Deck 6: International Strategic Planning and Market Screening

Question 1

International planning in modern corporations is an easy process to manage

Answer 1

False

Question 2

International planning during the 1950s and 1960s was very complicated as firms fought to deliver products and services to an under-supplied world marketplace

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The 1990s saw companies move towards the de-centralization of international planning processes

Answer 3

True

Question 4

As firms assess their strategic business units, contributions to group profitability are the sole criterion to be evaluated

Question 5

In the environmental stage of corporate planning development, strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats analyses are performed, scenario alternatives are evaluated, and stakeholder participation is encouraged

Question 6

In the integrative strategic planning stage of corporate planning development, strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats analyses are performed, scenario alternatives are evaluated, and stakeholder participation is encouraged

Question 7

In the environmental stage of corporate planning development, trends are analyzed, competitors assessed, and account taken of governmental policies

Question 8

Companies such as Toyota, Citicorps and FedEx base their core competencies on superior technological know how

Question 9

The 1990s saw further centralization of international planning processes

Question 10

Increased global competition during the 1960s and 1970s, along with new tools for marketplace assessment raised the profiles and importance of international planning departments

Question 11

Companies such as Microsoft, Intel, Canon and Toshiba base their core competencies on superior technological know how

Question 12

Core competencies are bundles of organizational skills and corporate assets that produce winning marketplace formulas

Question 13

Corporate mission statements usually emphasize corporate goals, their stakeholder audiences, impacts on society at large, and are often stated in aspirational terms

Question 14

Corporate mission statements, particularly of non-US firms, tend to be narrow and shareholder-oriented

Question 15

The international planning process occurs as firms evaluate past results, assess corporate strengths and weaknesses, and map out future resource allocations and strategies based on marketplace opportunities and threats

Question 16

Corporate competencies can be based on superior technological know how, reliable processes or external relationships with regulators, customers and supply chain participants

Question 17

Mission statements based on shareholder values are always appreciated in Western Europe and in developing nations

Question 18

In the long-term (forecast-based) planning stage of corporate planning development, firms set out budgets and costs, revenues and profits for the year ahead, but take little or no account of productivity improvements, capacity utilization and financial control objectives

Question 19

As firms assess their strategic business units, those contributing well to group profits but which lag industry rivals are prime candidates to be divested

Question 20

As firms assess their strategic business units, financial contribution to the group and competitive position in their industry sectors are key criteria

Question 21

Lead times to fulfill customer orders, product returns and customer satisfaction scores are innovation and learning yardsticks in the balanced scoreboard goal-setting procedure

Question 22

The balanced scoreboard approach to corporate goal-setting involves just profit and financial objectives

Question 23

Market share/momentum analyses plot the performances and strategies of rival companies across key competitive dimensions

Question 24

Mapping corporate sales and manufacturing against global industry sales and production profiles rarely gives managers insights into company resource allocation deployments

Question 25

When corporate goals are not being met, most firms maintain their original goals and strategies

Question 26

Market share/momentum analyses plot which company brands are under-performing and out-performing market growth trends

Question 27

In assessing country subsidiaries in their regional contexts, above-average performers can be scrutinized for best practices transfers to under-performing subsidiaries

Question 28

Key assumptions in the planning process involve how regional and national economic fortunes affect industry sales

Question 29

When subsidiaries are under-performing within their regions, head offices should routinely change subsidiary management

Question 30

Competitive benchmarking profiles the performances and strategies of rival companies across key competitive dimensions

Question 31

The balanced scoreboard approach to corporate goal-setting involves translating financial objectives into goals that improve employee and corporate performance levels

Question 32

Industry sales at the national level are affected for the most part by local competitor actions

Question 33

In evaluating a company's regional performance in its global context, large markets with slow growth rates are prime candidates for vigorous new investments, but not acquisitions

Question 34

In assessing their strategic business units, profitable units that are under-performing in their industry sectors should be benchmarked against sector rivals

Question 35

Lead times to fulfill customer orders, product returns and customer satisfaction scores measure how firms look to shareholders and the financial community in the balanced scoreboard goal-setting procedure

Question 36

In evaluating a company's regional performance in its global context, corporate sales and market size are the only major criteria used for evaluation

Question 37

When corporate goals are not being met, most firms reformulate both their objectives and strategies

Question 38

In evaluating a company's regional performance in its global context, corporate sales and market shares are assessed against regional market sizes and growth rates

Question 39

For most international firms, planning involves time frames ranging from one year to 3-5 years into the future

Question 40

Mapping corporate sales and manufacturing against global industry sales and production profiles gives key insights into company resource allocation deployments

Question 41

Commercial risk services are good indicators of business risk in individual markets but cannot be used for comparisons of risks among different markets

Question 42

Uneven distributions of wealth, xenophobia (dislike of foreigners), the number of ethnic and religious groups, and the number of political parties are all causes of political risk

Question 43

Uneven distributions of wealth, xenophobia (dislike of foreigners), the number of ethnic and religious groups, and the number of political parties are all causes of economic risk

Question 44

Where firms depend heavily on contracts and their enforceability, security and political risks need to be assessed

Question 45

Commercial risk services are good indicators of business risk and excellent assessments of the cultural aspects of doing business

Question 46

Government over-spending and continuous fiscal deficits are symptoms of good governmental management of the economy

Question 47

Having sufficient convertible currencies to pay import bills is an important concern particularly in developing nations

Question 48

Evaluating financial and foreign currency risks involves looking at national legal frameworks for money transfers, balance of payments situations, currency and gold reserves, and a country's debt situation

Question 49

Market screening allows firms to review market risks across a number of markets

Question 50

A key benefit of well-executed international planning processes is to show what strategies are working in world markets

Question 51

Companies usually look at political risk first because of its effects on all other ris

Question 52

In nations with civil strife, ethnic tensions, high crime rates or where kidnapping is prevalent, companies must evaluate personal security risks

Question 53

In nations with civil strife, ethnic tensions, high crime rates or where kidnapping is prevalent, companies must evaluate legal and political risks

Question 54

Commercial risk services are best suited to foreign direct investment projects where complete market assessments are required

Question 55

Market screening involves just the examination of political risk in individual markets

Question 56

Bureaucratic delays, contract enforceability, attitudes toward foreign investments and the availability of infrastructures (roads, rail, water systems) are all part of economic and foreign currency risk assessment

Question 57

Commercial risk services are good indicators of business risk in individual markets and allow managers to isolate potential risk areas for further investigation

Question 58

Very high national inflation rates affect country economies but rarely impact the national political scene

Question 59

Evaluating financial and foreign currency risks involves looking just at a country's trade balance (exports and imports) to see if they have enough convertible currencies

Question 60

Bureaucratic delays, contract enforceability, attitudes toward foreign investments and the availability of infrastructures (roads, rail, water systems) are all part of the operations risk assessment

Question 61

This aid to the planning process elaborates on the company's marketplace and internal advantages and describes how organizational strengths are being leveraged. It describes the business in terms of customers, products, services and geographic locations, and is a statement of the firm's ambitions. It is:

A) Statement of strategic intent
B) Company's core competencies
C) The corporate mission

Question 62

Companies using just financial objectives in their planning processes can claim which of the following advantages to their approach:

A) Definite linkages between financial goals and competitive strategies
B) Superior returns always result from superior strategies
C) Satisfying shareholder and the financial community needs
D) Employees are always motivated by return-on-investment goals

Question 63

Scenario analyses examine industry or market situations over 3-5 year planning horizons

Question 64

'Organizations set budgets and costs, and revenues and profits are forecasted one year ahead. Companies know which product lines are profitable but little emphasis is placed on market developments'. These statements describe which stage of the corporate planning development process:

A) Environmental planning
B) Integrative strategic planning
C) Financial planning
D) Long-term (forecast-based) planning

Question 65

An international corporation is analyzing its strategic business units and finds that several units have above-average contributions to group profits but lag industry competitors in financial performance. The appropriate strategy to follow would be to:

A) Divest those SBUs
B) Benchmark them against industry rivals
C) Leave them alone
D) Any of the above

Question 66

International strategic planning is important for most global companies because:

A) Not all company businesses can contribute profitably to worldwide sales
B) Production capacity planning takes a long time to implement
C) Not all regions and markets warrant resources
D) None of the above
E) All of the above

Question 67

'Forecasts are made for 3-5 years ahead and assumptions made about the circumstances under which they should be achieved. Broad sets of benchmarks are used, including financial controls, capacity utilization and productivity improvements'. These statements describe which stage of the corporate planning development process:

A) Environmental planning
B) Integrative strategic planning
C) Financial planning
D) Long-term (forecast-based) planning

Question 68

A consumer products firm finds that 80 percent of its manufacturing is home-market based, but that over 60 percent of industry production is outside of its home market. This firm has performed a:

A) Market share/momentum analysis
B) Competitive benchmarking profile analysis
C) Regional manufacturing analysis
D) Corporate and industry resource deployment analysis

Question 69

Maintaining and improving quality levels, product/service costs, technological capabilities and employee skill levels are all measures for which aspect of the balanced scoreboard approach to corporate objective-setting:

A) Innovation and learning perspectives
B) Customer perspectives
C) Internal perspectives
D) Financial perspectives

Question 70

One of the objectives of scenario planning is to broaden executive perspectives of factors affecting long-term industry and market development

Question 71

Scenario analyses are useful industry analysis tools but have never been applied to individual country markets or regions

Question 72

Shell Oil's scenario analyses looked at possible developments in the energy market up to 2025

Question 73

Big emerging markets are special cases in market environment analysis because of their rapid rate of economic change

Question 74

A national subsidiary is assessing its product lines, marketing strategies, service levels customer satisfaction scores and other items against those of its principal rivals within a particular country market. The subsidiary is performing a:

A) Market share/momentum analysis
B) Competitive benchmarking profile analysis
C) Regional subsidiary analysis
D) Corporate and industry resource deployment analysis

Question 75

A company's product division is examining national subsidiary performance across a number of world markets. It finds that a number of its subsidiaries are below-average performers in their national markets and within their company product division. The product division should identify the causes of the problems including which of the following:

A) Benchmark the subsidiaries against others in the product division
B) Evaluate the market circumstances for each affiliate
C) Benchmark the subsidiaries against their rivals in each market
D) All of the above

Question 76

A company's product division is examining national subsidiary performance within a particular region of the world, looking at market shares, sales costs and gross margins in each subsidiary. From this analysis, the product division should be able to:

A) Standardize strategy across the region
B) Identify under-performing subsidiaries and divest them
C) Identify best practices in strategies and supply chains and circulate them
D) All of the above

Question 77

Measuring lead times to fulfill customer orders, defect levels, on-time deliveries, performance/service levels, defect handling times are all measures for which aspect of the balanced scoreboard approach to corporate objective-setting:

A) Innovation and learning perspectives
B) Customer perspectives
C) Internal perspectives
D) Financial perspectives

Question 78

International planning involves assumptions and assessments about:

A) Competitor strategies and reactions
B) How environmental factors affect industry strategies
C) National, regional and global economic growth rates
D) All of the above

Question 79

A market share/market momentum analysis at the national subsidiary level plots:

A) Industry sales against subsidiary sales
B) Regional industry sales against national subsidiary market sales
C) Regional market share against subsidiary market share
D) Brand sales and growth against market sales and growth

Question 80

Market assessment measures of the big emerging markets give special attention to political risk measures, currency convertibility and industry factors