Executive MBA Strategy
Midterm Exam
Course Introduction
Executive MBA Strategy is a comprehensive course designed to equip experienced professionals with advanced strategic management skills, tools, and frameworks necessary for high-level decision-making in complex business environments. The course covers key concepts such as competitive analysis, strategic positioning, corporate strategy, and innovation management, emphasizing real-world application through case studies and collaborative projects. Participants critically evaluate business challenges, explore global market dynamics, and develop actionable strategies to drive organizational growth and sustainability, all while enhancing their leadership and analytical capabilities suited for executive-level roles.
Recommended Textbook
Crafting and Executing Strategy 19th Edition by Arthur A. Thompson
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12 Chapters
1405 Verified Questions
1405 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: What Is Strategy and Why Is It Important
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70 Verified Questions
70 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following questions tests the merits of the firm's strategy and distinguishes it as a winning strategy?
A) Is the company's strategy ethical and socially responsible and does it put enough emphasis on good product quality and good customer service?
B) Is the company putting too little emphasis on growth and profitability and too much emphasis on behaving in an ethical and socially responsible manner?
C) Is the strategy resulting in the development of additional competitive capabilities?
D) Is the strategy helping the company achieve a sustainable competitive advantage and is it resulting in better company performance?
E) Does the strategy strike a good balance between maximizing shareholder wealth and maximizing customer satisfaction?
Answer: D
Q2) Is it more accurate to think of strategy as being "proactive" or as being "reactive"? Why?
Answer: No Answer
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3
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110 Verified Questions
110 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) A company exhibits strategic intent when:
A) management crafts and adopts a strategic plan.
B) it relentlessly pursues an ambitious strategic objective,concentrating the full force of its resources and competitive actions on achieving that objective.
C) it aggressively pursues financial objectives,establishing a priority on meeting the performance metrics and instilling a sense of urgency throughout the company.
D) management establishes a comprehensive set of financial objectives that meet stockholder expectations.
E) it capitalizes on its primary competitive advantage and ensures resources are allocated to maintain its strategy.
Answer: B
Q2) Identify the key characteristics of a well-stated organizational objective.
Answer: No Answer
Q3) Explain the difference between financial objectives and strategic objectives.Give examples of each.
Answer: No Answer
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4
Chapter 3: Evaluating a Companys External Environment
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143 Verified Questions
143 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The task of driving forces analysis is to:
A) develop a comprehensive list of all the potential causes of changing industry conditions.
B) predict which new driving forces will emerge next.
C) determine which one of the five competitive forces is the biggest driver of industry change.
D) identify the driving forces,assess whether their impact will make the industry more or less attractive,and determine what strategy changes are needed to prepare for the impacts of the driving forces.
E) learn what the industry key success factors are and how they might change in the future.
Answer: D
Q2) What is the strategy-making value of identifying an industry's key success factors? Answer: No Answer
Q3) Identify and briefly explain any four of the factors that influence the strength or intensity of competitive rivalry among an industry's member firms.
Answer: No Answer
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Chapter 4: Evaluating a Companys Resources, Capabilities, and Competitiveness
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171 Verified Questions
171 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The difference between a core competence and a distinctive competence is that:
A) a distinctive competence refers to a company's strongest resource or competitive capability,while a core competence refers to a company's lowest-cost and most efficiently executed value-chain activity.
B) a core competence usually resides in a company's base of intellectual capital,whereas a distinctive competence stems from the superiority of a company's physical and tangible assets.
C) a core competence is a competitively and strategically relevant activity that a firm performs well compared to its other activities,whereas a distinctive competence is a competitively relevant activity a firm performs well compared to other rival firms.
D) a core competence represents a resource strength,whereas a distinctive competence is achieved by having more resource strengths than rival companies.
E) a core competence usually resides in a company's technology and physical assets,whereas a distinctive competence usually resides in a company's know-how,expertise,and intellectual capital.
Q2) A distinctive competence represents competitively superior resource strength.True or false? Explain your answer.
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Page 6
Chapter 5: The Five Generic Competitive Strategies: Which
One to Employ
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109 Verified Questions
109 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) In which one of the following market circumstances is a broad differentiation strategy generally NOT well-suited?
A) When buyer needs and preferences are too diverse to be fully satisfied by a standardized product
B) When few rivals are pursuing a similar differentiation approach
C) When the products of rivals are weakly differentiated and most competitors are resorting to clever advertising to try to set their product offerings apart
D) When there are many ways to differentiate the product or service and many buyers perceive these differences as having value
E) When technological change is fast-paced and competition revolves around rapidly evolving product features
Q2) Which of the following is NOT one of the ways managers can enhance differentiation based on uniqueness drivers?
A) Striving to create superior product features,design,and performance
B) Striving for innovation and technological advances
C) Pursuing continuous quality improvement
D) Increasing the intensity of marketing,brand building.and sales activities
E) Seeking out low-quality inputs
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Chapter 6: Strengthening a Companys Competitive
Position: Strategic Moves, Timing, and Scope of Operations
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100 Verified Questions
100 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Being first to initiate a particular strategic move can have a high payoff in all of the following EXCEPT when:
A) pioneering helps build up a firm's image and reputation and creates strong brand loyalty.
B) buyers remain strongly loyal to pioneering firms because of incentives and switching costs barriers.
C) there is a steep learning curve and when learning can be kept proprietary.
D) moving first can constitute a preemptive strike,making imitation extra hard or unlikely.
E) market uncertainties make it difficult to ascertain what will eventually succeed.
Q2) What are the merits of outsourcing the performance of certain value chain activities as opposed to performing them in-house? Under what circumstances does outsourcing make good strategic sense?
Q3) What are the strategic disadvantages of a forward vertical integration strategy?
Q4) What are the strategic disadvantages of a backward vertical integration strategy?
Q5) What are the advantages of strategic alliances and collaborative partnerships with key suppliers?
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Chapter 7: Strategies for Competing in International Markets
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139 Verified Questions
139 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The best strategy options for a local company in competing against global challengers include:
A) locating buyer-related activities,such as sales,advertising,or technical assistance,close to buyers.
B) export strategies,entering into alliances and/or joint ventures with one or more foreign companies having globally competitive strengths,and/or cross-border transfer strategies.
C) export strategies,licensing strategies,franchising strategies,and cross-market coordination strategies.
D) using an understanding of local customer preferences to create customized products or services,transferring the company's expertise to cross-border markets,and/or using acquisitions and rapid growth strategies to defend against expansion-minded multinationals.
E) offensives aimed at the global challengers' strengths,promoting anti-dumping legislation,and/or launching some type of guerilla warfare strategy.
Q2) What are the pros and cons of using strategic alliances to try to enhance a company's ability to compete in foreign markets?
Q3) When is a global strategy "superior" to a multidomestic strategy?
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Chapter 8: Corporate Strategy: Diversification and the Multibusiness Company
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174 Verified Questions
174 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The decision to pursue diversification requires management to resolve which industries to enter and whether to enter,and includes such decisions as the following,EXCEPT:
A) selecting the appropriate value chain operating practices to improve the financial outlook.
B) starting a business from the ground up.
C) acquiring a company already established in the target industry.
D) forming a joint venture or partnership with another company.
E) structuring a strategic alliance with another company to take advantage of the opportunity.
Q2) Identify and explain the meaning and strategic significance of each of the following terms:
a)related diversification
b)unrelated diversification
c)strategic fit
d)economies of scope
e)divestiture
f)corporate restructuring
Q3) Discuss the pros and cons of a strategy of unrelated diversification.
Q4) What is the purpose of diversification?
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Chapter 9: Ethics, corporate Social Responsibility,
Environmental Sustainability, and Strategy
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90 Verified Questions
90 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) An environmental sustainability strategy consists of a company's deliberate actions to:
A) operate in an honorable manner,provide good working conditions for employees,and to actively work to enhance the quality of life in the local communities where it operates and in society at large.
B) meet the current needs of customers,suppliers,shareholders,employees,and other stakeholders in a manner that protects the environment,provides for the longevity of natural resources,maintains ecological support systems for future generations,and guards against ultimate endangerment of the planet.
C) apply ethical principles of right and wrong regarding the protection and enhancement of natural resources and ecological support systems as set forth in the Global Code of Ethical Behavior adopted by 150 nations of the world.
D) apply universal norms regarding the protection of the environment to its everyday operations and to establish guidelines regarding what actions are ecologically sound based on the findings of the scientific community.
E) balance commonly held views about what constitutes environmentally appropriate actions against its ability to make a profit.
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11
Chapter 10: Building an Organization Capable of Good
Strategy Execution: People, Capabilities, and Structure
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105 Verified Questions
105 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The strategic importance of deliberately trying to develop organizational competencies and capabilities is:
A) lower costs for employee training.
B) improved strategy execution and a potential for competitive advantage.
C) an increased ability to reduce total operating costs.
D) the added ease with which strategic fit and resource fit benefits can be captured.
E) the enhanced ability to avoid the perils of outsourcing.
Q2) A well-managed network structure typically includes one firm in a more central role,with:
A) the responsibility of ensuring that the right partners are included and the activities are coordinated.
B) more effective collaboration and cooperation among partners.
C) a hand-picked,integrated network of suppliers.
D) an arrangement of independent organizations involved in a common undertaking.
E) All of these.
Q3) List the 10 principal managerial components of the strategy-implementing/strategy-executing process?
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Page 12
Chapter 11: Managing Internal Operations: Actions That Promote
Good Strategy Execution
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88 Verified Questions
88 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Installing well-conceived,state-of-the-art support systems is an important managerial component of implementing and executing strategy because:
A) such systems are essential to being able to engage in effective benchmarking and continuous improvement.
B) such support systems not only enable better strategy execution but also strengthen organizational capabilities (perhaps enough to provide a competitive edge over rivals).
C) they help managers run a tight ship and preserve strong,centralized control over internal activities.
D) they are the basis for revamping value chains,boosting labor productivity,and reducing operating costs.
E) decentralized decision making and employee empowerment cannot work well without having well-conceived information and operating systems to accurately benchmark internally performed value chain activities against best-in-industry and best-in-class performers.
Q2) Identify and describe ways that policies and procedures facilitate strategy execution.
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13
Chapter 12: Corporate Culture and Leadership: Keys to Good Strategy Execution
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106 Verified Questions
106 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) What are the benefits of a tight culture-strategy matchup?
Q2) Give two examples of "symbolic" culture-changing actions and two examples of "substantive" culture-changing actions.
Q3) What is the hallmark of an adaptive corporate culture?
A) A shared willingness to adapt core values to fit the changing requirements of an evolving strategy.
B) A conservative strategy,prudent risk-taking,and strong peer pressures to observe cultural norms.
C) A clear willingness on the part of organizational members to accept change and take on the challenge of introducing and executing new strategies.
D) A commitment to the types of core values and ethical standards that make a company a great place to work.
E) A strong preference for performance-based compensation systems-especially the payment of bonuses and stock options.
Q4) Identify and discuss the three ways that a corporate culture,grounded in actions,behaviors and work practices and conducive to good strategy implementation can assist corporate strategy execution.
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