Strat mgmt Quiz #3 85% 1.

Which of the following is not a major question to ask in thinking strategically about industry and competitive conditions in a given industry? How many companies have entered the industry in the past year and how many have exited the industry?

2. The key success factors in an industry are those competitive aspects that most affect industry members' abilities to prosper in the marketplacethe particular strategy elements, product attributes, resource strengths, competitive capabilities, and market achievements that spell the difference between being a strong competitor and a weak competitor (and sometimes the difference between profit and loss).

3. Which one of the following generally does not act to weaken the rivalry among competing sellers? Low barriers to entry

4. Which of the following is not a factor that causes buyer bargaining power to be stronger? The supply side of the marketplace is composed of a few large sellers and the demand side of the marketplace consists of numerous buyers that purchase in fairly small quantities

5. Having good competitive intelligence about rivals' strategies, latest actions and announcements, resource strengths and weaknesses, and attempts to improve their situation is important because it prevents a company from flying blind into competitive battle, being totally surprised by the fresh actions of rivals, and helping a company to craft offensive and defensive strategic moves of its own with some confidence about what market maneuvers to expect from its rivals.

6. What makes the marketplace a competitive battlefield is The constant jockeying of industry members to strengthen their standing with buyers and win a competitive edge over rivals. 7. Just how strong the competitive pressures are from substitute products depends on whether

buyers have high or low switching costs and whether substitutes are readily available, competitively priced, and have comparable or better performance features.

8. Which one of the following does not intensify the competitive pressures associated with the threat of entry? Industry members are struggling to earn good profits

9. Which of the following is not generally a "driving force" capable of producing fundamental changes in industry and competitive conditions? Shifts upward or downward in interest rates, the inflation rate, and the unemployment rate

10. A competitive environment where there is weak to moderate rivalry among sellers, high entry barriers, weak competition from substitute products, and little bargaining leverage on the part of both suppliers and customers is conducive to industry members earning attractive profits.

11. Strategic group mapping is a useful analytical tool for determining each rival's closest competitors, whether profit prospects vary from strategic group to strategic group, and whether prevailing competitive pressures and industry driving forces favor some strategic groups and hurt others.

12. Rivalry among competing sellers is generally more intense when rivals are active in making fresh moves to lower prices, introduce new products, increase promotional efforts and advertising, and otherwise gain sales and market share; buyer demand is growing slowly; and the products of rival sellers are becoming increasingly more similar (as opposed to strongly differentiated).

13. Whether supplier-seller relationships in an industry represent a strong or weak source of competitive pressure is a function of the degree to which suppliers have sufficient bargaining power to influence the terms and conditions of supply in their favor and whether one or more industry members collaborate closely with certain important suppliers in order to capture competitively valuable supply chain benefits.

14. Which one of the following is not a reason why industry members are often motivated to enter into collaborative partnerships with key suppliers? To avoid the costs associated with having to use components that are differentiated from supplier to supplier.

15. Based on Figure 3.4, which of the following is not a typical competitive weapon that a company can use to battle rivals and attract buyers? Having the biggest production plant of any company in the industry

16. Which of the following is not a factor to be considered in the five-forces model of competition? Whether the key factors for future competitive success are growing stronger or weaker

17. Competitive pressures stemming from the threat of entry are weaker when The industry outlook is risky or uncertain.

18. Driving forces analysis involves identifying the driving forces, assessing whether their impact will make the industry more or less attractive, and determining what strategy changes a company may need to make to prepare for the impacts of the driving forces.

19. Which of the following generally do not qualify as a barrier to entry? Rapid market growth and low degrees of customer loyalty to existing brands

20. The best test of whether potential entry is a strong or weak competitive force is whether the industry's growth and profit prospects are strongly attractive to potential entry candidates.