Deck 12: Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and 21st Century Global Business

Question 1

Project management is a key management responsibility if IT projects are to be completed on time and within budget.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

According to the text,managing the development and implementation of new business/IT applications and technologies is a responsibility shared by the chief executive officer (CEO)and the chief information officer (CIO).

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Whether you plan to be an entrepreneur and run your own company,a manager in a corporation,or a business professional,managing information systems and technologies will be one of your major responsibilities.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

According to the text,managing the IT organization and infrastructure includes the management of the hardware,software,databases,telecommunications networks,and other IT resources.

Question 5

Process control packages not only monitor,but automatically control,computer operations at large data centers.

Question 6

Outsourcing is usually not an option for smaller businesses.

Question 7

Strategic use of an outsourcing approach to IS/IT functions can result in business growth without increased overhead.

Question 8

Within an organization,the chief executive officer (CEO)and the chief security officer (CSO)lead the business/IT planning process so that IT is aligned with strategic business goals.

Question 9

The shift toward distributed client/server networks promoted a shift of databases and information specialists to the departmental level,and the creation of information centers to support end user and workgroup computing.

Question 10

According to the Real World case,CEOs want a CIO who is business savvy and can make the technology work for the business; but finding someone who is qualified in both business and technology is difficult.

Question 11

IS operations management is concerned with the use of hardware,software,network,and personnel resources at the individual workstations of all employees.

Question 12

In the early years of computing,the development of large mainframe computers,telecommunications networks,and terminals caused centralization of computer hardware and software,databases,and information specialists.

Question 13

Information technology today is viewed as a helpful,but non-essential component of business success.

Question 14

The conventional approach to managing IT human resources is to hire "best by position" personnel who bring specific IT expertise.

Question 15

The conventional approach to managing IT human resources is to develop evolving workgroups that are organized around emerging IT-intensive business initiatives,with little explicit delegation of tasks.

Question 16

A "best of breed" approach to technology management may sacrifice match-with-business needs for vendor homogeneity and technology platform choices.

Question 17

A trend toward downsizing prompted a move back toward IT decentralization by many business firms.

Question 18

According to the Real World case,today's CEOs look to the CIO to be more of a functional leader than a strategic business leader.

Question 19

Outsourcing IS/IT functions to skilled service providers is often a strategic approach to stretching strained budgets.

Question 20

Today,few organizations still establish or enforce policies for the acquisition of hardware and software by end users and business units.

Question 21

Some countries have reciprocal trade agreements that require a business to spend part of the revenue they earn in a country in that nation's economy.

Question 22

According to the text,the key to high quality information system performance is extensive and meaningful managerial and end user involvement.

Question 23

Global IT managers must be sensitized to cultural differences before they are sent abroad or brought into a corporation's home country.

Question 24

Having a global system can mean that maintenance activities performed during the night shift in New York can cause midday service interruptions in Tokyo.

Question 25

An international business/IT strategy is multi-regional; a global perspective is region specific.

Question 26

The explosive business use of the Internet,intranets,and extranets for electronic commerce has made such applications more feasible for global companies.

Question 27

Global systems development teams make heavy use of the Internet,intranets,groupware,and other electronic collaboration technologies.

Question 28

Offshoring is often enabled by trade secrets and intellectual property,the transfer of which is never regulated nor taxed.

Question 29

Internet usage and population statistics show that the North America region has the highest Internet penetration rate.

Question 30

Supplementing an existing workforce with offshore support can allow for productivity 24 hours a day.

Question 31

The United States is having trouble getting cooperation from European nation-states when it comes to cyber legislation and law enforcement.

Question 32

Today's advanced communication technologies have made communication in real time across the world's 24 time zones a non-issue.

Question 33

According to the Real World case,IBM never gives away a technology.

Question 34

Many countries have rules regulating or prohibiting the transfer of data across their national boundaries.

Question 35

Software packages must be purchased from the same vendor in order to be compatible in multiple countries.

Question 36

With the globalization of business and technology,there is rarely any problem finding the person with the requisite skills or getting people to move to another country to take on the work.

Question 37

According to the text case,regardless of how a firm manages it's worldwide campus and globally dispersed teams,what holds all the offices together is a shared enterprise objective and separate,independent architectures.

Question 38

Whether you become a manager in a large corporation or the owner of a small business,you will deal in some way with people,products,or services whose origin is not from your home country.

Question 39

Most of the world has decided that restricting Internet access is a necessary public policy.

Question 40

Common definitions are hard to develop; a "sale" in the United States may be known as an "order booked," an "order scheduled," or an "order produced" in other countries.

Question 41

All of the following were listed in the text as primary reasons behind a company's decision to outsource except:

A)Achieving a greater return on investment
B)Achieving flexible staffing levels
C)Focusing on core competencies
D)Centralizing software development

Question 42

According to the Real World Case,the CIO needs for the CIO to behave in what fashion?

A)More as a function head and less as a strategic business leader.
B)Strictly as a technology manager.
C)More as a strategic business leader and less as a function head.
D)More as a technology manager and less as a technology provider.

Question 43

The development of minicomputers and microcomputers accelerated which of the following trends?

A)Centralization of computer hardware and software
B)Downsizing
C)Strategic planning
D)Development of web portals

Question 44

The _______________ is usually second-in-command to the CIO or chief technology officer and usually has years of applications development experience.

A)e-commerce architect
B)practice manager
C)systems analyst
D)chief technology officer

Question 45

All of the following are components of IT staff planning except:

A)Setting salary and wage levels
B)Recruiting and retaining qualified personnel
C)Determining pay periods
D)Evaluating job performance

Question 46

Many people are employed in IT in a large company.A technical team leader would:

A)Be second in command to the CIO
B)Know Java,Perl,and Web services,and possess the ability to design an Internet solution from concept through implementation
C)Be a senior member of the technical team and have good communication,leadership,and project management skills
D)Have skills in marketing,staffing,budgeting,and building customer relationships

Question 47

CIO and IT managers share responsibility for managing the work of IT professionals.In addition,they are responsible for managing the:

A)Hardware infrastructure
B)IT infrastructure of hardware,software,databases,and telecommunications networks
C)IT infrastructure of hardware and software
D)IT infrastructure of hardware,software,and human resources

Question 48

IS operations are a cost to the company.When a company uses system performance monitors and then allocates costs to user departments based on the information services rendered,the company is applying a(n)_______________ system.

A)record keeping
B)outsourcing
C)chargeback
D)rebound

Question 49

The _______________ usually knows Java,Perl,C++,and Web services.He/she also has experience in systems architecture,and can design an Internet solution from concept through implementation.

A)e-commerce architect
B)practice manager
C)systems analyst
D)chief technology officer

Question 50

Systems integrators or facilities management companies are:

A)Independent subsidiaries of an organization that offer information-processing services to external organizations,as well as to their parent company.
B)Companies that use information resource management techniques to manage the development of their information systems.
C)Outside contractors that take over part or all of a company's information services operations.
D)Companies using a hybrid of centralized and decentralized information systems.

Question 51

The chief information officer is a(n)_______________ level IT manager.

A)tactical
B)strategic
C)operational
D)departmental

Question 52

All of the following are common functions of a system performance monitor except:

A)Capturing computer operator keystrokes
B)Looking after the processing of computer jobs
C)Helping to develop a schedule of computer operations that can optimize computer system performance
D)Producing detailed statistics that are used for planning and control

Question 53

All of the following are among the top 10 factors in vendor selection except:

A)Commitment to quality
B)Price
C)End-user support
D)Cultural match

Question 54

All of the following are among the top 10 reasons companies outsource except:

A)Function is difficult to manage internally or is out of control.
B)Price.
C)Improve company focus.
D)Necessary resources are not available internally.

Question 55

Which of the following is the number one reason that companies outsource?

A)Reduce and control operating costs
B)Accelerate re-engineering benefits
C)Gain access to world-class capabilities
D)Share risks

Question 56

A chief information officer (CIO):

A)Directs day-to-day information services activities
B)Develops and administers training programs for information services personnel and computer users
C)Is expected to closely supervise the internal operations of the information services department,but has limited responsibility for interfacing with other departments
D)Has major responsibility for long-term information system planning and strategy

Question 57

Managing the technology infrastructure (also called the technology platform)is a very minor part of global IT management.

Question 58

The decentralization of information services within an organization was prompted by which of the following?

A)The development of supercomputers
B)The development of microcomputers and distributed processing networks at the corporate,department,and workgroup level
C)The development of mainframe computers and centralized computer centers
D)The development of telecommunications

Question 59

All of the following changes have created an urgent need for centralization except:

A)The Internet boom inspired businesses to connect to multiple networks
B)Companies put essential applications on their intranets,without which their businesses could not function
C)Maintaining PCs on a network is very,very expensive
D)The number of qualified software programmers and PC repair technicians is dwindling

Question 60

According to the Real World Case,the CIO for Toyota USA asks which question?

A)What hardware platform should Toyota adopt?
B)How should Toyota compete globally?
C)Where will the IT leaders come from to tackle the challenges ahead?
D)All of the choices are correct.

Question 61

Most multinational companies have all of the following except:

A)Global financial budgeting
B)Satellite-based communication systems
C)Office automation systems,such as fax and e-mail
D)Global cash management systems

Question 62

According to the Real World case,only the sale of _______________ promises to provide the massive growth that IBM needs to make shareholders happy.

A)services
B)software
C)intellectual property
D)both software and intellectual property

Question 63

Which of the following is the most outsourced IT area?

A)Maintenance and repair
B)Consulting and re-engineering
C)Network administration
D)Total IT outsourcing

Question 64

The consequence of failing to establish how good IT services really need to be is:

A)The company may fail to develop an IT platform that furthers its strategy,despite high IT expenditures
B)Excessive technical and process standardization limits the flexibility of business units
C)IT is overwhelmed with projects that have little companywide value
D)The company may pay for service options that,given its priorities,aren't worth the money

Question 65

When a company experiences a lack of focus,the IT unit can become overwhelmed as it tries to deliver many projects that may have little company-wide value or can't be implemented well simultaneously.This is often the result of senior management failing to answer the question:

A)Which IT capabilities should be companywide?
B)How much should be spent on IT?
C)Which business processes should receive our IT dollars?
D)Whom should we blame if an IT initiative fails?

Question 66

Senior management needs to be involved in critical business/IT decisions.Which of the following is not such a decision?

A)What security and privacy risks are acceptable?
B)How good do our IT services need to be?
C)Which hardware platform do we centralize on?
D)Who do we blame if an IT initiative fails?

Question 67

All of the following would be associated with a transnational e-business strategy except:

A)Global e-commerce and customer service
B)Global supply chain and logistics
C)Transparent manufacturing
D)Dissimilar systems and data

Question 68

What would senior management's role be in relation to the question "Whom do we blame if an IT initiative fails?"

A)Decide which IT capabilities should be provided centrally and which should be developed by individual businesses
B)Decided which features are needed on the basis of their costs and benefits
C)Lead the decision making on the trade-offs between security and privacy on one hand and convenience on the other
D)Assign a business executive to be accountable for every IT project,and monitor business metrics

Question 69

Many companies have policies that require managers to be involved in IT decisions that affect their business units.This helps managers:

A)Improve the strategic customer value of information technology
B)Avoid IS performance problems in their business units and development projects
C)Monitor the problems of employee resistance and poor user interface design
D)See other opportunities for IT development

Question 70

Which of the following is a business driver for global IT?

A)Global assembly line hardware
B)Global work unit software
C)Global collaboration
D)Global employees

Question 71

According to the Real World case,IBM is gambling that it can win by giving away intellectual property in the form of _______________.

A)software
B)patents
C)ideas
D)All of the choices are correct.

Question 72

All of the following are major dimensions of global IT challenges except:

A)Global business and IT strategies
B)Global business and IT application portfolios
C)Global Internet technology platforms
D)Global software management

Question 73

Which of the following is the number one reason in vendor selection?

A)Commitment to quality.
B)Existing relationship.
C)Reduce and control operating costs.
D)Flexible contract terms.

Question 74

According to the Real World case,IBM spends approximately _______________ per year on research and development.

A)$2 million
B)$5 million
C)$5 billion
D)$10 billion

Question 75

Which of the following is the least outsourced IT area?

A)Maintenance and repair
B)Consulting and re-engineering
C)Network administration
D)Total IT outsourcing

Question 76

According to the Real World Case,over half of all the programmers who work for IBM live in all of the following countries except:

A)Mexico
B)Brazil
C)India
D)China

Question 77

All of the following are business drivers for global IT except:

A)Global Operations.
B)Global Collaboration.
C)Global Employees.
D)Global Customers.

Question 78

All of the following are among the top 10 factors for successful outsourcing except:

A)Senior executive support and involvement.
B)Price.
C)Use of outside expertise.
D)Understand company goals and objectives.

Question 79

According to the text,the first step in global information technology management should be:

A)Determining the political structure of each country of operations
B)Developing appropriate business and IT strategies for the global marketplace
C)Outsourcing all manufacturing to the lowest-cost location
D)Evaluating the infrastructure of the target country,including telephone and electricity transmission capabilities

Question 80

Hardware choices are difficult in some countries because of _______________.

A)high prices
B)import restrictions
C)lack of documentation tailored to local conditions
D)All of the choices are correct.