Question 1

Outsourcing value chain activities to strategic partners can yield such advantages as:

Accepted Answer

A)  quick creation of distinctive competencies,enhanced product quality,and better customer service. 
B)  lower costs,less internal bureaucracy,speedier decision making,more flexibility,and heightened strategic focus. 
C)  lower cost adoption of best practices. 
D)  a reduced need to empower employees and rely on team-based organizational arrangements. 
E)  facilitating the capture of cross-functional strategic fits and resource fits. 
A)  quick creation of distinctive competencies,enhanced product quality,and better customer service. 
B)  lower costs,less internal bureaucracy,speedier decision making,more flexibility,and heightened strategic focus. 
C)  lower cost adoption of best practices. 
D)  a reduced need to empower employees and rely on team-based organizational arrangements. 
E)  facilitating the capture of cross-functional strategic fits and resource fits.

Question 2

Identify and briefly discuss the four types of organizational structures that can be aligned with strategy execution.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Identify and briefly discuss the four types...

Question 3

A decentralized organizational structure is predicated on the belief that:

Accepted Answer

A)  decision-making authority should be put in the hands of the people closest to and most familiar with the situation,and these people should be trained to exercise good judgment. 
B)  a command-and-control organizational scheme is the lowest-cost way to organize the work effort. 
C)  top-level management oftentimes lacks the expertise and wisdom to decide what is the wisest and best course of action. 
D)  the best decisions emerge from a collegial,collaborative culture where decisions are made by general consensus (at least a majority vote)on what to do and when. 
E)  organizing into work teams,having team members elect a team leader,and having team members vote on the best way to do things greatly reduce corporate bureaucracy. 
A)  decision-making authority should be put in the hands of the people closest to and most familiar with the situation,and these people should be trained to exercise good judgment. 
B)  a command-and-control organizational scheme is the lowest-cost way to organize the work effort. 
C)  top-level management oftentimes lacks the expertise and wisdom to decide what is the wisest and best course of action. 
D)  the best decisions emerge from a collegial,collaborative culture where decisions are made by general consensus (at least a majority vote)on what to do and when. 
E)  organizing into work teams,having team members elect a team leader,and having team members vote on the best way to do things greatly reduce corporate bureaucracy.

Question 4

Outsourcing critics contend that shifting responsibility for performing value chain activities to outside specialists:

Accepted Answer

A)  has the disadvantage of raising fixed costs and reducing variable costs and makes it harder to develop distinctive competencies. 
B)  can hollow out a company's knowledge base and capabilities,leaving it at the mercy of outsider suppliers,and short of the resource strengths to be a master of its own destiny. 
C)  results in less organizational flexibility and leads to sometimes exorbitant costs in collaborating with outside suppliers and strategic partners. 
D)  slows down decision making on key strategic issues because outside suppliers have to be consulted first. 
E)  lowers the morale of company employees,dampens a company's ability to implement best practices,and results in greater bureaucracy and slower decision making. 
A)  has the disadvantage of raising fixed costs and reducing variable costs and makes it harder to develop distinctive competencies. 
B)  can hollow out a company's knowledge base and capabilities,leaving it at the mercy of outsider suppliers,and short of the resource strengths to be a master of its own destiny. 
C)  results in less organizational flexibility and leads to sometimes exorbitant costs in collaborating with outside suppliers and strategic partners. 
D)  slows down decision making on key strategic issues because outside suppliers have to be consulted first. 
E)  lowers the morale of company employees,dampens a company's ability to implement best practices,and results in greater bureaucracy and slower decision making.

Question 5

Identify and briefly discuss/explain three components of structuring a company's work effort to promote successful strategy execution.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Identify and briefly discuss/explain three components of...

Question 6

Which of the following is one of the first steps to take in launching the strategy execution process?

Accepted Answer

A)  Ensure all requirements of the value chain are fulfilled. 
B)  Form a mission statement as a basis for managers to achieve organizational objectives. 
C)  Go on the offensive by employing moves to make its product offering more distinctive and appealing to buyers. 
D)  Put together a talented management team with the right mix of experiences,skills,and abilities to get things done. 
E)  Strive to be more profitable than rivals and aim for a competitive edge based on bigger profit margins. 
A)  Ensure all requirements of the value chain are fulfilled. 
B)  Form a mission statement as a basis for managers to achieve organizational objectives. 
C)  Go on the offensive by employing moves to make its product offering more distinctive and appealing to buyers. 
D)  Put together a talented management team with the right mix of experiences,skills,and abilities to get things done. 
E)  Strive to be more profitable than rivals and aim for a competitive edge based on bigger profit margins.

Question 7

Diversified companies striving to capture the benefits of synergy between separate businesses have to be aware of many challenges,EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

A)  giving business-unit heads full rein to operate independently. 
B)  having pieces of strategically relevant activities and capabilities scattered across many departments,with each pursuing its own priorities,projects,and agendas. 
C)  centralizing performance of functions requiring close coordination at the functional level. 
D)  serving the interests of individual businesses and not the company as a whole. 
E)  forming cross-business strategic fit by enforcing close collaboration. 
A)  giving business-unit heads full rein to operate independently. 
B)  having pieces of strategically relevant activities and capabilities scattered across many departments,with each pursuing its own priorities,projects,and agendas. 
C)  centralizing performance of functions requiring close coordination at the functional level. 
D)  serving the interests of individual businesses and not the company as a whole. 
E)  forming cross-business strategic fit by enforcing close collaboration.

Question 8

The most common approaches to capability building include

Accepted Answer

A)  Internal development. 
B)  Acquiring capabilities through mergers and acquisitions. 
C)  Accessing capabilities via collaborative partnerships. 
D)  Utilizing dynamic capability strengths. 
E)  All of these. 
A)  Internal development. 
B)  Acquiring capabilities through mergers and acquisitions. 
C)  Accessing capabilities via collaborative partnerships. 
D)  Utilizing dynamic capability strengths. 
E)  All of these.

Question 9

Which one of the following must a company do to match structure to strategy?

Accepted Answer

A)  Choose a basic organizational design and modify it to fit the company's particular business. 
B)  Supplement the design structure with coordinating mechanisms. 
C)  Institute networking and communication arrangements to support strategy execution. 
D)  Set up "ideal" organizational arrangements despite having to disturb existing relationships or other relevant factors. 
E)  All of these. 
A)  Choose a basic organizational design and modify it to fit the company's particular business. 
B)  Supplement the design structure with coordinating mechanisms. 
C)  Institute networking and communication arrangements to support strategy execution. 
D)  Set up "ideal" organizational arrangements despite having to disturb existing relationships or other relevant factors. 
E)  All of these.

Question 10

The three components of building a capable organization are:

Accepted Answer

A)  making periodic changes in the firm's internal organization to keep people from getting into a comfortable rut,instituting a decentralized approach to decision making,and developing the appropriate competencies and capabilities. 
B)  hiring a capable top management team,empowering employees,and establishing a strategy-supportive corporate culture. 
C)  putting a centralized decision-making structure in place,determining who should have responsibility for each value chain activity,and aligning the corporate culture with key policies,procedures,and operating practices. 
D)  staffing the organization,acquiring,developing,and strengthening key resources and competitive capabilities,and structuring the organization and work effort. 
E)  optimizing the number of core competencies and competitive capabilities,making sure that all managers and employees are empowered,and maximizing internal operating efficiency. 
A)  making periodic changes in the firm's internal organization to keep people from getting into a comfortable rut,instituting a decentralized approach to decision making,and developing the appropriate competencies and capabilities. 
B)  hiring a capable top management team,empowering employees,and establishing a strategy-supportive corporate culture. 
C)  putting a centralized decision-making structure in place,determining who should have responsibility for each value chain activity,and aligning the corporate culture with key policies,procedures,and operating practices. 
D)  staffing the organization,acquiring,developing,and strengthening key resources and competitive capabilities,and structuring the organization and work effort. 
E)  optimizing the number of core competencies and competitive capabilities,making sure that all managers and employees are empowered,and maximizing internal operating efficiency.

Question 11

The organizational characteristics of a network structure include:

Accepted Answer

A)  linking a number of independent organizations involved in some common undertaking. 
B)  one firm with a more central role charged with coordination of cross-network activities. 
C)  organizations working effectively through collaboration and cooperation toward a common undertaking. 
D)  extensive collaborative efforts among people in different specialties and different geographic locations. 
E)  All of these. 
A)  linking a number of independent organizations involved in some common undertaking. 
B)  one firm with a more central role charged with coordination of cross-network activities. 
C)  organizations working effectively through collaboration and cooperation toward a common undertaking. 
D)  extensive collaborative efforts among people in different specialties and different geographic locations. 
E)  All of these.

Question 12

Executing strategy is a make-things-happen task that tests a manager's ability to:

Accepted Answer

A)  manage the people,talents,and business processes of an operations-driven activities company. 
B)  direct organizational change and achieve continuous improvement in operations and business processes. 
C)  create and nurture a strategy-supportive culture. 
D)  meet or beat performance ­targets consistently. 
E)  All of these. 
A)  manage the people,talents,and business processes of an operations-driven activities company. 
B)  direct organizational change and achieve continuous improvement in operations and business processes. 
C)  create and nurture a strategy-supportive culture. 
D)  meet or beat performance ­targets consistently. 
E)  All of these.

Question 13

Which one of the following statements about recruiting and retaining capable employees is false?

Accepted Answer

A)  The quality of an organization's people is always an essential ingredient if critical value chain activities are to be performed competently. 
B)  Recruiting and retaining capable employees is a particularly important organization-building task in enterprises where superior intellectual capital is a key resource and also a basis for competitive advantage. 
C)  Recruiting and retaining capable employees are usually much more important to good strategy execution and the achievement of true operating excellence than is assembling a capable top management team. 
D)  It is very difficult for a company to competently execute its strategy and achieve operating excellence without a large band of capable employees who are actively engaged in the process of making ongoing operating improvements. 
E)  In many industries,adding to a company's talent base and building intellectual capital is more important to good strategy execution than additional investments in plants,equipment,and capital projects. 
A)  The quality of an organization's people is always an essential ingredient if critical value chain activities are to be performed competently. 
B)  Recruiting and retaining capable employees is a particularly important organization-building task in enterprises where superior intellectual capital is a key resource and also a basis for competitive advantage. 
C)  Recruiting and retaining capable employees are usually much more important to good strategy execution and the achievement of true operating excellence than is assembling a capable top management team. 
D)  It is very difficult for a company to competently execute its strategy and achieve operating excellence without a large band of capable employees who are actively engaged in the process of making ongoing operating improvements. 
E)  In many industries,adding to a company's talent base and building intellectual capital is more important to good strategy execution than additional investments in plants,equipment,and capital projects.

Question 14

Which one of the following is NOT part of organizing the work effort in ways that promote successful strategy execution?

Accepted Answer

A)  Facilitating collaboration with external partners and strategic allies. 
B)  Providing for cross-unit coordination and deciding which value chain activities to perform in-house and which ones to outsource. 
C)  Determining how much authority to centralize at the top and how much to delegate to down-the-line managers and employees. 
D)  Determining which functions and organizational units require superior intellectual capital. 
E)  Maintaining expertise and resource depth in performing those internally strategy-critical value chain activities that underpin its long-term competitive success and provide for the main building blocks in the organization structure. 
A)  Facilitating collaboration with external partners and strategic allies. 
B)  Providing for cross-unit coordination and deciding which value chain activities to perform in-house and which ones to outsource. 
C)  Determining how much authority to centralize at the top and how much to delegate to down-the-line managers and employees. 
D)  Determining which functions and organizational units require superior intellectual capital. 
E)  Maintaining expertise and resource depth in performing those internally strategy-critical value chain activities that underpin its long-term competitive success and provide for the main building blocks in the organization structure.

Question 15

Building an organization capable of good strategy execution entails:

Accepted Answer

A)  staffing the organization,acquiring,developing,and strengthening key resources and competitive capabilities,and structuring the organization and work effort. 
B)  decentralizing authority for performing strategy-critical value chain activities,establishing at least two distinctive competencies,and hiring talented employees. 
C)  investing heavily in employee training,using an empowered organization design and organization structure in order to maximize labor productivity,and employing effective incentive compensation systems. 
D)  centralizing authority in the hands of a chief strategy implementer so as to create the leadership authority for driving implementation forward at a rapid pace. 
E)  empowering employees,maximizing internal operating efficiency,and optimizing core competencies. 
A)  staffing the organization,acquiring,developing,and strengthening key resources and competitive capabilities,and structuring the organization and work effort. 
B)  decentralizing authority for performing strategy-critical value chain activities,establishing at least two distinctive competencies,and hiring talented employees. 
C)  investing heavily in employee training,using an empowered organization design and organization structure in order to maximize labor productivity,and employing effective incentive compensation systems. 
D)  centralizing authority in the hands of a chief strategy implementer so as to create the leadership authority for driving implementation forward at a rapid pace. 
E)  empowering employees,maximizing internal operating efficiency,and optimizing core competencies.

Question 16

What are the two primary steps managers should take in devising an action agenda for executing strategy?

Accepted Answer

To effectively execute a strategy, manag

Question 17

Which of the following is NOT accurate as concerns a company's competencies and capabilities?

Accepted Answer

A)  Competencies and capabilities that grow stale can impair competitiveness unless they are refreshed,modified,or even phased out and replaced in response to ongoing market changes and shifts in company strategy. 
B)  Core competencies have to be tweaked and adjusted to keep them fresh and responsive to changing customer needs and market conditions. 
C)  The imperatives of keeping capabilities in step with ongoing strategy and market changes make it appropriate to view a company as a bundle of evolving competencies and capabilities. 
D)  Even after core competencies and competitive capabilities are in place and functioning,company managers can't relax.They still have to wrestle with when and how to recalibrate existing competencies and capabilities and when and how to develop new ones. 
E)  When a company succeeds in hiring talented employees and training them properly,competencies and capabilities tend to develop quickly and,once put in place,can last for a decade or more. 
A)  Competencies and capabilities that grow stale can impair competitiveness unless they are refreshed,modified,or even phased out and replaced in response to ongoing market changes and shifts in company strategy. 
B)  Core competencies have to be tweaked and adjusted to keep them fresh and responsive to changing customer needs and market conditions. 
C)  The imperatives of keeping capabilities in step with ongoing strategy and market changes make it appropriate to view a company as a bundle of evolving competencies and capabilities. 
D)  Even after core competencies and competitive capabilities are in place and functioning,company managers can't relax.They still have to wrestle with when and how to recalibrate existing competencies and capabilities and when and how to develop new ones. 
E)  When a company succeeds in hiring talented employees and training them properly,competencies and capabilities tend to develop quickly and,once put in place,can last for a decade or more.

Question 18

Putting together a capable top management team with the right mix of experiences,skills,and abilities:

Accepted Answer

A)  should take top priority in building competitively valuable core competencies. 
B)  is particularly important when the firm is pursuing unrelated diversification or making a number of new acquisitions in related businesses. 
C)  is important in building an organization capable of proficient strategy execution,but is nearly always less crucial than doing a superior job of training and retraining employees. 
D)  entails filling key managerial slots with smart people who are clear thinkers,good at figuring out what needs to be done,and who are skilled in "making it happen" and delivering good results. 
E)  is particularly essential for executing a strategy to keep a company's costs lower than rivals and become the industry's low-cost leader. 
A)  should take top priority in building competitively valuable core competencies. 
B)  is particularly important when the firm is pursuing unrelated diversification or making a number of new acquisitions in related businesses. 
C)  is important in building an organization capable of proficient strategy execution,but is nearly always less crucial than doing a superior job of training and retraining employees. 
D)  entails filling key managerial slots with smart people who are clear thinkers,good at figuring out what needs to be done,and who are skilled in "making it happen" and delivering good results. 
E)  is particularly essential for executing a strategy to keep a company's costs lower than rivals and become the industry's low-cost leader.

Question 19

The traits of the capability building process involve which of the following?

Accepted Answer

A)  Evolving changes in customer needs and competitive conditions that often require tweaking and adjusting a company's portfolio of competencies and intellectual capital to keep its capabilities freshly honed and on the cutting edge. 
B)  Normally,a core competence or capability that emerges incrementally out of company efforts either to bolster skills that contributed to earlier successes or to respond to customer problems,new technological and market opportunities,and the competitive maneuverings of rivals. 
C)  Core competencies or capabilities that are most often bundles of skills and know-how that grow out of the combined efforts of cross-functional work groups and departments performing complementary activities at different locations in a firm's value chain. 
D)  The key to leveraging a core competence into a distinctive competence (or transforming a capability into a competitively superior capability),which concerns concentrating more effort and talent than rivals on deepening and strengthening a competence or capability so as to achieve the dominance needed for competitive advantage. 
E)  All of these. 
A)  Evolving changes in customer needs and competitive conditions that often require tweaking and adjusting a company's portfolio of competencies and intellectual capital to keep its capabilities freshly honed and on the cutting edge. 
B)  Normally,a core competence or capability that emerges incrementally out of company efforts either to bolster skills that contributed to earlier successes or to respond to customer problems,new technological and market opportunities,and the competitive maneuverings of rivals. 
C)  Core competencies or capabilities that are most often bundles of skills and know-how that grow out of the combined efforts of cross-functional work groups and departments performing complementary activities at different locations in a firm's value chain. 
D)  The key to leveraging a core competence into a distinctive competence (or transforming a capability into a competitively superior capability),which concerns concentrating more effort and talent than rivals on deepening and strengthening a competence or capability so as to achieve the dominance needed for competitive advantage. 
E)  All of these.

Question 20

Which of the following is generally NOT among the common practices that companies use to staff jobs with talented people,particularly if intellectual capital greatly aids good strategy execution?

Accepted Answer

A)  Careful screening and evaluation of job applicants,along with continuous training and retraining programs for employees that continue throughout their careers. 
B)  Rotating people through jobs that not only have great content but also span functional and geographic boundaries. 
C)  Eliminating the bottom 10 percent of the lowest-performing employees each year to increase the overall quality performance metrics to above-average industry standards. 
D)  Encouraging employees to challenge existing ways of doing things,to be creative and innovative in proposing better ways of operating,and to push their ideas for new products or businesses. 
E)  Fostering a stimulating and engaging work environment such that employees will consider the company a great place to work. 
A)  Careful screening and evaluation of job applicants,along with continuous training and retraining programs for employees that continue throughout their careers. 
B)  Rotating people through jobs that not only have great content but also span functional and geographic boundaries. 
C)  Eliminating the bottom 10 percent of the lowest-performing employees each year to increase the overall quality performance metrics to above-average industry standards. 
D)  Encouraging employees to challenge existing ways of doing things,to be creative and innovative in proposing better ways of operating,and to push their ideas for new products or businesses. 
E)  Fostering a stimulating and engaging work environment such that employees will consider the company a great place to work.

Outsourcing value chain activities to strategic partners can yield such advantages as:

Identify and briefly discuss the four types of organizational structures that can be aligned with strategy execution.

A decentralized organizational structure is predicated on the belief that:

Outsourcing critics contend that shifting responsibility for performing value chain activities to outside specialists:

Identify and briefly discuss/explain three components of structuring a company's work effort to promote successful strategy execution.

Which of the following is one of the first steps to take in launching the strategy execution process?

Diversified companies striving to capture the benefits of synergy between separate businesses have to be aware of many challenges,EXCEPT:

The most common approaches to capability building include

Which one of the following must a company do to match structure to strategy?

The three components of building a capable organization are:

The organizational characteristics of a network structure include:

Executing strategy is a make-things-happen task that tests a manager's ability to:

Which one of the following statements about recruiting and retaining capable employees is false?

Which one of the following is NOT part of organizing the work effort in ways that promote successful strategy execution?

Building an organization capable of good strategy execution entails:

What are the two primary steps managers should take in devising an action agenda for executing strategy?

Which of the following is NOT accurate as concerns a company's competencies and capabilities?

Putting together a capable top management team with the right mix of experiences,skills,and abilities:

The traits of the capability building process involve which of the following?

Which of the following is generally NOT among the common practices that companies use to staff jobs with talented people,particularly if intellectual capital greatly aids good strategy execution?

What Is Strategy and Why Is It Important

Charting a Companys Direction: Its Vision, Mission, Objectives, and Strategy

Evaluating a Companys External Environment

Evaluating a Companys Resources, Capabilities, and Competitiveness

The Five Generic Competitive Strategies: Which One to Employ

Strengthening a Companys Competitive Position: Strategic Moves, Timing, and Scope of Operations

Strategies for Competing in International Markets

Corporate Strategy: Diversification and the Multibusiness Company

Ethics, corporate Social Responsibility, Environmental Sustainability, and Strategy

Managing Internal Operations: Actions That Promote Good Strategy Execution

Corporate Culture and Leadership: Keys to Good Strategy Execution

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Exam 10: Building an Organization Capable of Good Strategy Execution: People, Capabilities, and Structure

Outsourcing value chain activities to strategic partners can yield such advantages as:

Identify and briefly discuss the four types of organizational structures that can be aligned with strategy execution.

A decentralized organizational structure is predicated on the belief that:

Outsourcing critics contend that shifting responsibility for performing value chain activities to outside specialists:

Identify and briefly discuss/explain three components of structuring a company's work effort to promote successful strategy execution.

Which of the following is one of the first steps to take in launching the strategy execution process?

Diversified companies striving to capture the benefits of synergy between separate businesses have to be aware of many challenges,EXCEPT:

The most common approaches to capability building include

Which one of the following must a company do to match structure to strategy?

The three components of building a capable organization are:

The organizational characteristics of a network structure include:

Executing strategy is a make-things-happen task that tests a manager's ability to:

Which one of the following statements about recruiting and retaining capable employees is false?

Which one of the following is NOT part of organizing the work effort in ways that promote successful strategy execution?

Building an organization capable of good strategy execution entails:

What are the two primary steps managers should take in devising an action agenda for executing strategy?

Which of the following is NOT accurate as concerns a company's competencies and capabilities?

Putting together a capable top management team with the right mix of experiences,skills,and abilities:

The traits of the capability building process involve which of the following?

Which of the following is generally NOT among the common practices that companies use to staff jobs with talented people,particularly if intellectual capital greatly aids good strategy execution?

What Is Strategy and Why Is It Important

Charting a Companys Direction: Its Vision, Mission, Objectives, and Strategy

Evaluating a Companys External Environment

Evaluating a Companys Resources, Capabilities, and Competitiveness

The Five Generic Competitive Strategies: Which One to Employ

Strengthening a Companys Competitive Position: Strategic Moves, Timing, and Scope of Operations

Strategies for Competing in International Markets

Corporate Strategy: Diversification and the Multibusiness Company

Ethics, corporate Social Responsibility, Environmental Sustainability, and Strategy

Managing Internal Operations: Actions That Promote Good Strategy Execution

Corporate Culture and Leadership: Keys to Good Strategy Execution

Filters