47) In networked systems
A) development occurs at the home base and operations are handed over to autonomous units in
foreign locations.
B) each foreign unit designs its own unique solutions and systems.
C) systems development and operations occur in an integrated and coordinated fashion across all
units.
D) foreign units design the solutions and systems used at the domestic home base.
E) development occurs at the home base but operations are handed over to autonomous units
in foreign locations.
48) Domestic exporters typically have highly ________ systems.
49) Multinational companies tend to dominantly have ________ systems.
50) Franchise companies have typically had ________ systems.
A) duplicated
B) centralized
C) networked
D) decentralized
E) autonomous
51) Transnational companies have tended to use a(n) ________ systems configuration.
A) duplicated
B) centralized
C) networked
D) decentralized
E) autonomous
52) The network systems structure is the most visible in ________ services.
A) production
B) financial
C) marketing
D) software design
E) administrative
53) Effective networked systems must have a
A) powerful telecommunications backbone.
B) culture of shared applications development.
C) shared management culture that crosses cultural barriers.
D) both B and C.
E) A, B, and C.
54) Of the following, which is one of the central principles recommended in this chapter for a
firm organizing itself for international business?
A) Organize value-adding activities along lines of comparative advantage.
B) Establish multiple offices for international systems and a global CIO position.
C) Disperse production and marketing to regional centers and establish a single center for world
headquarters and strategic management.
D) Develop and operate systems units at the international level first.
E) Centralize production, but decentralize marketing and sales to be close to the customer.
55) In cooptation
A) the new global system replaces all unit systems, including systems in the home territory.
B) the systems used on the company’s home country are modified to communicate with the
systems of foreign units so that each unit can retain their unique business processes.
C) the systems of specific foreign units are chosen to duplicate for use by other units.
D) opponents to a planned global system are brought into the process of designing and
implementing the solution.
E) all the relevant parties are asked to participate in the design of global systems.
56) Which of the following is not one of the principal management challenges in developing
global systems?
A) encouraging local users to support global systems
B) coordinating applications development
C) defining an acceptable test plan
D) agreeing on common user requirements
E) introducing changes in business processes
57) As a firm moves from local option systems to regional and global systems
A) agency costs increase.
B) coordination costs decrease.
C) transaction costs increase.
D) both transaction and agency costs increase.
E) all costs increase.
58) From your reading of the chapter case, which of the following best describes the challenge
Unilever was facing as a global company?
A) inadequate information for managerial decision making
B) lack of buy-in for global systems by foreign units
C) too many systems in too many data centers, making it difficult to process transactions in a
timely fashion
D) poor governance of global systems
E) managing a global supply chain
59) In order to define centers of excellence in a global firm, you would first need to identify
A) functional areas.
B) core business processes.
C) SOPs.
D) core competencies.
E) international best practices.
60) Which of the following is not one of the main benefits to implementing global systems?
A) superior management and coordination
B) vast improvements in operation
C) new economies of scale at production facilities
D) reduced hardware costs
E) optimize use of corporate funds
61) When developing a global system, bringing the opposition of local groups into the process of
designing and implementing the solution without giving up control over the direction and nature
of the change is called
A) cooptation.
B) change management.
C) implementation.
D) advocacy.
E) cooperation.
62) A global firm can develop transnational centers of excellence as an effective technique to
A) ensure connectivity between regional systems.
B) encourage user support of global systems.
C) effectively identify global business processes.
D) develop a merit-based hierarchy among regional groups.
E) identify who opposes the proposed global changes.
63) Software localization is the process of
A) translating a user interface into a second language.
B) converting software programming to run on a different platform.
C) converting software to operate in a second language and with local conventions.
D) modifying software so that it can be adopted in other countries without engineering changes.
E) modifying software so executives can understand its command language.
64) Japanese consumers who only want to purchase products made in Japan are an example of
A) cultural particularism.
B) political culture.
C) universal global attitudes.
D) different laws in different countries.
E) different business standards.
65) Which of the following is not an important factor when implementing a global information
system solution?
A) agreeing on common user requirements
B) understanding if your computer system can operate in a global environment
C) introducing changes in business processes
D) coordinating applications development
E) coordinating software releases
66) Which of the following is not an important technology issue to consider when developing an
international information system?
A) standardizing the global computing platform
B) deciding how mobile computing will fit into your international system
C) finding specific software applications that are user friendly and enhance productivity
D) building sufficient connectivity
E) developing common data standards
67) Software localization is important for global systems because
A) all users need to be trained in English to use global systems.
B) only some users need to know English, while others can use their local languages.
C) productivity of employees rises when systems use their local languages.
D) computer programs are almost always written in English.
E) most managers around the world use English as their business language.
68) European countries have very strict laws concerning transborder data flows and privacy.
69) To comply with European privacy laws, many multinational firms have developed
information systems within each European country.
70) With the growth of the Internet and reliable phone networks, skilled consultants are readily
available to companies operating in global markets.
71) Accounting practices can vary significantly from country to country.
72) Global systems allow fixed costs to be amortized over a much smaller customer base.
73) One major telecommunications challenge in an international setting is making data flow
seamlessly across networks shaped by disparate national standards.
74) List at least four difficult problems for management in the development of the international
information system. Which do you see as the most problematic, and why?
75) You are working for a global electronic parts manufacturing company with divisions in
Taiwan, Malaysia, Australia, and Germany, that has embarked on developing a global enterprise
system. To ensure that overseas divisions comply with the new system, they are considering a
cooptation strategy in which they will permit each country unit the opportunity to develop one
transnational application first in its home territory, and then throughout the world. What are the
benefits and drawbacks to this approach? Are there any other solutions for the company’s
cooptation strategy?
76) You work for a business consulting firm, and you have been asked to advise Bamboo Home,
a home furniture retailer on implementing a global information systems. What general benefits
can Bamboo Home expect from a globalized system?
77) Which systems are worth sharing on a transnational basis, from a cost and feasibility point of
view?
A) only systems that support functions that are absolutely critical to the organization
B) core systems and worthwhile provincial systems
C) core systems and any financial systems that can be easily integrated with each other
D) financial and accounting systems
E) systems that support decentralized units
78) The chapter outlines four steps in developing an effective global system solution. Which of
the following is not one of these steps?
A) Identify outdated legacy systems to be replaced.
B) Identify the core systems to coordinate centrally.
C) Choose a developmental approach, incremental, evolutionary, or other.
D) Make the benefits clear.
E) Define the core business processes.
79) The way to identify core business processes is to conduct a
A) cost-benefit analysis.
B) work-flow analysis.
C) business process analysis.
D) feasibility analysis.
E) systems analysis.
80) Based on your reading of the chapter, why should companies avoid creating an all-
encompassing, new global system when moving towards global operations?
A) This approach may fail due to a lack of visibility.
B) It is difficult to quantify and explain the benefits of information systems that are large.
C) “Grand design” approaches typically fail to identify centers of excellence.
D) Opposition is strengthened because of requirements for huge resources.
E) This approach will fail because of a lack of concrete objectives.
81) In relation to global systems building, the Internet
A) allows the seamless flow of information through the enterprise.
B) affords local groups stable broadband access.
C) has reduced networking problems.
D) reduced the need for skilled IT employees.
E) has increased the need for private networks.
82) A critical necessity for ensuring the integration of local systems into a global system is
A) adherence to data and technical standards.
B) use of standard hardware at the local level.
C) use of standard user software at the local level.
D) using standard computers throughout the system.
E) using localized software.
83) VPNs
A) use the public Internet for communications.
B) provide guaranteed levels of service.
C) provide all the same services as private networks.
D) are expensive to develop and maintain.
E) can be used only for data but not voice traffic.
84) Which of the following is not one of the principal problems of international networks?
A) network capacity
B) poor quality of international service
C) network standards
D) regulatory constraints
E) installation delays
85) In developing countries, use of the Internet is limited by all of the following except
A) use of mobile telephones.
B) high cost of PCs.
C) poor bandwidth capacity.
D) unreliable power grids.
E) political disruptions.
86) Which types of systems are widely used by manufacturing and distribution firms to connect
to suppliers on a global basis?
A) TPS systems
B) EDI systems
C) CRM systems
D) enterprise systems
E) management information systems
87) The growth of powerful communications technologies and the emergence of world cultures
have failed to create a foundation for global markets.
88) While private networks have guaranteed service levels and better security than the Internet,
the Internet is the primary foundation for global corporate networks when lower security and
service levels are acceptable.
89) How does the Internet benefit the development of a global information system? Should all
global systems be based on the Internet?
90) The last step in establishing a corporate strategy and structure for globalization is to
determine the appropriate technology platform.