Question 1

When a company is confronted with significant industry change that mandates radical revision of its strategic course, the company is said to have encountered

Accepted Answer

A)  a learning and growth perspective. 
B)  a strategic inflection point. 
C)  a strategic roadblock. 
D)  a new strategic opportunity. 
E)  an opportunity for corporate entrepreneurship.

Question 2

Management is obligated to monitor new external developments, evaluate the company's progress, and make corrective adjustments in order to

Accepted Answer

A)  determine whether the company has a balanced scorecard for judging its performance. 
B)  decide whether to continue or change the company's strategic vision, objectives, strategy and/or strategy execution methods. 
C)  determine what changes should be made to its customer value proposition. 
D)  determine whether the company's business model is well matched to changing market and competitive circumstances. 
E)  stay on track in achieving the company's mission and strategic vision.

Question 3

Which of the following are common shortcomings of company vision statements?

Accepted Answer

A)  Too broad, vague or incomplete, bland/uninspiring, not distinctive, and too reliant on superlatives 
B)  Unrealistic, unconventional, and unbusinesslike 
C)  Too specific, too inflexible, and can't be achieved in five years 
D)  Too broad, too narrow, and too risky 
E)  Not customer-driven, out-of-step with emerging technological trends, and too ambitious

Question 4

Which of the following is not among the principal managerial tasks associated with managing the strategy execution process?

Accepted Answer

A)  Ensuring that policies and procedures facilitate rather than impede effective execution 
B)  Creating a company culture and work climate conducive to successful strategy implementation and execution 
C)  Surveying employees on how employee job satisfaction can be improved 
D)  Exerting the internal leadership needed to drive implementation forward 
E)  Tying rewards and incentives directly to the achievement of performance objectives

Question 5

The obligations of an investor-owned company's board of directors in the strategy-making, strategy-executing process include

Accepted Answer

A)  coming up with compelling strategy proposals to debate against those put forward by top management. 
B)  taking the lead in formulating the company's strategic plan but then delegating the task of implementing and executing the strategic plan to the company's CEO and other senior executives. 
C)  taking the lead in developing the company's business model and strategic vision. 
D)  overseeing the company's financial accounting and financial reporting practices and evaluating the caliber of senior executives' strategy-making/strategy-executing skills. 
E)  approving the company's operating strategies, functional-area strategies, business strategy, and overall corporate strategy.

Question 6

A company's values concern

Accepted Answer

A)  whether and to what extent it intends to operate in an ethical and socially responsible manner. 
B)  how aggressively it will seek to maximize profits and enforce high ethical standards. 
C)  the beliefs and operating principles built into the company's "balanced scorecard" for measuring performance. 
D)  the beliefs, traits, and behavioral norms that company personnel are expected to display in conducting the company's business and pursuing its strategic vision and mission. 
E)  the beliefs, principles, and ethical standards that are incorporated into the company's strategic intent and business model.

Question 7

The managerial purpose of setting objectives includes

Accepted Answer

A)  converting the strategic vision into specific performance targets. 
B)  using the objectives as yardsticks for tracking the company's progress and performance. 
C)  challenging the organization to perform at its full potential and deliver the best possible results. 
D)  establishing deadlines for achieving performance results. 
E)  All of these.

Question 8

The task of stitching together a strategy

Accepted Answer

A)  entails addressing a series of hows: how to grow the business, how to please customers, how to outcompete rivals, how to respond to changing market conditions, and how to achieve strategic and financial objectives. 
B)  is primarily an exercise in deciding which of several freshly emerging market opportunities to pursue. 
C)  is mainly an exercise that should be dictated by what is comfortable to management from a risk perspective and what is acceptable in terms of capital requirements. 
D)  requires trying to copy the strategies of industry leaders as closely as possible. 
E)  is mainly an exercise in good planning.

Question 9

A company's values relate to such things as

Accepted Answer

A)  how it will balance its pursuit of financial objectives against the pursuit of its strategic objectives. 
B)  how it will balance the pursuit of its business purpose/mission against the pursuit of its strategic vision. 
C)  fair treatment, integrity, ethical behavior, innovativeness, teamwork, top-notch quality, superior customer service, social responsibility, and community citizenship. 
D)  whether it will emphasize stock price appreciation or higher dividend payments to shareholders, and whether it will put more emphasis on the achievement of short-term performance targets or long-range performance targets. 
E)  All of the above.

Question 10

Why should long-run objectives take precedence over short-run objectives?

Accepted Answer

A)  Focus is placed on improving performance in the near term. 
B)  Long-run objectives are necessary for achieving long-term performance and stand as a barrier to undue focus on short-term results. 
C)  This will satisfy shareholder expectations for progress. 
D)  This will force the company to deliver performance improvement in the current period. 
E)  None of these.

Question 11

The strategic management process is shaped by

Accepted Answer

A)  management's strategic vision, strategic and financial objectives, and strategy. 
B)  the decisions made by the compensation and audit committees of the board of directors. 
C)  external factors such as the industry's economic and competitive conditions and internal factors such as the company's collection of resources and capabilities. 
D)  a company's customer value proposition and profit formula. 
E)  actions to strengthen competitive capabilities and correct weaknesses, actions to strengthen market standing and competitiveness by acquiring or merging with other companies, and actions to enter new geographic or product markets.

Question 12

A company needs performance targets or objectives

Accepted Answer

A)  for its operations as a whole and also for each of its separate businesses, product lines, functional departments, and individual work units. 
B)  because they provide parameters for the company's strategy map. 
C)  in order to unify the company's strategic vision and business model. 
D)  to help guide managers in deciding what strategic path to take in the event that a strategic inflection point is encountered. 
E)  in order to prevent lower-level organizational units from establishing their own objectives.

Question 13

Operating strategies concern

Accepted Answer

A)  what the firm's operating departments are doing to unify the company's functional and business strategies. 
B)  the specific plans for building competitive advantage in each major department and operating unit. 
C)  the relatively narrow strategic initiatives and approaches for managing key operating units within a business and for performing strategically significant operating tasks. 
D)  how best to carry out the company's corporate strategy. 
E)  how best to implement and execute the company's different business-level strategies.

Question 14

Management's strategic vision for an organization

Accepted Answer

A)  charts a strategic course for the organization ("where we are going") and outlines the company's future product-customer-market-technology focus. 
B)  describes in fairly specific terms the organization's business model, strategic objectives, and strategy. 
C)  spells out how the company will become a big moneymaker and boost shareholder value. 
D)  addresses the critical issue of "why our business model needs to change and how we plan to change it." 
E)  spells out the organization's strategic moves that will be undertaken to achieve competitive advantage.

Question 15

Effectively communicating the strategic vision down the line to lower-level managers and employees has the value of

Accepted Answer

A)  not only explaining "where we are going and why" but, more importantly, also inspiring and energizing company personnel to unite to get the company moving in the intended direction. 
B)  helping company personnel understand why "making a profit" is so important. 
C)  making it easier for top executives to set strategic objectives. 
D)  helping lower-level managers and employees better understand the company's business model. 
E)  All of these.

Question 16

Functional strategies

Accepted Answer

A)  unify the company's various operating-level strategies. 
B)  specify how to build and strengthen the skills, expertise, and competencies needed to execute operating-level strategies successfully. 
C)  support and add power to the corporate-level strategy. 
D)  add detail to the company's business-level strategy and specify what resources are needed to put the strategy into action. 
E)  create the chief elements of the company's strategy map.

Question 17

A company's strategic plan consists of

Accepted Answer

A)  its balanced scorecard and its business model. 
B)  a vision of where it is headed, a set of performance targets, and a strategy to achieve them. 
C)  its strategy and management's specific, detailed plans for implementing it. 
D)  a company's plans for improving value-creating internal processes. 
E)  a strategic vision, a strategy, and a business model.

Question 18

A company's mission statement typically addresses which of the following questions?

Accepted Answer

A)  Who we are, what we do, and why we are here 
B)  What objectives and level of performance do we want to achieve? 
C)  Where are we going and what should our strategy be? 
D)  What approach should we take to achieve sustainable competitive advantage? 
E)  What business model should we employ to achieve our objectives and our vision?

Question 19

Which one of the following is not among the chief duties/responsibilities of a company's board of directors insofar as the strategy-making, strategy-executing process is concerned?

Accepted Answer

A)  Hiring and firing senior-level executives and working with the company's chief strategic planning officer to improve the company's performance 
B)  Being inquiring critics and exercising strong oversight over the company's direction, strategy, and business approaches 
C)  Evaluating the caliber of senior executives' strategy-making/strategy-executing skills 
D)  Instituting a compensation plan for top executives that rewards them for actions and results that serve stakeholders' interests, and most especially those of shareholders 
E)  Overseeing the company's financial accounting and financial reporting practices

Question 20

Which one of the following is not one of the five stages of the strategic management process?

Accepted Answer

A)  Forming a strategic vision of the company's future direction and focus 
B)  Setting objectives to measure progress toward achieving the strategic vision 
C)  Crafting a strategy to achieve the objectives and get the company where it wants to go 
D)  Developing a profitable business model 
E)  Implementing and executing the chosen strategy efficiently and effectively

Exam 2: Charting a Companys Direction: Vision and Mission, Objectives, and Strategy