markets.

Question 12

The social capital that enhances the success of alliances is a result of the juxtaposition of two different corporate cultures and sets of strategic goals.

Question 13

In order to be successful,a new entrepreneurial enterprise should be sheltered from the global environment until it is firmly established in domestic markets.

Question 14

Cross-functional integration is critical if a firm is to harness the full value of innovation.

Question 15

Regarding competition and markets,entrepreneurship's primary focus is to capture most of the existing markets from less aggressive and innovative competitors.

Question 16

Large established firms use R&D labs to create competence-destroying new technologies which make old technologies and products obsolete.

Question 17

The defining feature of true creativity is that it creates something from nothing.

Question 18

Effective training programs and shared values represent two of the primary methods a firm may use to achieve effective cross-functional integration.

Question 19

A firm that has many individuals with an entrepreneurial mind-set can enjoy a competitive advantage.

Question 20

Acquisitions are a relatively risk-free approach to producing and managing innovation.

Question 21

Internal corporate venturing does NOT involve:

A) autonomous strategic behavior.
B) induced strategic behavior.
C) unconstrained strategic behavior.
D) product champions.

Question 22

Research shows that entrepreneurship declines as:

A) individualism is emphasized.
B) collectivism is emphasized.
C) economic reforms allow more autonomy.
D) government reforms allow more political freedoms.

Question 23

Knowledge from alliances helps firms develop new capabilities.

Question 24

All of the below are characteristics of the entrepreneurial firm EXCEPT:

A) they act proactively.
B) they are committed to innovation.
C) they work in isolation.
D) they are risk-takers.

Question 25

Knowledge must be transferred to others in the firm to enhance the entrepreneurial competence of the firm.This requires that:

A) the receiving party have capacity to understand it.
B) the communication process be highly intensive.
C) the knowledge be broken into the smallest comprehensible units.
D) training consultants be involved in every step of transference.

Question 26

____ is the act of creating or developing a new product or process.

A) Imitation
B) Innovation
C) Implementation
D) Invention

Question 27

To compete effectively,a firm must identify and exploit opportunities while simultaneously achieving and sustaining a competitive advantage.

Question 28

Which of the following represents one of the transformations occurring throughout the world's economies?

A) Talent and ideas are flourishing everywhere.
B) An increasing emphasis on service industries in Latin America
C) Movement away from petroleum-based energy services in the Middle East
D) The effort of Asian countries to return to their recent high economic growth levels

Question 29

Products developed through ____ are often offered at lower prices with less differentiation than products developed through ____.

A) innovation,imitation.
B) imitation,invention.
C) imitation,innovation
D) innovation,invention.

Question 30

Innovations that are ____ help firms develop a competitive advantage.

A) difficult for competitors to imitate
B) based on proven technology
C) easy to implement
D) developed over a long period of time

Question 31

Firms operating in international markets tend to be less innovative because they are more concerned with expanding their existing competitive advantage to new locations than in developing innovations.

Question 32

Innovation is the:

A) act of creating or developing a new product.
B) adoption of a new product by a population of similar firms.
C) process of creating a commercial product from an invention.
D) patenting of a new idea.

Question 33

Increasingly,alliances are used to acquire the resources needed to produce or manage innovations.

Question 34

One of the distinguishing differences between the two sources of internal corporate venturing (autonomous strategic behavior and induced strategic behavior) is whether the innovation process:

A) is encouraged as a bottom-up or top-down process.
B) is encouraged by a product champion or an entrepreneur internal to the organization.
C) relies on internal structure or existing strategy to encourage innovation.
D) is in a large or small organization.

Question 35

Which of the following is true? For firms to be entrepreneurial,they require a culture with:

A) an emphasis on individualism in Western nations and an emphasis on collectivism in Eastern nations.
B) an exceptionally high level of collectivism.
C) a balance of individualism and collectivism.
D) an exceptionally high level of individualism.

Question 36

Innovations can lead to competitive advantage only if they are:

A) valuable.
B) difficult to exploit.
C) easily transferred between businesses.
D) very costly to develop.

Question 37

A product champion is a member of:

A) a governmental regulatory body that promotes the adoption of a given idea.
B) the top management team of a business unit that is responsible for a product line.
C) the top management team that is responsible for corporate venturing.
D) a firm who has an entrepreneurial vision for a product and its commercial promotion.

Question 38

Joseph Schumpeter viewed entrepreneurship as a process of ____.

A) harnessing the human potential
B) creative destruction
C) creation of opportunity
D) exploitation of innovation

Question 39

The primary goal of entrepreneurship is:

A) to promote social well being.
B) to increase the number of jobs.
C) to create wealth.
D) to support national economies.

Question 40

Successfully creating innovations through internal means requires ____.

A) a highly individualistic culture
B) significant spending on R&D
C) acquisitions of innovative firms
D) venture capital

Question 41

The competition for resources among different operational functions within a firm often leads to ____.

A) erosion of social capital
B) heightened communication
C) organizational politics
D) empowerment of organizational members

Question 42

Informal (often invisible) processes are best supported through ____ organizational structures.

A) vertical
B) horizontal
C) functionally-oriented
D) multidivisional

Question 43

GE regularly depends on ____ to produce innovations.

A) autonomous strategic behavior
B) induced strategic behavior
C) a "push" marketing plan
D) a strategic competitive challenge

Question 44

To be successful,an autonomous process for developing new products relies on:

A) the diffusion of tacit knowledge.
B) the acquisition of innovative firms.
C) strategic alliances with other firms.
D) internal corporate venturing.

Question 45

A communication system facilitates cross-functional integration if it is shaped by:

A) the firm's developmental history.
B) the goals of the organization.
C) shared values and leadership practices.
D) the firm's primary industry.

Question 46

A propensity to take risks,a continuous effort to develop new products and markets as well as an emphasis on execution is all part of ____.

A) innovativeness
B) autonomous creativity
C) an individualistic outlook
D) the entrepreneurial mindset

Question 47

Because speed has become a major competitive factor,firms may accelerate product development through:

A) the use of cross-functional teams.
B) changes in the firm's strategic mission.
C) changes in the firm's competitive strategy.
D) the use of additional functional departments.

Question 48

Through the work of cross-functional teams,product development stages are grouped into ____ processes.

A) short-term and long-term
B) parallel or overlapping
C) serially ordered
D) complementary

Question 49

When used effectively,cross-functional teams will often bring about:

A) faster product development processes.
B) an increased need for additional information.
C) conflicting information about the business environment.
D) poor product design decisions.

Question 50

A major barrier to the use of cross-functional teams is ____.

A) excessive individualism
B) lack of communication skills
C) organizational politics
D) lack of internal resources

Question 51

Induced strategic behavior is:

A) strategic behavior that is required as a response to changes in the law.
B) strategic behavior that is required by the introduction of new products to the marketplace.
C) strategic behavior that is required by the entry of new competitors in the marketplace.
D) a top-down process where current strategy and structure foster product innovation.

Question 52

Induced strategic behavior is a process that fosters product innovations which:

A) are likely to change a firm's strategic intent and mission.
B) will lead to greater financial returns.
C) are aligned closely with current strategy and structure.
D) are most likely to fail.

Question 53

Many firms use product development teams primarily to:

A) attract high-quality engineering talent.
B) increase the speed of its product development function.
C) facilitate creativity.
D) integrate the activities associated with different organizational functions.

Question 54

Different orientations can cause barriers to effective communication on cross-functional teams.The dimensions on which functional departments can vary include all the following EXCEPT:

A) time orientation
B) customer orientation
C) technological orientation
D) interpersonal orientation

Question 55

In a strategic alliance,one firm:

A) is bought by another firm.
B) buys another firm.
C) competes with another firm in a related industry.
D) establishes a partnership with another firm by sharing their knowledge and skills.

Question 56

Which of the following is one of the barriers to effectiveness when using cross-functional teams to integrate organizational functions?

A) Dissention within the top management team
B) Informal organizational processes within the firm
C) The firm's strategic orientation
D) Organizational politics

Question 57

Which of the following is NOT a method an organization can utilize to achieve cross-functional integration?

A) Development of shared values
B) Effective leadership
C) Allocation of organizational resources
D) Dismissal of non-supportive employees

Question 58

____,when linked to a firm's strategic intent and mission,becomes the glue that promotes coupling among functional units.

A) An effective communication system
B) Allocation of resources
C) Leadership
D) Shared values

Question 59

Horizontal organization refers to changes in organizational processes where:

A) managing up and down functional hierarchies is more critical than managing across functional units.
B) managing across functional units is more important than managing up and down functional hierarchies.
C) downsizing decreases the span of control.
D) the organization divests itself of all non-related businesses.

Question 60

Regarding partnering in cooperative alliances,entrepreneurial new companies may seek ____ while more established companies may need ____.

A) distribution channels,tacit knowledge
B) deep technological expertise,distribution channels
C) social capital,technical capital
D) investment capital,new technological knowledge

Question 61

Strategic alliances are often used to innovate primarily by sharing two or more firms':

A) knowledge and skills.
B) accounting and investment knowledge.
C) capital resources and capital assets.
D) management styles and corporate values.

Question 62

Discuss the benefits and risks of acquiring another firm to gain access to innovations.

Question 63

Research shows that firms operating in international markets tend to be ____.

A) less profitable
B) more innovative
C) less technologically advanced
D) more likely to have an individualistic culture

Question 64

A negative effect of acquiring other firms for the purpose of innovation is:

A) that innovations cannot be transferred between organizations.
B) the effect it can have on the firm's own ability to produce innovations.
C) that innovations may not actually be present in the firm after the purchase is completed.
D) that the acquired firm may not have wanted to be acquired.

Question 65

A firm's ideal strategic alliance partner needs to have all of the following EXCEPT:

A) prior experience with strategic alliances.
B) complementary skills.
C) a compatible strategic orientation.
D) restriction of participation in other alliances to a manageable number.

Question 66

Discuss the methods an organization can use to facilitate cross-functional integration.

Question 67

Discuss the potential benefits and disadvantages of a strategic alliance.

Question 68

New entrepreneurial firms are ____.

A) implementation-seeking.
B) advantage-seeking.
C) alliance-seeking.
D) opportunity-seeking

Question 69

Discuss the differences between autonomous strategic behavior and induced strategic behavior.

Question 70

Describe the three strategic approaches used to produce and manage innovation: internal corporate venturing,strategic alliances and acquisitions.

Question 71

Define the three types of innovative activity.