74) Briefly describe the three generic business-level strategies, providing an example of each.
75) Explain how a global strategy complements a corporate growth strategy.
76) Explain the different ways in which products can be differentiated, providing an example of
each.
77) Companies involved in more than one line of business must first formulate a ________
strategy.
A) business-level
B) department-level
C) corporate-level
D) global-level
78) Stability is designed to ________.
A) guard against organizational change
B) increase the scale or scope of a corporation’s operations
C) support the stability strategies of an organization
D) support the retrenchment strategies of an organization
79) What strategy involves a company working on serving the needs of a narrowly defined
market segment?
A) differentiation strategy
B) focus strategy
C) stability strategy
D) retrenchment strategy
80) The way in which a company divides its activities among separate units and coordinates
activities among those units is referred to as ________.
A) organizational structure
B) organizational network analysis
C) organizational diagnostics
D) organizational climate
81) ________ decision making occurs at a high organizational level in one location, such as an
organization’s headquarters.
A) Centralized
B) Facilitative
C) Participative
D) Consultative
82) ________ decision making disperses decisions to lower organizational levels, such as to
international subsidiaries.
A) Decentralized
B) Top-down
C) Authoritative
D) Top management
83) Decentralized decision making is beneficial when ________.
A) all subsidiaries use the same inputs in production
B) fast-changing national business environments put a premium on local responsiveness
C) one subsidiary’s output is another’s input
D) it aims to create a single global organizational culture
84) The lines of authority in an organization that run from top management to individual
employees and specify internal reporting relationships is called ________.
A) grapevine communication
B) symbolic interactionism
C) value chain
D) chains of command
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Scenario: Beanstalk International
Beanstalk International is a rapidly growing company with well-established subsidiaries in
several nations. The company wants to follow a strategy of adapting its products and marketing
activities in each national market to suit local preferences. This strategy aims at creating value
for its customers.
85) Beanstalk managers know that the drawback of such an adaptive strategy is that it ________.
A) does not allow companies to exploit scale economies in product development, manufacturing,
and marketing
B) can cause a company to overlook important differences in buyer preferences across various
markets
C) is applicable only to industries in which price-competitiveness is a key success factor
D) does not allow a company to modify its products except for the most superficial features
86) Which of the following strategies should TeleToys follow if it wants buyers to perceive its
products as unique?
A) retrenchment strategy
B) global strategy
C) differentiation strategy
D) low-cost leadership strategy
87) Which of the following features is TeleToys least likely to use in order to create a perception
of having unique products?
A) brand image
B) reputation for quality
C) product design
D) low cost
88) TeleToys’ organizational structure can best be referred to as a(n) ________ structure.
A) international division
B) global product
C) global matrix
D) international area
89) Decentralization can help foster participative management practices.
90) In an International Area Structure, a general manager is assigned to each country or region,
and each geographic division operates as a self-contained unit, with decision making the
responsibility of the country or regional managers.
91) An international division structure reduces the authority of country managers in an
organization’s subsidiaries.
92) A main goal of the global product structure is to bring together geographic and product area
managers in joint decision making.
93) A global matrix structure is an organizational structure that divides worldwide operations
according to a company’s product areas.
94) The main purpose of self-managed teams is to help break down barriers between
departments.
95) Differentiate between a multinational and a global strategy. Identify the main benefits and
the main drawbacks of each.
96) Describe the four key approaches to corporate strategy, providing an example of each.
97) How do national and international business environments influence multinational strategy
formulation?
98) When should managers consider decentralized decision making? What benefits might
emerge?
99) Discuss the major points of differences between centralization and decentralization, and
explain the differences between an international area structure and a global product structure.
100) What type of work teams might emerge in organizations that practice decentralized decision
making?
101) A(n) ________ structure separates domestic from international business activities by
creating a separate global branch with its own manager.
A) international area
B) international division
C) global matrix
D) global product
102) An organizational structure that organizes a company’s entire global operations into
countries or geographic regions is referred to as a(n) ________ structure.
A) international area
B) international division
C) global matrix
D) global product
103) A(n) ________ structure is best suited to companies that treat each national market as
unique due to the vast cultural, political, or economic differences between nations.
A) international division
B) international area
C) global matrix
D) global product
104) Which of the following is an advantage of a company with an international area structure?
A) Country managers have very little authority.
B) The subsidiaries fail to develop organizational cultures suited to their locations.
C) Individual responsibility and accountability is foggy.
D) When general managers become experts on the unique needs of their buyers.
105) An organizational structure that splits the chain of command between product and area
divisions is referred to as a(n) ________ structure.
A) international area
B) international division
C) global matrix
D) global product
106) A team in which employees from a single department take on responsibilities of their
former supervisors is called a ________ team.
A) cross-functional
B) self-managed
C) global
D) virtual
107) ________ teams are self-managed teams that help reduce waste in the production processes
of many manufacturing companies.
A) Cross-functional
B) Quality-improvement
C) Interdependent
D) Virtual
108) A ________ team is one composed of employees who work at similar levels in different
operative departments in an organization.
A) self-managed
B) global
C) virtual
D) cross-functional
109) ________ teams can help break down barriers between departments and reorganize
operations around processes in an organization.
A) Cross-functional
B) Self-managed
C) Global
D) Virtual
110) A team of top managers from both headquarters and international subsidiaries who meet to
develop solutions to company-wide problems is referred to as a ________ team.
A) virtual
B) global team
C) cross-functional team
D) self-managed team
111) Describe any three organizational structures that are common for a vast majority of
international companies.
112) Explain participative management and accountability in a decentralized organization, and
discuss the probable accountability issues in a global matrix structure. Include a description of
the global matrix structure in your answer.