Exam 8: Strategy Issues in Industries and Life Cycle Stages

Which of the following is a potential disadvantage that results from being a first mover?

In the commercialization stage of the organizational life cycle the company must develop a prototype product or service.

Sources of timing advantages that first movers may enjoy include an installed base and its associated buyer switching costs, early building of a reputation, preemption by locking out competitors from locations or supply sources, and

Products or services that come bundled with another product at no extra charge--such as a trial size sample of a consumer product--are called complements.

A company in an industry where there is little pressure for efficiency and where variations in country markets is significant would choose a ________ international strategy

An options approach to organizational renewal relies on the incentives provided by awarding stock options to managers at different levels of the firm.

The stages of the industry life cycle are introduction, growth, maturity, and decline or renewal.

What kinds of value creating activities are appropriate in each stage of the organizational life cycle?

Two kinds of advantages that can accrue to those who are first movers into an industry or market are timing advantages and ________ advantages.

As sales fall in the decline stage of the industry life cycle firms typically

In the maturity stage of the industry life cycle companies shift value creation activities toward identifying cost efficiencies.

Value creation in the growth stage of the industry life cycle is typically accomplished by

In an industry that is consolidated a strategic approach that is likely to be successful is a(n) ________ strategy, such as that used by Saks Fifth Avenue.

________ is an industry condition in which a standard set of features and benefits is required for any serious competitor, and in which the materials needed to provide those features and benefits are readily available from a variety of suppliers.

What are the stages of industry evolution? Briefly describe each in terms of revenue growth and value creation activities.

How should a firm compete in a fragmented industry? In a consolidated industry?

Fast-growth organizations often find themselves challenged to implement the right kind of organizational structure to support their strategic approaches.

Innovation results in a wide variety of products or services in the introduction stage of the industry life cycle because

A transnational international strategy is appropriate when value is added downstream, near the customer or use, and efficiencies attained through scale and scope are competitively important.

In a fragmented industry it may be desirable to initiate a(n) ________, where many small competitors are combined into a larger company.