1. The first principle in designing an effective compensation system and the most dependable way to keep people focused on strategy execution and the achievement of performance targets is to
A. establish ethical compensation policies and convince employees that they are the firm's most valuable competitive asset.
B. generously reward and recognize people who meet or beat performance targets and to deny rewards and recognition to those who don't.
C. design monetary and nonmonetary incentives that boost labor productivity and help lower the firm's overall labor costs.
D. pay employees a bonus for each strategic and financial objective that the company achieves.
2. General Electric has an up-or-out policy, where key personnel in underperforming units are pressured to boost performance to acceptable levels and keep it there or risk being replaced. What is this an example of?
A. Developing the resources and organizational capabilities required for successful strategy execution
B. Adopting best practices and business processes to drive continuous improvement in strategy execution activities
C. Staffing the organization with managers and employees capable of executing the strategy well
D. Tying rewards and incentives directly to the achievement of strategic and financial targets
3. _______ is an example of an unhealthy company culture.
A. Insular inwardly focused culture
B. Hyper-adaptive culture
C. Change-embracing culture
D. Ethical and triple-bottom-line driven culture
4. To deeply ingrain core values and ethical standards, a company must
A. give big pay raises and bonuses to individuals and groups who display the company's core values and observe its ethical standards.
B. encourage company personnel to observe the core values and ethical standards.
C. turn the espoused core values and ethical standards into strictly enforced cultural norms.
D. provide every employee with a copy of the company's statement of core values and code of ethics.
5. The task of top executives in making corrective adjustments includes
A. thoroughly analyzing the situation and exercising good business judgment in deciding what actions to take.
B. being good at figuring out whether to arrive at decisions quickly or slowly in choosing among the various alternative adjustments.
C. knowing when to continue with the present corporate culture and when to shift to a different and better corporate culture.
D. deciding whether to try to fix the problems of poor strategy execution or simply shift to a strategy that is easier to execute correctly.
6. Motivational and incentive compensation practices that aim at winning the commitment of company personnel to good strategy execution typically
A. aim at creating a no-pressure/no-adverse-consequences work environment.
B. entail paying the highest wages and salaries in the industry and also stressing nonmonetary rewards for high-performing employees.
C. use only positive rewards and never involve the use of tension, fear, job insecurity, stress, or anxiety.
D. strike a middle ground—entailing decidedly positive rewards for meeting or beating performance targets, but also imposing sufficiently negative consequences when actual performance falls short of the target.
7.Apple decides to reallocate resources by curtailing online ad budgets and investing heavily in scratch-resistant Sapphire, the material that differentiates the Apple Watch from rival wearable computing device brands. What is most likely the reason for Apple's reallocation of resources?
A. Signaling commitment to offline sales of the brand
B. Supporting the new strategic initiative of the brand
C. Making critical value chain activities less effective
D. Signaling commitment to online sales of the brand
8. The approach to identifying the items needed to be placed on management's action agenda of the strategy execution plan always involves
A. a set of unimportant managerial tasks that must be covered no matter what the circumstances.
B. generalized activities that will underscore the particulars of the company's situation.
C. senior management's judgment about how to proceed in light of prevailing circumstances.
D. some definitive managerial recipe for successful strategy execution that works for all company situations and all types of strategies, or that works for all types of managers.
9. eBay, an online auction business, streamlines its retail business by listing PayPal, a digital payments company, as a separately traded company. eBay's move is likely to
A. curtail the cost of handling transactions online.
B. enhance eBay's strategy execution capabilities.
C. increase the cost of handling transactions online.
D. promote the entry of rival companies into the digital payments industry.
10. A network structure is a configuration of
A. a series of connected computers and systems.
B. divisions aligned along supply chain and value chain metrics.
C. groups with common goals.
D. independent organizations engaged in a common undertaking.
11. The three components of building an organization capable of good strategy execution are
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. 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.
C. staffing the organization, building core competencies and competitive capabilities, and structuring the organization and work effort.
D. hiring a capable top management team, empowering employees, and establishing a strategy-supportive corporate culture.
12. Which of the following exemplifies one of the most widely used methods of gauging how well a company is executing its strategy?
A. Fizz-Cola judges the efficiency of internal operations by benchmarking them against best-in-industry performers.
B. Merrill & Company has a disconnected organizational arrangement whereby pieces of an activity are performed in different functional departments.
C. Oceania identifies agents of change who are convinced about sticking to the old ways of doing things.
D. Honwell narrates success stories of rival brands to convince its personnel about traditional wisdom.
13. One key step in changing a problem culture is to
A. identify dysfunctional facets of the present culture and those that impede strategy execution.
B. create a new vision statement and mission statement.
C. introduce new technologies to help employees grow their core capacities.
D. foster a culture of innovation.
14. Management's most powerful tool for mobilizing organizational commitment to competent strategy execution and operating excellence is the
A. proper use of a reward structure with motivational incentives.
B. diligent and persistent use of benchmarking and best practices.
C. implementation of TQM and/or Six Sigma programs.
D. periodic giving of inspirational speeches aimed at arousing employees' emotional energy.
15. Symbolic culture-changing actions by management include
A. firing employees who refuse to accept the new culture.
B. holding ceremonial events to honor employees who exemplify the new culture.
C. providing positive performance reviews to those who exemplify the new culture.
D. promoting employees who uphold the new culture.
16. When management is leading the drive for good strategy execution and operating excellence, it calls for all of the following actions on their part except
A. staying on top of what is happening.
B. putting constructive pressure on the organization to execute the strategy with excellence.
C. establishing a must-be-invented-here mindset.
D. monitoring progress closely.
17. Why are stories important to cultural change?
A. Stories help reinforce values and reinforce commitment to the values others have made.
B. Employees are more likely to listen to a story than anything else.
C. Weak-culture companies can change their culture most easily through stories.
D. Evolving cultures need the adaptability inherent in storytelling to stick.
18. Six Sigma quality control
A. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at fewer than 5.0 complaints per million customer transactions.
B. is a strategy-implementer's best, most reliable tool for simultaneously achieving top-notch product quality and low manufacturing costs.
C. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at producing not more than 3.4 defects per million iterations for any business process.
D. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at producing not more than 2.5 defects per million iterations for a manufacturing or assembly process.
19. When it is difficult or impossible to out-strategize rivals (beat them with a superior strategy), the other main avenue to competitive advantage is to
A. out-execute them (beat them by performing certain value chain activities in superior fashion).
B. outcompete rivals with a stronger corporate culture.
C. do a better job of empowering employees and flattening the organization structure.
D. beat them with a healthy corporate culture based on such core values as high ethical standards, a strong sense of corporate social responsibility, and genuine concern for customer well-being.
20. Which of the following statements is true about delegating greater authority to subordinate managers and employees?
A. It creates a flatter organizational structure with fewer management layers and usually acts to shorten organizational response times.
B. It can be a de-motivating factor because it requires people to take responsibility for their decisions and actions.
C. It's risky because it usually results in many bad decisions on the part of employees and lower levels of financial performance.
D. Because so many more people are involved, it usually slows down decision making to the extent that it takes longer to reach a consensus.
A. establish ethical compensation policies and convince employees that they are the firm's most valuable competitive asset.
B. generously reward and recognize people who meet or beat performance targets and to deny rewards and recognition to those who don't.
C. design monetary and nonmonetary incentives that boost labor productivity and help lower the firm's overall labor costs.
D. pay employees a bonus for each strategic and financial objective that the company achieves.
2. General Electric has an up-or-out policy, where key personnel in underperforming units are pressured to boost performance to acceptable levels and keep it there or risk being replaced. What is this an example of?
A. Developing the resources and organizational capabilities required for successful strategy execution
B. Adopting best practices and business processes to drive continuous improvement in strategy execution activities
C. Staffing the organization with managers and employees capable of executing the strategy well
D. Tying rewards and incentives directly to the achievement of strategic and financial targets
3. _______ is an example of an unhealthy company culture.
A. Insular inwardly focused culture
B. Hyper-adaptive culture
C. Change-embracing culture
D. Ethical and triple-bottom-line driven culture
4. To deeply ingrain core values and ethical standards, a company must
A. give big pay raises and bonuses to individuals and groups who display the company's core values and observe its ethical standards.
B. encourage company personnel to observe the core values and ethical standards.
C. turn the espoused core values and ethical standards into strictly enforced cultural norms.
D. provide every employee with a copy of the company's statement of core values and code of ethics.
5. The task of top executives in making corrective adjustments includes
A. thoroughly analyzing the situation and exercising good business judgment in deciding what actions to take.
B. being good at figuring out whether to arrive at decisions quickly or slowly in choosing among the various alternative adjustments.
C. knowing when to continue with the present corporate culture and when to shift to a different and better corporate culture.
D. deciding whether to try to fix the problems of poor strategy execution or simply shift to a strategy that is easier to execute correctly.
6. Motivational and incentive compensation practices that aim at winning the commitment of company personnel to good strategy execution typically
A. aim at creating a no-pressure/no-adverse-consequences work environment.
B. entail paying the highest wages and salaries in the industry and also stressing nonmonetary rewards for high-performing employees.
C. use only positive rewards and never involve the use of tension, fear, job insecurity, stress, or anxiety.
D. strike a middle ground—entailing decidedly positive rewards for meeting or beating performance targets, but also imposing sufficiently negative consequences when actual performance falls short of the target.
7.Apple decides to reallocate resources by curtailing online ad budgets and investing heavily in scratch-resistant Sapphire, the material that differentiates the Apple Watch from rival wearable computing device brands. What is most likely the reason for Apple's reallocation of resources?
A. Signaling commitment to offline sales of the brand
B. Supporting the new strategic initiative of the brand
C. Making critical value chain activities less effective
D. Signaling commitment to online sales of the brand
8. The approach to identifying the items needed to be placed on management's action agenda of the strategy execution plan always involves
A. a set of unimportant managerial tasks that must be covered no matter what the circumstances.
B. generalized activities that will underscore the particulars of the company's situation.
C. senior management's judgment about how to proceed in light of prevailing circumstances.
D. some definitive managerial recipe for successful strategy execution that works for all company situations and all types of strategies, or that works for all types of managers.
9. eBay, an online auction business, streamlines its retail business by listing PayPal, a digital payments company, as a separately traded company. eBay's move is likely to
A. curtail the cost of handling transactions online.
B. enhance eBay's strategy execution capabilities.
C. increase the cost of handling transactions online.
D. promote the entry of rival companies into the digital payments industry.
10. A network structure is a configuration of
A. a series of connected computers and systems.
B. divisions aligned along supply chain and value chain metrics.
C. groups with common goals.
D. independent organizations engaged in a common undertaking.
11. The three components of building an organization capable of good strategy execution are
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. 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.
C. staffing the organization, building core competencies and competitive capabilities, and structuring the organization and work effort.
D. hiring a capable top management team, empowering employees, and establishing a strategy-supportive corporate culture.
12. Which of the following exemplifies one of the most widely used methods of gauging how well a company is executing its strategy?
A. Fizz-Cola judges the efficiency of internal operations by benchmarking them against best-in-industry performers.
B. Merrill & Company has a disconnected organizational arrangement whereby pieces of an activity are performed in different functional departments.
C. Oceania identifies agents of change who are convinced about sticking to the old ways of doing things.
D. Honwell narrates success stories of rival brands to convince its personnel about traditional wisdom.
13. One key step in changing a problem culture is to
A. identify dysfunctional facets of the present culture and those that impede strategy execution.
B. create a new vision statement and mission statement.
C. introduce new technologies to help employees grow their core capacities.
D. foster a culture of innovation.
14. Management's most powerful tool for mobilizing organizational commitment to competent strategy execution and operating excellence is the
A. proper use of a reward structure with motivational incentives.
B. diligent and persistent use of benchmarking and best practices.
C. implementation of TQM and/or Six Sigma programs.
D. periodic giving of inspirational speeches aimed at arousing employees' emotional energy.
15. Symbolic culture-changing actions by management include
A. firing employees who refuse to accept the new culture.
B. holding ceremonial events to honor employees who exemplify the new culture.
C. providing positive performance reviews to those who exemplify the new culture.
D. promoting employees who uphold the new culture.
16. When management is leading the drive for good strategy execution and operating excellence, it calls for all of the following actions on their part except
A. staying on top of what is happening.
B. putting constructive pressure on the organization to execute the strategy with excellence.
C. establishing a must-be-invented-here mindset.
D. monitoring progress closely.
17. Why are stories important to cultural change?
A. Stories help reinforce values and reinforce commitment to the values others have made.
B. Employees are more likely to listen to a story than anything else.
C. Weak-culture companies can change their culture most easily through stories.
D. Evolving cultures need the adaptability inherent in storytelling to stick.
18. Six Sigma quality control
A. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at fewer than 5.0 complaints per million customer transactions.
B. is a strategy-implementer's best, most reliable tool for simultaneously achieving top-notch product quality and low manufacturing costs.
C. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at producing not more than 3.4 defects per million iterations for any business process.
D. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at producing not more than 2.5 defects per million iterations for a manufacturing or assembly process.
19. When it is difficult or impossible to out-strategize rivals (beat them with a superior strategy), the other main avenue to competitive advantage is to
A. out-execute them (beat them by performing certain value chain activities in superior fashion).
B. outcompete rivals with a stronger corporate culture.
C. do a better job of empowering employees and flattening the organization structure.
D. beat them with a healthy corporate culture based on such core values as high ethical standards, a strong sense of corporate social responsibility, and genuine concern for customer well-being.
20. Which of the following statements is true about delegating greater authority to subordinate managers and employees?
A. It creates a flatter organizational structure with fewer management layers and usually acts to shorten organizational response times.
B. It can be a de-motivating factor because it requires people to take responsibility for their decisions and actions.
C. It's risky because it usually results in many bad decisions on the part of employees and lower levels of financial performance.
D. Because so many more people are involved, it usually slows down decision making to the extent that it takes longer to reach a consensus.
