Exam 3: External Analysis: Industry Structure, Competitive Forces, and Strategic Groups

Anders is researching sociocultural factors related to his employer, a sporting goods manufacturer. Which of the following would be part of the sociocultural forces in a firm's external environment?

Kirsten, a manager, is writing an analysis of her employer's current and possible future revenues. Which of the following could she identify as an economic factor in her firm's external general environment?

A small coffee shop faces significant potential competition because of the low capital requirements compared with business environments such as universities and laboratories.

Marina manages the supply chain for a company that sells diamond watches. She learns that economists are predicting a moderate to severe recession in the next six to eight months. Based on that information, what action should Marina recommend to the company's owner?

What are the two key insights that form the basis of Michael Porter's seminal five forces model?

National Safety Inc., an insurance firm, replaced its existing project management software with new software from another supplier. Since the new software has different features and abilities, National Safety has had to spend $10,000 on training its employees to use it. In this scenario, $10,000 represents National Safety's

Companies in the same strategic group are ________ to each other.

Which of the following fundamental insights was provided by Porter's five forces framework from the completion of the Alta Velocidad Española (AVE)?

Jamie is a manager in an industry that has a few large players and that has remained relatively stable over the past few years. He finds out that legislators are proposing new laws to deregulate the industry. If the laws pass, which of these scenarios will Jamie most likely face?

Eon Inc., Electravia Inc., and FC Inc., the three largest firms in the consumer electronics industry, hold close to 85 percent of the industry's market share. These companies mainly compete against each other by providing unique features in their products rather than pricing them low. These firms are interdependent, and each firm must consider the strategic actions of its competitors. Which of the following industry competitive structures does this scenario best illustrate?

Given the structure of the automobile industry, entering the auto manufacturing industry seemed risky. Yet Tesla Motors joined the fray. Rather than attempting to compete head-on with internal combustion engines, Tesla Motors entered the all-electric car segment, a much less crowded niche in the overall car industry. Which of the following is Tesla most hoping to benefit from in this market niche?

A firm's strategic position is likely to be strong when

The internet service provider industry in the country of Megalopolis is an industry characterized by the presence of strong network effects, high brand loyalty, high economies of scale, and proprietary technology among incumbent firms. Thus, in the internet service provider industry, the

Magical Productions is a large production company that controls a major portion of the television industry's market share along with two other firms. Despite its competitiveness with the two other firms, it is influenced by their actions and often has to consider their strategic actions before acting on its own. In this scenario, Magical Productions is most likely functioning in a(n) ________ industry.

Hammer and Nails, Local Motion, DIY Palace, and Handy Paradise are all hardware stores that compete against each other through everyday low pricing and discounts on bulk purchases. All four stores cater to the needs of highly price-sensitive customers. Thus, together these stores form a

With the emergence of smartphones, users no longer have to carry a separate music player, a video game, a laptop, or a magazine to keep themselves entertained when traveling. A smartphone is loaded with a variety of applications to satisfy all the customer needs that different industries or products individually satisfied earlier. As a result, the smartphone industry has been posing a threat to a lot of other unrelated industries. What is this phenomenon best known as?

Zoom Zoom Car Rental follows a cost-leadership strategy. Which of the following firms will most likely be its direct competitor?

In regard to any of the five forces that shape competition, it is important to note that their relative strengths are context-dependent. Elaborate on this statement with the help of a real-world example.

In which of the following situations is the power of suppliers high in an industry?

Bryan is a manager at a software firm. The CEO tells him that the industry as a whole has become increasingly profitable over the past five years. Based on this information, Bryan is most likely to expect