Chapter 7: Strategy Implementation
Chapter 7
Strategy Implementation
TRUE/FALSE QUESTIONS
1. Functional strategies are detailed action plans for implementing the growth and
competitive strategies of the company.
2. Marketing strategies are concerned exclusively with the needs of customers.
3. An effective operations unit is one that promises the maximum efficiency or
engineering perfection independent of the strategy of the business overall.
4. Supply chain management involves the integration of the interests of the focal
company, the company’s customers and the company’s suppliers.
5. The same marketing strategies are used in supporting low-cost leadership and
differentiation strategies.
6. For each organization, there is one organization structure that will best optimize
performance.
7. A functional structure is designed around the outputs of an organization, as
represented by product groups or markets.
8. A divisional structure is especially appropriate for a business pursuing a market
penetration growth strategy.
9. The matrix structure is a way to achieve a high degree of coordination among several
related businesses.
10. Foreign subsidiaries classified as specialized contributors focus on one country, make
only minor adjustments to strategy, and have little independence.
Chapter 7: Strategy Implementation
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
11. Which types of strategies are used to implement the growth and competitive strategies
of the firm?
A. Focus strategies
B. Generic strategies
C. Functional strategies
D. Corporate strategies
E. Indirect strategies
12. Which functional area is largely responsible for spanning the boundary of the
organization to interact with customers?
A. Marketing
B. Finance
C. Operations
D. Information systems
E. Human resources
13. In most organizations, research and development strategy deals with all of the
following except:
A. Product development
B. Applications development
C. Basic research
D. Human resource development
E. Process development
14. The _____________ addresses the plan for aligning product and service operations
with business strategies.
A. Information systems strategy
B. R&D strategy
C. Operations strategy
D. Marketing strategy
E. Human resources strategy
15. Which of the following activities is most closely related to marketing strategies?
A. Identifying product opportunities
B. Technology development
C. Basic research
D. Applications development
Chapter 7: Strategy Implementation
E. Process development
16. Enterprise resource planning systems:
A. Manage the flow of information throughout the entire organization
B. Support a wide variety of functions
C. Are found in most of the successful large retailers in the United States
D. Can help integrate functional strategies
E. All of the above
17. Well-developed functional strategies should have all of the following characteristics
except:
A. They are inexpensive to implement
B. Decisions made within each functional area should represent a consistent
pattern
C. They should be consistent with the strategies of the business
D. Decisions made in one functional area should be consistent with those made in
other functional areas
E. These are all true; there is no exception
18. Which organizational structure is organized around inputs or activities that are
required to produce products and has a high level of centralization?
A. Functional
B. Divisional
C. Matrix
D. Network
E. TQM
19. If a firm is very decentralized and has a web of independent offices in each region,
with little or no formal hierarchy, which structure is it likely to have?
A. Functional
B. Divisional
C. Matrix
D. Network
E. Manufacturing
20. Which structure combines the essential elements of the functional and divisional
structures?
A. Functional
B. Divisional
Chapter 7: Strategy Implementation
C. Matrix
D. Network
E. Manufacturing
21. Which of the following is not a true statement about matrix structures?
A. They are most common in organizations that experience their workload in the
form of projects
B. Many employees report to two bosses
C. It can be difficult to balance the needs of different lines of authority
D. It is a simple structural form for organizations in environments with a low
level of complexity
E. These are all true statements.
22. Which of the following is a characteristic of a strategic business unit structure?
A. Each strategic business unit includes businesses that have something in
common
B. Strategic business units are formed based on whether they are fast growing or
slow growing
C. All of the businesses in a strategic business unit sell to a common group of
customers
D. They are very similar to a matrix structure
E. None of the above
23. With regard to organizational structure, the increasing need for strategic flexibility in
an increasingly competitive global marketplace has led to:
A. Simpler structures
B. Organizations brining more of their operations back into the firm
C. Fewer franchises
D. The adoption of less structure corporate forms of organization
E. More centralized decision making
24. If a foreign subsidiary plays a unique role as a part of an interdependent network of
subsidiaries, it is playing the role of:
A. Global mandate
B. Global implementation
C. International focus
D. Local implementation
E. Specialized contribution
25. If a foreign subsidiary focuses on one country, making only minor adjustments to the
overall business strategy of the firm to meet local market needs, it is playing the role
of:
A. Global mandate
B. Global implementation
C. International focus
D. Local implementation
E. Specialized contribution
26. The firm’s system of shared values that guides employees is called:
A. Organizational energy
B. Organizational culture
C. Organizational synergy
D. Organizational power
E. None of the above
27. Organizational energy:
A. Describes how enthusiastic and focused a firm is in moving towards its goals
B. Is a key component of a firm’s social responsiveness strategy
C. Powers the firm’s manufacturing operations
D. Is created through a firm’s marketing strategy
E. None of the above
28. Factors that encourage innovation and entrepreneurship include all of the following
except:
A. Human resources systems that reward innovative behavior
B. Systems that facilitate creation of new products, processes, and services
C. Low levels of slack financial resources
D. A culture that encourages innovation
E. None of the above. These are all factors that encourage innovation and
entrepreneurship
ESSAY QUESTIONS
29. How are marketing strategies affected by the firm’s business-level strategy?
30. What are the characteristics of a well-developed functional strategy?
31. What is a matrix structure? When should it be used?
32. Describe the three roles played by foreign subsidiaries?
33. What are some of the features found in firms that have high levels of innovation and
entrepreneurship?
