Question 1

One important indicator of how well a company's present strategy is working is whether:

Accepted Answer

A)   it has more core competencies than close rivals.
B)   its strategy is built around at least two of the industry's key success factors.
C)   the company is achieving its financial and strategic objectives and whether it is an above-average industry performer.
D)   it is customarily a first-mover in introducing new or improved products (a good sign) or a late -mover (a bad sign) .
E)   it is subject to weaker competitive forces and pressures than close rivals (a good sign) or stronger competitive forces and pressures (a bad sign) .

Question 2

Two analytical tools useful in determining whether a company's prices and costs are competitive are:

Accepted Answer

A)   SWOT analysis and key success factor analysis.
B)   SWOT analysis and benchmarking.
C)   value chain analysis and benchmarking.
D)   competitive position assessment and competitive strength assessment.
E)   driving forces analysis and SWOT analysis.

Question 3

A company's resources can include:

Accepted Answer

A)   a skill,specialized expertise,or competitively important capability.
B)   valuable human assets and intellectual capital.
C)   an achievement or attribute that puts the company in a position of market advantage.
D)   competitively valuable alliances or cooperative ventures.
E)   All of these.

Question 4

Activity-based cost accounting aims at:

Accepted Answer

A)   making cross-company comparisons of the costs of each value chain activity.
B)   dividing all company expenses into two categories: activities whose costs are variable and activities whose costs are fixed.
C)   determining the costs of each activity comprising a company's value chain by establishing expense categories for specific value chain activities and assigning costs to the activity responsible for creating the cost.
D)   determining the costs of each strategic action a company initiates.
E)   None of these.

Question 5

A company's resource and capability analysis:

Accepted Answer

A)   represent its core competencies.
B)   are the most important parts of the company's value chain.
C)   signal whether it has the wherewithal to be a strong competitor in the marketplace.
D)   give it an excellent ability to insulate itself against the impact of the industry's driving forces.
E)   combine to give it a distinctive competence.

Question 6

The difference between a resource and a capability is:

Accepted Answer

A)   a resource is a productive input or competitive asset,while a capability is the capacity of the firm to perform some internal activity competently.
B)   a resource is a reserve supply or back-up supply function,whereas a capability is the ability to manage the resource function.
C)   a resource is a mechanism used for carrying out some responsibility,while a capability possesses the qualities needed to do a particular thing.
D)   a resource is the firm's fixed assets,while a capability defines whether the firm is competent to perform some function.
E)   All of these.

Question 7

In doing SWOT analysis,which one of the following is NOT an example of a potential resource weakness or competitive deficiency that a company may have?

Accepted Answer

A)   Less productive R&D efforts than rivals
B)   Having a single,unified functional strategy instead of several distinct functional strategies
C)   Lack of a strong brand image and reputation (as compared to rivals) 
D)   Higher overall unit costs relative to rivals
E)   Too narrow a product line relative to rivals

Question 8

A company's value chain consists of two broad categories of activities:

Accepted Answer

A)   consists of the primary activities that it performs in seeking to deliver value to shareholders in the form of higher dividends and a higher stock price.
B)   depicts the internally performed activities associated with creating and enhancing the company's competitive assets.
C)   consists of two broad categories of activities: the primary activities that create customer value and the requisite support activities that facilitate and enhance the performance of the primary activities.
D)   concerns the basic process the company goes through in performing R&D and developing new products.
E)   consists of the series of steps a company goes through to develop a new product,get it produced and distributed into the marketplace,and then start collecting revenues and earning a profit.

Question 9

Which of the following is NOT an option for remedying a cost disadvantage associated with activities performed by forward channel allies (wholesale distributors and retail dealers) ?

Accepted Answer

A)   Change to a more economical distribution strategy such as putting more emphasis on cheaper distribution channels (perhaps direct sales via the Internet) or perhaps integrating forward into company-owned retail outlets
B)   Enhance differentiation through activities such as cooperative advertising) at the forward end of the value chain
C)   Pressure distributors/dealers and other forward-channel allies to reduce their costs and markups
D)   Insisting on across-the-board cost cuts in all value chain activities-those performed by suppliers,those performed in-house,and those performed by distributors/dealers
E)   Collaborate with forward channel allies to identify win-win opportunities to reduce costs

Question 10

One important indicator of how well a company's present strategy is working is whether:

Accepted Answer

A)   it has more core competencies than close rivals.
B)   its strategy is built around at least two of the industry's key success factors.
C)   the company is achieving its financial and strategic objectives and whether it is an above-average industry performer.
D)   it is customarily a first-mover in introducing new or improved products (a good sign) or a late-mover (a bad sign) .
E)   it is subject to weaker competitive forces and pressures than close rivals (a good sign) or stronger competitive forces and pressures (a bad sign) .

Question 11

The three main areas in the value chain where significant differences in the costs of competing firms can occur include:

Accepted Answer

A)   age of plants and equipment,number of employees,and advertising costs.
B)   operating-level activities,functional area activities,and line of business activities.
C)   the nature and makeup of their own internal operations,the activities performed by suppliers,and the activities performed by wholesale distribution and retailing allies.
D)   human resource activities (particularly labor costs) ,vertical integration activities,and strategic partnership activities.
E)   variable cost activities,fixed cost activities,and administrative activities.

Question 12

Competitive strength can be determined by assigning measures based on perceived importance because:

Accepted Answer

A)   it provides a more accurate assessment of the strength of competitive forces.
B)   it eliminates the bias introduced for those firms having large market shares.
C)   the different measures of competitive strength are unlikely to be equally important.
D)   the results provide a more reliable measure of what competitive moves rivals are likely to make next.
E)   weighting each company's overall competitive strength by the size of its market share produces a more accurate measure of its true competitive strength.

Question 13

The key questions stemming from the SWOT listings that can reveal relevant substance about the company's overall situation are as follows,except for:

Accepted Answer

A)   Are the company's internal strengths and competitive assets sufficiently strong to enable it to compete successfully?
B)   Does the company have attractive market opportunities that are well suited to its strengths?
C)   Does the company have threats that are overpowering the firm's competitive assets?
D)   Are the company's activities and dynamic capabilities adequate for capitalizing on the opportunities?
E)   All of these.

Question 14

A much-used and potent managerial tool for determining whether a company performs particular functions or activities in a manner that represents "the best practice" when both cost and effectiveness are taken into account is:

Accepted Answer

A)   competitive strength analysis.
B)   activity-based costing.
C)   resource cost mapping.
D)   SWOT analysis.
E)   benchmarking.

Question 15

How much attention a company should devote to defending against external threats hinges on primarily on:

Accepted Answer

A)   whether offensive moves are feasible,cost-effective,and represent the best use of company resources.
B)   how serious,relevant,and timely the threats are to the company.
C)   the degree of vulnerability the company has to the threat.
D)   the compatibility of the pending threats to the company's competitive assets.
E)   None of these.

Question 16

Tangible resources include:

Accepted Answer

A)   human assets and intellectual capital,which can include the talent of the work force and the creativity and innovativeness of certain personnel.
B)   reputational assets,which can include the company's reputation for quality,service,and reliability as well as their reputation for fair dealings with suppliers.
C)   relationships with alliances that provide access to technologies,specialized know-how,or geographic markets.
D)   technological assets such as patents,copyrights,and trade secrets.
E)   None of these.

Question 17

The options for remedying a supplier-related cost disadvantage include:

Accepted Answer

A)   pressuring suppliers for more favorable prices,switching to lower-priced substitute inputs,and collaborating closely to identify mutual cost-saving opportunities.
B)   instituting forward vertical integration.
C)   shifting into the production of substitute products.
D)   shifting from a low-cost leadership strategy to a differentiation or focus strategy.
E)   cutting selling prices and trying to win a bigger market share.

Question 18

The BEST example of a company resource is:

Accepted Answer

A)   having higher earnings per share and a higher return on shareholders' equity investment than key rivals.
B)   being totally self-sufficient such that the company does not have to rely in any way on key suppliers,partnerships with outsiders,or strategic alliances.
C)   having proven technological expertise and an ability to churn out new and improved products on a regular basis.
D)   having a larger number of competitive assets than competitive liabilities.
E)   having more built-in key success factors than rivals.

Question 19

Which one of the following is NOT something that can be gleaned from a company's SWOT?

Accepted Answer

A)   How to improve a company's strategy by using company strengths and capabilities as cornerstones for its strategy
B)   Which market opportunities are best suited to a company's strengths and capabilities
C)   Which resource weaknesses and deficiencies need to be corrected so as to better enable the pursuit of important market opportunities and to better defend against certain external threats
D)   How to turn a core competence into a distinctive competence
E)   Whether any of the company's resource strengths can be used to help lessen the impact of external threats

Question 20

Benchmarking involves:

Accepted Answer

A)   comparing how different companies perform various value chain activities and then making cross-company comparisons of the costs and effectiveness of these activities.
B)   checking whether a company has achieved more of its financial and strategic objectives over the past five years relative to the other firms it is in direct competition with.
C)   studying whether a company's resource strengths are more/less powerful than the resource strengths of rival companies.
D)   studying how a company's competitive capabilities stack up against the competitive capabilities of selected companies known to have world-class competitive capabilities.
E)   comparing the best practices in one industry against the best practices in another industry.

Exam 4: Evaluating a Companys Resources, Capabilities, and Competitiveness

The options for remedying a supplier-related cost disadvantage include:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Tangible resources include:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

A company's resources can include:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Benchmarking involves:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

A company's resource and capability analysis:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The BEST example of a company resource is:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

How much attention a company should devote to defending against external threats hinges on primarily on:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

One important indicator of how well a company's present strategy is working is whether:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which of the following is NOT an option for remedying a cost disadvantage associated with activities performed by forward channel allies (wholesale distributors and retail dealers) ?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Competitive strength can be determined by assigning measures based on perceived importance because:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Activity-based cost accounting aims at:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

A company's value chain consists of two broad categories of activities:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The key questions stemming from the SWOT listings that can reveal relevant substance about the company's overall situation are as follows,except for:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which one of the following is NOT something that can be gleaned from a company's SWOT?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

One important indicator of how well a company's present strategy is working is whether:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

In doing SWOT analysis,which one of the following is NOT an example of a potential resource weakness or competitive deficiency that a company may have?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

A much-used and potent managerial tool for determining whether a company performs particular functions or activities in a manner that represents "the best practice" when both cost and effectiveness are taken into account is:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The three main areas in the value chain where significant differences in the costs of competing firms can occur include:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Two analytical tools useful in determining whether a company's prices and costs are competitive are:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The difference between a resource and a capability is:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified