Question 1

In conducting a SWOT analysis,is it enough to simply compile lists of the company's strengths,weaknesses,opportunities,and threats? Why or why not?

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Question 2

Briefly discuss the meaning and significance of each of the following terms:
a.SWOT analysis
b.company value chain
c.industry value chain
d.weighted competitive strength assessment
e.benchmarking

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Question 3

Identifying the strategic issues a company faces and compiling a "worry list" of problems and roadblocks is an important component of company situation analysis because
A) without a precise fix on what problems/issues a company confronts,managers cannot know what the industry's key success factors are.
B) the "worry list" sets the management agenda for taking actions to improve the company's performance and business outlook.
C) without a precise fix on what problems/roadblocks a company confronts,managers are less clear about what value chain activities to benchmark.
D) the "worry list" helps company managers clarify their thinking about how best to modify the company's value chain.
E) these issues and obstacles must be cleared before management can focus clearly on what is the best strategy for the company to pursue.

Accepted Answer

Compiling a "worry list" of problems and issues creates an agenda for managerial strategy making.

Question 4

Explain the benefits of preparing a competitive strength assessment.

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Question 5

Why is it important for company managers to develop a "worry list" of strategic issues and problems that they need to address and to resolve? What should they consider to develop this list?

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Question 6

Describe some ways that a company can improve (1) its supplier-related value chain activities and (2) activities of its forward channel allies.

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Question 7

Draw a typical value chain for an entire industry.Why are the activities performed by value chain allies strategically relevant?

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Question 8

What is benchmarking and why is it a strategically important analytical tool?

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Question 9

Identify the five questions that form the framework of evaluating a company's resources and competitive position.
The five questions are provided in Feedback.

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Question 10

What are the three main approaches to rectify a weakness in a company's customer value proposition?

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Question 11

What benefits might management expect to gain from benchmarking the "best practices" of those in other industries?

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Question 12

Assume a firm is not cost competitive with rivals because of higher supplier-related costs.Identify three strategic moves that it can make to restore cost parity.

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Question 13

Draw a typical company value chain,and briefly explain the difference between primary activities and support activities.

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Question 14

In determining the various strategic issues that a company needs to address,managers need to consider both the results of its analysis of the company's external environment and the results of its evaluation of the company's competitive position,customer value proposition,and cost structure.True or false? Explain and defend your answer.

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The most important analytical step is to zero in on exactly what strategic issues company managers need to address.This step involves drawing on the results of both industry and competitive analysis and the evaluations of the company's internal situation.The task here is to get a clear fix on exactly what industry and competitive challenges confront the company,which of the company's internal weaknesses need fixing,and what specific problems merit front-burner attention by company managers.

Question 15

What is a resource-based strategy?

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Question 16

Assume a firm is at a cost disadvantage with rivals because of higher distributor-dealer costs than rivals.Identify two strategic moves that it can make to restore cost parity.

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Question 17

What are the remedies for an internal cost disadvantage?

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Question 18

Identify five indicators of whether a company's present strategy is working well.

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Question 19

Which of the following is not accurate as concerns the task of identifying the strategic issues and problems that merit front-burner managerial attention?
A) Drawing upon the results and conclusions from analyzing the company's external environment.
B) Drawing on the results and conclusions from evaluating the company's own resources and competitive position.
C) Developing a "worry list" of problems and issues for managerial strategy making.
D) Identifying the strategic issues and problems that the company faces is the first thing that company managers need to do before starting to analyze the company's internal and external environment.
E) Developing a list of what issues and problems that management needs to address (and to resolve) should always precede deciding upon a strategy and what actions to take to improve the company's position and prospects.

Accepted Answer

The first task before deciding on a strategy and actions to take is to get a clear fix on exactly what industry and competitive challenges confront the company,which of the company's internal weaknesses need fixing,and what specific problems merit front-burner attention by company managers.Pinpointing the precise things that management needs to worry about sets the agenda for deciding what actions to take next to improve the company's performance and business outlook.

Question 20

Assume a firm is at a cost disadvantage with rivals because its internal costs are higher than those of rivals.Identify several strategic moves that it can make to restore cost parity.

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