Question 1

A social business strategy needs to align itself with the organization's IT strategy but not the business strategy.

Accepted Answer

A social business strategy should align itself with both the organization's IT strategy and overall business strategy to ensure that social media initiatives support the company's overall goals and objectives.

Question 2

Which one of the following is NOT part of the information systems strategy matrix?

Accepted Answer

The information systems strategy matrix includes hardware, software, networking, data, and organizational strategy. Personnel is not included in the matrix as it pertains more to human resources management.

Question 3

When an organization qualifies its product or service in a way that allows it to appear unique in the marketplace, this is called:

Accepted Answer

Differentiation is when an organization promotes qualities that sets their product or service apart from their competitors. This can include unique features, higher quality, better customer service, or other distinguishing factors. This is a common strategy for businesses looking to stand out in a crowded market.

Question 4

Which is not a question that can be used to understand organizational design?

Accepted Answer

The location of the organization's headquarters may be important for practical reasons, but it does not necessarily provide insight into organizational design. The other questions are all relevant to understanding organizational design, including decision-making authority, employee characteristics and skills, key processes, and organizational culture.

Question 5

Once a firm is out of alignment, it does not mean that it has to stay that way.

Accepted Answer

A firm can take steps to realign itself and get back on track. It may require effort and changes in strategy, but it is possible to correct the course.

Question 6

Business strategies based on hypercompetition focus on customer satisfaction and profit maximization but also build in a component of business intelligence. Business intelligence helps an agile organization to:

Accepted Answer

Business intelligence can help an agile organization predict and respond to new opportunities by gathering and analyzing data about potential markets, customer preferences, and competitor behavior.

Question 7

There has been accelerated competition among market leaders concurrent with the increases in the quality and quantity of IT investments.

Accepted Answer

The statement is true. As IT investments have improved, market leaders have faced increased competition.

Question 8

Technology guru Tim O'Reilly said this about the publishing industry: "To adapt, publishers need to cannibalize their own business, experimenting with new forms, new formats, and new business models." This statement is consistent with:

Accepted Answer

Tim O'Reilly's statement suggests that the publishing industry is in a state of hypercompetition, where traditional business models are no longer sufficient to maintain a competitive advantage. To survive and thrive, publishers need to constantly innovate and experiment with new ways of doing business. This aligns with the characteristics of hypercompetition, where firms must be agile and constantly adapt to changing market conditions in order to survive. Choices A, B, D, and E do not accurately capture the dynamic and competitive nature of the publishing industry as described by O'Reilly.

Question 9

According to Porter's Generic Strategies Framework, a company that limits its scope to a narrower segment of the market is exercising this type of strategy.

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Porter's Generic Strategies Framework, a...

Question 10

GE recognized that it could only sustain its competitive advantage for a limited time as competitors attempted to outmaneuver them. What was the model that Welch applied to help solve this problem?

Accepted Answer

Jack Welch applied the "Destroy your business" (DYB) model, which encouraged GE to constantly innovate and disrupt its own operations before competitors could, ensuring sustained competitive advantage.

Question 11

The managerial lever includes organization, control, and ___________________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The managerial lever includes organization, control, and...

Question 12

The IS strategy drives the business strategy.

Accepted Answer

Business strategy typically drives the Information Systems (IS) strategy, as the IS strategy is developed to support and enable the overarching goals and directions of the business.

Question 13

Apple's introduction of the iPhone while iPod sales were still very strong is an example of DYB.

Accepted Answer

Yes, it is true. Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007 while the iPod sales were still strong. This is an example of "Do Your Own Business" (DYB) strategy, where a company focuses on developing products that cannibalize their own existing products to stay ahead in the market.

Question 14

The managerial levers identifies the crucial, interrelated components for designing an organization. The components include all of the following EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

Social media is not one of the crucial components for designing an organization identified by the managerial levers. The other components include decision rights, business processes, incentives and rewards, and performance measurement and evaluation.

Question 15

The _______________ framework suggests that the speed and aggressiveness of the moves and countermoves in any given market create an environment in which advantages are "rapidly created and eroded."

Accepted Answer

The answer of The _______________ framework suggests that the speed...

Question 16

L.L. Bean is an online/catalog retail company that aggressively uses tools like instant messaging to communicate with customers regarding potential purchases and uses Facebook for branding activities. This use of technology supports which strategy?

Accepted Answer

The use of technology, specifically instant messaging and Facebook, to communicate with customers and promote branding aligns with a social business strategy. This strategy focuses on using technology and social media to enhance customer engagement, collaboration, and communication.

Question 17

A clear and compelling statement that unifies an organization's efforts and describes what the organization is all about is called its _________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of A clear and compelling statement that unifies...

Question 18

Hypercompetition refers to where a firm obtains more than 5 strong competitors.

Accepted Answer

Hypercompetition refers to an environment characterized by intense and rapid competitive moves, where competitors must continuously innovate and adapt strategies to survive, rather than merely the number of strong competitors a firm faces.

Question 19

To avoid unwanted consequences, altering the IT Strategy requires adjustments to the organizational strategy.

Accepted Answer

Since IT is an integral part of organizations, any change in the IT strategy will have an impact on the overall organizational strategy. Therefore, adjustments must be made to ensure alignment and to avoid unintended negative consequences.

Question 20

The plan an organization uses to provide information systems and services:

Accepted Answer

The plan an organization uses to provide information systems and services is commonly known as information systems (IS) strategy. The IS strategy outlines how information technology will be used to meet the organization's overall goals and objectives. Therefore, the best choice is D. The other options listed - cost leadership, differentiation, focus, and business diamond - may be business strategies, but are not specifically related to information systems and services.

Quiz 2: The Information Systems Strategy Triangle