121) Which of the following statements most closely describes the people in the buying center of
a medium-sized manufacturing plant?
A) The composition of the buying center remains constant over long periods of time.
B) The buying center avoids cross-functional teams whenever possible.
C) The individuals in the buying center may vary depending on the specific item being
purchased.
D) The purchasing manager is an occasional member of the buying center.
E) The participants are also part of a buying committee.
122) In an effort to make better and more efficient purchase decisions, the Ford Motor Co.
includes input from various people, depending on the purchase situation. Individuals may include
key personnel from several departments, including research and development, finance,
marketing, shipping, and sales. This is a description of Ford’s
A) selling committee.
B) sustainable procurement department.
C) purchasing unit.
D) buying center.
E) buying committee.
123) To lower costs and reduce manufacturing time, Michelin has people work together on
important purchases. These people include individuals in the roles of buyers, deciders,
gatekeepers, and others, as needed. This type of cross-functional group is known as a
A) purchasing committee.
B) sustainable procurement panel.
C) buying center.
D) supply partnership.
E) purchasing task force.
124) All of the following are roles in a buying center except which?
A) evaluators
B) deciders
C) gatekeepers
D) influencers
E) users
125) The people in the organization who actually consumer the product or service are referred to
as ________, which is one role in the buying center.
A) consumers
B) deciders
C) buyers
D) influencers
E) users
126) On a visit to Conner Industries, a West Plains Band Saw salesperson heard a production
employee saying, “This band saw has a 36-inch wheel that could really save us time, and with its
adjustable height, it can be operated by someone tall like me as well as by our shorter workers. I
bet this would speed up my production time by 30 percent. Why don’t we order this band saw?”
The person the salesperson heard giving input has which buying center role?
A) purchasing agent
B) decider
C) buyer
D) user
E) motivator
127) Becca, an office manager for a small construction company, met with representatives from
Xerox and Minolta, along with the president and the accountant, to compare options for a new
copier for the office. Since she made most of the copies, Becca wanted to see the features of the
machines, though her boss would have to approve the final purchase. Becca has what role in the
buying center?
A) purchasing agent
B) decider
C) buyer
D) user
E) motivator
128) In a buying center, ________ affect the buying decision, usually by helping define the
specifications for what is bought.
A) gatekeepers
B) deciders
C) buyers
D) influencers
E) users
129) Within the buying center, influencers are people who
A) have the formal authority and responsibility to select the supplier and negotiate the terms of
the contract.
B) control the flow of information in the buying center.
C) affect the buying decision usually by helping define the specifications for what is bought.
D) have the formal or informal power to select or approve the supplier that receives the contract.
E) actually use and evaluate the product or service.
130) A computer company salesperson invites the IT managers of its top 10 customers (in terms
of dollar sales) to view a demonstration of the firm’s new product line, so the salesperson can
obtain their opinions regarding various options and configurations that could be offered. These
IT managers are most likely to be the ________ of their organizations’ buying centers.
A) gatekeepers
B) influencers
C) reciprocity arrangers
D) buyers
E) users
131) In a buying center, ________ have formal authority and responsibility to select the supplier
and negotiate the terms of a contract.
A) buyers
B) gatekeepers
C) adopters
D) influencers
E) users
132) The purchasing manager of Ingram Printing has selected HP as the supplier of its new high-
speed printer and negotiated the terms of the contract. The purchasing manager is the ________
for Ingram.
A) user
B) gatekeeper
C) influencer
D) buyer
E) decider
133) Lara assumed the ________ role in the buying center when she shook the salesperson’s
hand and said, “Ms. Hron, we would like to accept your bid. I’ll expect 48 boxes of ring shank
nails to be delivered by November 8, and we will pay the agreed-upon price of $21.74 per box.”
A) gatekeeper
B) broker
C) buyer
D) influencer
E) user
134) In a buying center, ________ have the formal or informal power to select or approve the
supplier that receives the contract.
A) gatekeepers
B) deciders
C) buyers
D) influencers
E) users
135) Within the buying center, deciders are people who
A) have the formal authority and responsibility to select the supplier and negotiate the terms of
the contract.
B) control the flow of information in the buying center.
C) have the formal or informal power to select or approve the supplier that receives the contract.
D) affect the buying decision usually by helping define the specifications for what is bought.
E) actually use and evaluate the product or service.
136) For routine orders within the buying center, the decider is usually
A) the buyer or purchasing manager.
B) the CEO.
C) the COO.
D) the head of R&D.
E) the customer.
137) An IT engineer specifies the type of electronic shopping cart to be used on the company’s
new website. The engineer also chooses the supplier that receives the contract to provide the
software. In the buying center, this person is the
A) gatekeeper.
B) decider.
C) broker.
D) influencer.
E) user.
138) People who control the flow of information in the buying center, such as technical experts
and secretaries, can keep salespeople and information from reaching others in the buying center
and are referred to as
A) deciders.
B) obstructionists.
C) gatekeepers.
D) filters.
E) influencers.
139) A sales representative for a pharmaceutical company visits the doctor’s office, hoping to
explain a new drug to the doctor. However, the office receptionist explains that the doctor is with
patients and will not be able to see the sales rep. The receptionist is acting as
A) a user.
B) an influencer.
C) a buyer.
D) a decider.
E) a gatekeeper.
140) Cassidy is part of the buying center for a large manufacturer. Her field of expertise is
logistics and she is responsible for choosing transportation providers for the company. A sales
representative for Yellow Roadway, a successful trucking firm, regularly buys Cassidy’s assistant
lunch. The representative does this because he views the assistant as and wants to be sure that
information about his company reaches Cassidy.
A) a gatekeeper
B) a decider
C) an influencer
D) an obstructionist
E) a power broker
141) Beth is part owner of a chain of auto repair shops. Her company was considering adding tire
sales in some of its facilities, and several people were slated to meet to discuss the idea. Beth
gathered information about possible distributors. Her son had been laid off from a job with one
of them, so she removed this company from the group she was preparing to present to the others.
Here, Beth was acting in what role in the buying center?
A) gatekeeper
B) decider
C) user
D) obstructionist
E) power broker
142) Mark manages a small family-owned amusement park. He believes the park can increase its
profits if its owners will buy three food concession trailers. Mark has contacted three dealers of
such trailers, which come fully customized to user specifications. After receiving three bids,
Mark concluded that Century Industries has the best offer. He will present only the Century
Industries information to the family tomorrow. What buying center roles does Mark perform?
A) gatekeeper and buyer
B) decider and user
C) buyer and decider
D) influencer and buyer
E) influencer, gatekeeper, and decider
143) Researchers who have studied organizational buying identify three types of buying
situations, called ________, which include new buy, modified rebuy, and straight rebuy.
A) purchase criteria
B) buy classes
C) buying centers
D) consideration sets
E) purchase hierarchies
144) The three types of organizational buy classes are
A) industrial, reseller, and government.
B) consumer products, industrial goods, and services.
C) users, influencers, and deciders.
D) straight purchase, barter, and countertrade.
E) new buy, straight rebuy, and modified rebuy.
145) Buy classes refer to the three types of organizational buying situations:
A) buy, lease, and rent.
B) new buy, make, and reprocess.
C) manufacturing contracts, consulting contracts, service contracts.
D) new buy, straight rebuy, and modified rebuy.
E) new buy, refurbish, and used buy.
146) The buying situation where an organization is a first-time buyer of the product or service is
referred to as
A) an initial buy.
B) a new buy.
C) a preliminary buy.
D) a straight rebuy.
E) a modified rebuy.
147) A buy class situation affects buying center tendencies in different ways. If there are many
people involved, the problem definition is uncertain, and the time required for a decision is long,
the buy class situation is most likely a
A) standard buy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) conditional rebuy.
D) modified rebuy.
E) new buy.
148) A buy class situation affects buying center tendencies in different ways. If there is one
person involved, the problem is well-defined, and the buying objective is to find a low-priced
supplier, the buy class situation is most likely a
A) modified buy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) conditional rebuy.
D) new buy.
E) standard buy.
149) A buy class situation affects buying center tendencies in different ways. If there are two or
three people involved, the problem is a minor modification, and the suppliers considered are the
present ones, the buy class situation is most likely a
A) conditional buy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) new buy.
D) modified rebuy.
E) standard buy.
150) A buy class situation affects buying center tendencies in different ways. If the buying
objective is to find a good solution, the suppliers considered are both new and present, and the
buying influence includes technical and operating personnel, the buy class situation is most
likely a
A) modified buy.
B) new buy.
C) straight rebuy.
D) make-buy.
E) standard buy.
151) If a purchase is a new buy for a manufacturer, the seller should expect
A) specifications to be changed many times before the buy is completed.
B) a lot of conflict.
C) many people to be involved in the purchase decision.
D) to have to do some favors for the decision makers.
E) to receive confirmation of a contract quickly.
152) If a purchase is a new buy for a manufacturer, the seller should
A) expect a long time for a buying decision to be reached.
B) neutralize the typically high levels of conflict.
C) maintain flexibility, since specifications are likely to be changed several times before the buy
is completed.
D) be prepared to do some favors for the decision makers.
E) expect to be the only supplier being considered.
153) At the weekly meeting for Choice Hotels, the marketing manager said, “We need an
inexpensive creative way to increase awareness of our hotels among people who travel by
automobile. To do that, I want to find a different advertising medium that the other hotel chains
are not using now.” The purchase of this advertising on an alternative medium would be an
example of
A) a new buy.
B) a straight rebuy.
C) a converted rebuy.
D) a modified rebuy.
E) an initial buy.
154) A reorder of an existing product or service from a list of acceptable suppliers is referred to
as a
A) new buy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) modified rebuy.
D) standard reorder.
E) make-buy.
155) An assistant heard his supervisor in the supply room yell, “Call Crate & Barrel. We need
another case of its large coffee mugs for the conference next week.” The supervisor was asking
the assistant to make a
A) new buy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) modified rebuy.
D) make-buy.
E) standard reorder.
156) The department’s administrative assistant orders pens, copy paper, and printer ink cartridges
for the department from the Corporate Express catalog nearly every month. This is an example of
a
A) new buy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) modified rebuy.
D) make-buy.
E) standard reorder.
157) In a ________ situation, users, influencers, or deciders in the buying center want to change
product specifications, price, delivery schedule, or suppliers, though the product is largely the
same.
A) derived buy
B) straight rebuy
C) make-buy
D) new buy
E) modified rebuy
158) A university’s marketing department typically purchases backpacks with its logo
embroidered on them for all incoming freshmen. This year, because faculty have heard
complaints, the marketing chair wants to buy similar backpacks but find one that is a little more
durable. This is an example of a
A) new buy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) make-buy.
D) modified rebuy.
E) standard reorder.
159) A software company has updated its logo. It now needs to order new letterhead and
business cards. This purchase would be a
A) modified rebuy.
B) straight rebuy.
C) new buy.
D) standard reorder.
E) class buy.