Exam 2: Implementing Strategy: the Value Chain, the Balanced Scorecard, and the Strategy Map

Which of the following does not represent a possible opportunity for a manufacturing firm as a part of SWOT analysis?

NAFTA and WTO refer to

Which of the following is not a reason why global companies choose to report on corporate responsibility?

Some of the indicators of a growing concern for sustainability include:

The Euro is:

It is becoming more common to see manufacturing firms use the value chain to take strategic steps to improve the overall profitability of the firm by:

A firm has decided to use the balanced scorecard. Which of the following is not an advantage the company will gain by using the balanced scorecard?

In terms of strategic cost management for not-for-profit organizations, which of the following is false?

During the strengths and weaknesses portion of a firm's SWOT analysis, which of the following would not be discovered?

Sustainability is the balancing of short and long term goals in all three dimensions of the company's performance. Those three areas are:

Michael Porter's five competitive forces include which one of the following:

The declining value of the U.S. dollar relative to other currencies in recent years means that:

Both cost leadership and differentiated firms can improve on execution through:

When a firm is determining its opportunities and threats, which of the following would not be mentioned?

The World Resources Institute has defined:

Gordon Manufacturing produces high-end furniture products for the luxury hotel industry. Gordon has succeeded through excellence in design, careful attention to quality in manufacturing and in customer service, and through continuous product innovation. The manufacturing process at Gordon begins with a close consultation with each customer so that the finished product exactly meets the customer's specifications. This commonly means unique designs, special fabrics, and high levels of manufacturing quality. In addition, Gordon believes that a key competitive edge it has over other competitors is that it has an outstanding design staff that is able to work with customers to come up with product designs that go beyond the customer's expectations. Required: Present a balanced scorecard for Gordon Manufacturing with four perspectives and at least three quantitative critical success factors in each perspective.

In order to remain competitive in the contemporary business environment, several firms have started training their employees to stop viewing problems as strictly functional - that is, as only a marketing problem, or an accounting problem, for example. What does this trend illustrate about strategic management?

The cause and effect relationships among critical success factors are best captured in:

The balanced scorecard can be made more effective by developing it at a detail level so that employees:

In the late 1990s, the bicycle maker Cannondale Corp. faced a variety of key strategic issues. One was the firm's continued dependence on Shimano Inc. of Japan to supply many parts for its bikes, particularly the derailleur, brakes, and crankset. A particularly troublesome aspect of this situation was that Shimano's high-quality and highly innovative parts were relatively expensive. Cannondale wished to reduce its dependency on these outsourced parts. A second issue was the increasing competition from Trek Bicycle Corp. and Specialized Bicycle Components Inc. for bicycles in the upper-end range of the market where Cannondale competed. Cannondale had built a successful business on the basis of high quality and innovative products. Its customers were bicyclists who expected the highest quality and most advanced features. Industry analysts predicted consolidation in the industry for manufacturers that use Shimano parts but cannot differentiate their products effectively; these bicycle makers will likely be forced to compete on price. Required: 1. Consider the use of Shimano parts as one aspect of the value chain for Cannondale. Describe Cannondale's current strategy. How should this strategy change, if at all, to compete effectively with Trek and Specialized? 2. Should Cannondale continue to outsource Shimano parts? Why or why not?