Deck 12: Strategy Implementation: Control and Performance

Question 1

In the opening vignette for the chapter we are told that McDonald's reported its first-ever quarterly loss in January, 2003.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

"Creating a single company currency," one of the five keys to successful implementation control, refers to the idea that everyone with an acceptable level of performance or better should receive equal merit raises.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

If a company is using a differentiation approach, solely capturing information about efforts to reduce costs will be unproductive in allowing top management to assess whether progress is being made toward the company's important goals.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Qualitative metrics are measures of success that are descriptive and relative rather than point-specific.

Question 5

Quantitative metrics may be numerically based or they may include things like descriptive statements made by customers.

Question 6

The range or variation in a quantitative metric is a better and more powerful indicator of performance improvement than the average.

Question 7

Perceptual measures of performance should not be used since they only indicate how a customer or supplier feels about a company's products or processes.

Question 8

When metrics are translated to the functional level to be effective they should be connected to incentives.

Question 9

The metrics created for each employee or level must be related to activities that are under the control of that employee or level.

Question 10

Causal logic is a concept that refers to the assessment that a manager makes about the reasons that things work the way they do.

Question 11

Stretch metrics are measures that are perceived by employees to be flexible and subject to change should targets not be met.

Question 12

The central notion of the balanced scorecard is that financial measures of performance are the result of a variety of activities in which people engage and not the cause.

Question 13

The balanced scorecard model considers only the most important stakeholder - shareholders - in its definition of company performance.

Question 14

A lag metric represents results that the company would expect to observe for each of the subdimensions in any one perspective of a balanced scorecard.

Question 15

A lead metric, in the context of the balanced scorecard model, represents the observable actions of employees that the firm hopes will lead to the results it is ultimately trying to achieve.

Question 16

In the value-driver-action model of implementation key value drivers are behaviors linked to the primary activities of the value chain but not behaviors that might be considered linked to support activities.

Question 17

The second step in the value-driver-action implementation process requires managers to articulate desired statements from the point of view of stakeholders, such as "I'm really attracted by the look of the new BMWs."

Question 18

The final step in the value-driver-action implementation process is to ask every employee to state how his or her contributions have made the company better over the prior year.

Question 19

Strategists using the McKinsey 7-S implementation framework identify strategy, structure, and systems as "soft" S's.

Question 20

"Style" in the McKinsey 7-S framework refers to the symbolic behavior of the organization, and includes things like the company's dress code and the way employees treat each other.

Question 21

According to the opening vignette for the chapter, McDonald's experienced business setbacks because

A) a corporate program for the evaluation of stores was eliminated.
B) its focus was on international expansion.
C) it was inattentive to the nuts and bolts of the core business.
D) All of the above led to business setbacks at McDonald's.

Question 22

________ metrics are measures that really push the organization to achieve something of true significance.

A) Stretch
B) Qualitative
C) Variable
D) Structural

Question 23

Which of the following is not one of the tools discussed in the text for developing a strategy implementation plan?

A) Resource-linkage assessment
B) Balanced scorecard
C) Value-driver-action model
D) 7-S framework

Question 24

_________ is an implementation method that considers a wide variety of stakeholders in the performance of the company.

A) customer-driven actions
B) balanced scorecard
C) 7-S framework
D) stakeholder metrics

Question 25

________ metrics represent the observable actions of employees that we hope will lead to the results we are ultimately trying to achieve.

A) Meretricious
B) Lag
C) Monitoring
D) Lead

Question 26

________ metrics represent the results that we would hope and expect to observe for each of the subdimensions in any one perspective of a balanced scorecard.

A) Lead
B) Expectational
C) Lag
D) Prospective

Question 27

In the value-driver-action model, ________ are those elements of the organization that provide the company with the best opportunity for success in its industry.

A) extraordinary resources
B) key value drivers
C) key success factors
D) parity factors

Question 28

Key value drivers in the value-driver-action model can be identified from

A) key success factors developed by way of an industry analysis.
B) a resource-based analysis that pinpoints extraordinary resources.
C) the vision and mission statements of an organization.
D) Key value drivers can be identified from all of the above sources.

Question 29

One of the steps of the process used in the value-driver-action model requires managers to create a list of desired stakeholder experiences for each key value driver. This step specifically involves

A) articulating a set of statements that the company aspires to hear from its stakeholders.
B) creating a list of preferred supplier requirements since suppliers are among the most important stakeholders.
C) identifying only the secondary stakeholders of the company since primary stakeholders are involved in the process.
D) imagining what the new company slogan might look like.

Question 30

The results of a plan using the value-driver-action model will ideally fit on one page and include for each key value driver something that looks like this:

A) stakeholder experience $\rightarrow$ translation to position $\rightarrow$ actions $\rightarrow$ metrics.
B) resource position $\rightarrow$ actions $\rightarrow$ metrics $\rightarrow$ feedback.
C) stakeholder statements $\rightarrow$ company statements $\rightarrow$ actions $\rightarrow$ detailed actions.
D) desired market position $\rightarrow$ achieved market position $\rightarrow$ variance $\rightarrow$ corrective action.

Question 31

The entire McKinsey 7-S framework is oriented around the concept of

A) key capabilities.
B) ethical behaviors.
C) fit.
D) resources.

Question 32

The 7-S framework is divided into hard S's and soft S's. Hard S's include strategy, systems and

A) stakeholders.
B) structure.
C) stability.
D) services.

Question 33

The soft S's in the McKinsey 7-S framework include style, superordinate goals (shared values), skills and

A) sustainability.
B) staff.
C) short-term.
D) satisfaction.

Question 34

The "systems" category of the McKinsey 7-S framework includes information technology systems but also refers to

A) quality control systems.
B) performance review systems.
C) policies and procedures.
D) The "systems" category might refer to any of the above.

Question 35

The balanced scorecard implementation approach incorporates four different perspectives through which we might view a company to assess its performance. What are they?

Question 36

Describe the steps that are required by the value-driver-action implementation process.

Question 37

Name and describe four or five of the core responsibilities of strategic leadership.