Q&A Hero

Q: Which of the following is not a common trait of an unhealthy company culture? A. a politicized internal environment B. hostility to change and a wariness of people who champion new ways of doing things C. aversion to looking outside the company for best practices, new managerial approaches, and innovative ideas D. aversion to incentive compensation, failure to recruit the best and brightest employees, subpar support for employee training, and overemphasis on working in teams E. disregard for high ethical standards and an overzealous pursuit of wealth and status on the part of key executives

Q: Which of the following statements about adaptive corporate cultures is false? A. The hallmark of adaptive corporate cultures is a willingness on the part of organizational members to accept change and take on the challenge of introducing and executing new strategies. B. Internal entrepreneurship and initiative on the part of individuals and groups is discouraged and punished. C. Change is willingly embraced by management and nonmanagerial employees. D. Adaptive cultures are exceptionally well suited to companies with fast-changing strategies and market environments. E. For an adaptive culture to remain intact over time, top management must orchestrate organizational changes in a manner that (1) does not compromise core values and long-standing business principles and (2) tries to satisfy all their legitimate interests simultaneously.

Q: The hallmark of an adaptive corporate culture is A. a shared willingness to adapt core values to fit the changing requirements of an evolving strategy. B. a conservative strategy, prudent risk taking, and strong peer pressures to observe cultural norms. C. a willingness on the part of organizational members to accept change and take on the challenge of introducing and executing new strategies. D. a commitment to the types of core values and ethical standards that make a company a great place to work. E. a strong preference for performance-based compensation systems, especially the payment of bonuses and stock options.

Q: Which one of the following statements about a high-performance culture is false?A. High-performance cultures are characterized by a pride in doing things right and a no-excuses sense of accountability.B. High-performance cultures often have a low regard for high ethical standards, a strong preference for high-risk strategies, and a slow and methodical approach to responding to changes in the marketplace.C. The challenge in creating a high-performance culture is to inspire high loyalty and dedication on the part of employees, such that they are energized to do things right.D. In a high-performance culture, there's a razor sharp focus on what needs to be done.E. In high-performance cultures, there's a strong sense of involvement on the part of company personnel and emphasis on individual initiative and creativity.

Q: The hallmarks of a high-performance corporate culture include A. frequently revised and updated values and ethics statements, a deep commitment to employee training, and unusually attractive fringe benefit packages for company personnel. B. a "can-do" spirit, pride in doing things right, no-excuses accountability, and a pervasive results-oriented work climate in which people go the extra mile to meet or beat stretch objectives. C. a balanced scorecard approach to measuring performance, strong emphasis on teamwork, strict enforcement of company policies and procedures, and incentive compensation for all employees. D. a deep commitment to pioneering new best practices, a preference for being a fast follower as opposed to a first mover or late mover (because the risks are more acceptable), and across-the-board bonuses for all personnel when the company meets or beats stretch objectives. E. a deep commitment to top-notch quality and superior customer service, dedicated use of TQM and/or Six Sigma quality control programs, and the payment of big performance bonuses and stock options.

Q: Which one of the following is not a fundamental part of a company's culture? A. work practices and behaviors that define "how we do things around here" B. "Chemistry" that permeates its work environment C. the company's core values and business principles D. the company's strategic vision, strategic intent, and strategy E. the company's style of operating and ingrained behaviors and attitudes

Q: The character of a company's corporate culture is a product ofA. the company's core values and business principles.B. its style of operating and ingrained behaviors and attitudes.C. the "chemistry" that permeates its work environment.D. the work practices and behaviors that define "how we do things around here."E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: A company's corporate culture is best defined and identified by A. the strategy and business model that a company has adopted. B. the character of a company's internal work climateas shaped by the company's core values, beliefs, and business principles. C. its statement of core values and its code of ethics. D. its internal politics. E. the traditions that company executives are committed to maintaining.

Q: Some of the most important nonmonetary approaches to enhancing motivation and helping drive successful strategy execution includeA. adopting promotion-from-within policies and acting on suggestions from employees.B. providing attractive perks and fringe benefits.C. creating a work atmosphere in which there is genuine sincerity, caring, and mutual respect among employees and management.D. using frequent words of praise to recognize employees for commendable performance.E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: Which of the following is not characteristic of a compensation and reward system designed to help drive successful strategy execution? A. tying incentives to performance outcomes directly linked to good strategy execution and financial performance B. keeping the time between achieving the target performance outcome and the payment of the reward as short as possible C. making sure the performance targets that each individual or team is expected to achieve involve outcomes that the individual or team can personally affect D. generous rewards for people who turn in outstanding performances E. a reward system that involves 50 percent nonmonetary rewards and a work environment that avoids placing pressure on managers and employees to perform at high levels

Q: Which of the following is not a sound guideline for designing a reward and incentive system that helps promote good strategy execution? A. The reward system must be administered with scrupulous objectivity and fairness. B. The payoff for meeting or beating performance targets must be a major, not minor, piece of the total compensation package. C. Any incentive plan should extend to all managers and all employees, not just top management. D. Ways must be found to reward deserving nonperformers who, for some reason, do not fare well under the incentive system. E. Make sure that the performance targets each individual or team is expected to achieve involve outcomes that the individual or team can personally affect.

Q: The guidelines for designing an incentive compensation system that will help drive successful strategy execution includeA. making the payoff for meeting or beating performance targets a major, not minor, piece of the total compensation package.B. having a bonus and incentive plan that applies to managers only (employees should generally not be included in incentive pay plans but should have attractive wages and salaries).C. having an outside wage and salary expert administer the system, so that there is no doubt as to its fairness and impartiality.D. basing the incentives on group performance rather than individual performance.E. making minimal use of nonmonetary incentives and rewarding people for diligently performing their assigned duties.

Q: Management's most powerful tool for winning employee commitment to good strategy execution and operating excellence is A. the establishment of strategy-supportive policies and procedures. B. empowering employees and encouraging them to adopt best practices. C. setting stretch objectives. D. a properly designed system of rewards and incentives. E. aggressive use of TQM and Six Sigma quality control programs.

Q: An important consideration in designing a strategy-supportive motivation and reward system is to A. link the payment of all monetary rewards to the company's profitability. B. employ incentives that will help motivate employees to work hard at performing their assigned duties and activities. C. choose those types of rewards and incentives that focus employees' attention on "what to do." D. make across-the-board wage and salary increases the cornerstone of monetary rewards. E. make both monetary and nonmonetary rewards integral parts of the reward system.

Q: A well-designed reward system A. is focused on "what to achieve" to be rewarded as opposed to "what to do" and is management's most powerful tool for gaining employee commitment to superior strategy execution. B. should be free of elements that induce stress, anxiety, tension, pressure to perform, and job insecurity. C. puts the primary emphasis on denying rewards to those who fail to perform tasks in the prescribed fashion. D. emphasizes weeding out employees who are consistently low performers. E. strives for a 50-50 balance between positive and negative rewards and a 50-50 balance between monetary and nonmonetary rewards.

Q: Essential state-of-the-art operating and information systems that support company strategies and value-creating internal processes include all of the following exceptA. customer database systems.B. information systems to track supplier/partner/collaborative ally data.C. human resources systems that maintain employee data.D. systems to record and report financial performance data.E. data management systems for undertaking benchmarking, TQM, and Six Sigma quality control.

Q: Company strategies and value creating processes can't be effectively executed without internal information systems that include A. customer data, employee data, supplier/partner data, operations data, and financial performance data. B. TQM, reengineering, and Six Sigma programs. C. monetary and nonmonetary reward systems. D. activity-based cost accounting, benchmarking, and best practices. E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: The big difference between business process reengineering and continuous improvement programs such as TQM or Six Sigma is that A. reengineering is a tool for installing process organization, whereas TQM and Six Sigma concern defect-free production methods and delivering world-class customer service. B. reengineering helps create core competencies, whereas TQM and Six Sigma are tools for making a core competence stronger and more efficient. C. reengineering is a tool for achieving one-time quantum improvements, whereas TQM and Six Sigma programs aim at incremental progress improvement (striving for inch-by-inch gains again and again in a never-ending stream). D. business process reengineering requires benchmarking, whereas TQM and Six Sigma do not. E. reengineering represents an effort to totally revamp a firm's value chain, whereas TQM looks at incrementally improving the performance of two or three targeted value chain activities.

Q: Six Sigma's DMADV process of define, measure, analyze, design, and verify is a particularly good vehicle for A. improving performance when there are small variations in how well an activity is performed; if there are wide variations, then the Six Sigma DMVSI process has to be used. B. achieving 100 percent control over how a task is performed and eliminating 100 percent of the variability in how a task is performed. C. improving performance when there are wide variations in how well an activity is performed. D. developing new processes or products at Six Sigma quality levels. E. improving customer satisfaction, whereas Six Sigma DMADV is used to improve manufacturing processes.

Q: The Six Sigma process of define, measure, analyze, improve, and control (DMAIC) is A. an improvement system for existing processes falling below specification and needing incremental improvement; the DMAIC process is a particularly good vehicle for improving performance when there are wide variations in how well an activity is performed. B. an improvement system used to develop new processes or products at 100 percent defect-free levels. C. a system of statistical procedures for achieving 100 percent control over how a task is performed. D. an improvement system used to develop new processes or products at Six Sigma levels. E. a system of statistical procedures for eliminating 100 percent of the variability in how a task is performed.

Q: The statistical thinking underlying Six Sigma is based on the following three principles:A. all activities can be controlled, employee empowerment is the best control tool, and 100 percent control is possible.B. all work is a process, all processes have variability, and all processes create data that explain variability.C. all work activities can be done accurately most of the time, empowered employees are necessary for effective control, and good statistical data are an empowered employee's best control tool.D. all work is a statistically controllable process, 100 percent control is possible, and every well-controlled process is defect-free.E. most business processes are subject to control, Six Sigma can remove variability in how processes are performed, and most defects can be eliminated.

Q: Six Sigma quality control A. is a strategy-implementer's best, most reliable tool for simultaneously achieving top-notch product quality and low manufacturing costs. B. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at producing not more than 2.5 defects per million iterations for a manufacturing or assembly process. C. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at producing not more than 3.4 defects per million iterations for any business process. D. consists of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at fewer than 5.0 complaints per million customer transactions. E. is a powerful tool for companies whose customers are very picky about product quality and product performance and who can't afford for the product they use to break down and require repairs.

Q: A blended approach to Six Sigma implementation that is gaining in popularity isA. dealing exclusively with procedures to achieve defect-free manufacturing and assembly.B. finding other ways to contribute more to the achievement of operating excellence than either business process reengineering or Six Sigma quality control techniques.C. known as the ambidextrous organization, not only adept at employing continuous improvement in operating processes but also allowing R&D to operate under a set of rules that allows for the development of breakthrough innovations.D. for organizations to become more effective in improving manufacturing and assembly activities than they are in improving such value chain activities as R&D, human resources management, supply chain management, information technology, sales and marketing, and finance.E. not considered the best tool for reengineering strategy-critical business processes.

Q: Total quality management (TQM) emphasizes all but which one of the following? A. 100 percent accuracy in performing tasks B. continuous improvement in all phases of operations C. widespread adoption of industry standard operating practices D. benchmarking and total customer satisfaction E. empowerment of employees and team-based work design

Q: Total quality management (TQM) A. is a philosophy of managing a set of business practices that emphasizes continuous improvement in all phases of operations, 100 percent accuracy in performing tasks, involvement and empowerment of employees at all levels, team-based work design, benchmarking, and total customer satisfaction. B. is a valuable tool for helping company managers identify what the best practice is for performing a particular activity. C. works best when used in conjunction with Six Sigma quality control techniques. D. is an excellent tool for reengineering business processes and making quantum gains in the efficiency and effectiveness with which the processes are performed. E. is a philosophy of doing things that aims at mistake-free management of a company's entire business.

Q: Reengineering how a firm performs a business process A. is a tool for pulling the pieces of strategy-critical processes out of different departments and unifying their performance in a single department or cross-functional work group. B. is the most frequently used tool of total quality management (TQM). C. requires that a company have many strategic partnerships and alliances with outsiders. D. is typically cheaper and easier to do than using Six Sigma techniques to achieve the same cost savings. E. is usually a company's most important "best practice" for achieving operating excellence.

Q: Business process reengineering is a tool for A. expediting the redesign of existing products and shortening the design-to-market cycle. B. pulling the pieces of strategy-critical activities out of different departments and unifying their performance in a single department or cross-functional work group. C. instituting total quality management. D. making the most effective use of Six Sigma techniques. E. rapidly redesigning an organization's structure so as to rapidly create organizational competencies and capabilities.

Q: Which one of the following is not a tool that company managers can use to promote continuous improvement (operating excellence) in performing value chain activities? A. variability reduction analysis in work processes B. Six Sigma quality control techniques C. total quality management (TQM) D. business process reengineering E. adoption of standard industry techniques

Q: Ways to improve the performance of strategy-critical activities and promote superior strategy execution include A. business process reengineering. B. a corporate culture that has a core value of operating excellence. C. benchmarking. D. Six Sigma quality control and TQM techniques. E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: A useful guideline in designing strategy-facilitating policies and operating procedures isA. to prescribe enough policies to give organizational members clear direction in implementing strategy and to place desirable boundaries on their actions, then empower them to act within these boundaries however they think makes sense.B. that strictly enforced policies work better than loosely enforced policies.C. that more policies and procedures work better than fewer policies and procedures and that strict enforcement always beats lax enforcement.D. to let individuals act in an empowered and self-directed way, subject only to the constraint that their actions and behavior be ethical and in step with the corporate culture.E. to prescribe enough policies and procedures that little is left to chance in performing value chain activities; employees should have no leeway to do things in a manner that deviates from the company's best practices standard.

Q: Which one of the following is not a benefit of prescribing policies and operating procedures to aid management's task of implementing strategy? A. helping enforce consistency in how particular activities are performed B. providing top-down guidance to operating managers, supervisory personnel, and employees regarding how to alter past practice and how things need to be done now C. promoting the creation of a can-do work climate that facilitates good strategy execution D. helping build employee commitment to adopting best practices and using the tools of TQM and Six Sigma E. Two answersare correct: helping enforce consistency in how particular activities are performed, and providing top-down guidance to operating managers, supervisory personnel, and employees regarding how to alter past practice and how things need to be done now.

Q: A change in strategy nearly always entails budget reallocations because A. revamping the performance of value chain activities can be costly. B. the accompanying policy revisions and compensation incentives tend to require different levels of funding than before. C. organizational units important in the prior strategy but having a lesser role in the new strategy may need downsizing, while units and activities that now have a bigger and more critical strategic role may need more people, new equipment, additional facilities, and above-average increases in their operating budgets. D. empowering employees to carry out the new strategy elements typically requires substantial new funding and budget revisions. E. adopting best practices and pushing for continuous improvement tend to reduce costs and overall resource requirements.

Q: A company's ability to marshal adequate resources in support of new strategic initiatives and steer them to the appropriate organizational units is important to the strategy execution process because A. a change in strategy nearly always calls for budget reallocations and resource shifting. B. accurate budgets are the key to exercising tight financial controls over organizational units. C. tight budget control is management's most powerful tool for first-rate strategy execution. D. lean, carefully managed budgets protect the company's financial condition and eliminate wasteful use of cash. E. lean, strictly enforced budgets are management's best and most used means of getting organizational units to exercise fiscal discipline.

Q: The disadvantages of a centralized organizational structure includeA. making the organization sluggish in responding to changing conditions.B. a loss of top management control.C. putting too much decision-making authority in the hands of lower-level company personnel.D. making it hard to fix accountability when things do not go well and putting the organization at risk when bad decisions are made.E. impeding cross-unit coordination and capture of strategic fits.

Q: Which one of the following falsely characterizes a centralized organizational structure? A. Top executives should retain authority over most strategic and operating decisions and keep a tight rein on business-unit heads, department heads, and the managers of key operating units. B. Strict enforcement of detailed procedures backed by rigorous managerial oversight is the most reliable way to keep the daily execution of strategy on track. C. Tight control by the manager in charge makes it easy to fix accountability when things do not go well. D. Most company personnel have neither the time nor the inclination to direct and properly control they work they are performing, and they lack the knowledge and judgment to make wise decisions about how best to do their work. E. A company that draws on the combined intellectual capital of its people can outperform a company that relies on command and control.

Q: A highly centralized organizational structure A. allows top executives to retain authority for most strategic and operating decisions. B. is based on strict enforcement of detailed procedures backed by rigorous managerial oversight as the most reliable way to keep the daily execution of strategy on track. C. allows for tight control from the top that makes it easy to fix accountability when things do not go well. D. relies on the assumption that most company personnel have neither the time nor the inclination to direct and properly control the work they are performing and, further, that they lack the knowledge and judgment to make wise decisions about how best to do their work. E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: The organizing challenge of a decentralized structure that stresses employee empowerment is A. how to keep empowered employees from making lots of stupid decisions. B. establishing a collegial, collaborative culture so that decisions can be made by gaining a quick consensus on what to do and when to do it. C. how to avoid demotivating employees (because empowered employees are expected to take responsibility for their actions and decisions). D. how to exercise adequate control over the actions and decisions of empowered employees so that the business is not put at risk while trying to capture the benefits of empowerment. E. how to convince lower-level managers and employees that they are empowered.

Q: The chief advantage of a decentralized organizational structure is to A. put decision-making authority in the hands of those closest and most knowledgeable about the situation. B. make it easy to fix accountability when company performance targets are not met. C. increase productivity on the part of the workforce. D. enhance cross-unit coordination and capture of strategic fits. E. create a collegial, collaborative culture in which teamwork is a core value and decisions are made on the basis of consensus.

Q: For decentralized decision making to be successful, it should be predicated on a belief that A. top executives should establish a collegial, collaborative culture in which decisions are made by general consensus on what to do and when. B. strict enforcement of detailed procedures backed by rigorous managerial oversight is necessary because company personnel cannot be counted on to act wisely or keep costs to a bare-bones level. C. decision-making authority should be pushed down to the lowest organizational level capable of making timely, informed, competent decisions. D. most company personnel have neither the time nor the inclination to direct and properly control the work they are performing and that they lack the knowledge and judgment to make wise decisions about how best to do their work. E. lower-level managers and employees should go up the ladder of command for approval on most all strategic and operating issues of much importance.

Q: Companies engaged in a single line of business most commonly utilize an organizational structure that can be A. a functional (departmental) organizational structure. B. either a centralized, principal, or critical-path organizational structure. C. either independent, consolidated, or hybrid profit centers. D. hybrid functional organizations with a combination of decentralized and centralized decision making. E. None of these choices is correct.

Q: The most common building blocks for a company's organizational structure A. are almost always the departments performing such key administrative support functions as finance, accounting, information technology, human resource management, and R&D. B. involve a functional or departmental structure that includes process, geographic, product, or customer groups performing one or more major processing steps along the value chain. C. typically consist of an unempowered employee department, an empowered employee department, teams of front-line supervisors, teams of middle-level managers and administrators, and the group of top-level executives who comprise the company's "executive suite." D. usually consist of supply chain management, components manufacture, assembly, distribution, and administration. E. usually consist of two divisions: a division charged with performing primary value chain activities and a division charged with performing support activities.

Q: The rationale for making strategy-critical value chain activities the primary building blocks in a company's organizational chart is based on theA. much shorter time it takes to build core competencies and competitive capabilities.B. benefit such an organizational scheme has in reducing costs.C. benefit such an organizational scheme has in improving the productivity of geographically scattered organizational units.D. thesis that if activities crucial to strategic success are to have the resources, decision-making influence, and organizational impact they need, they have to be centerpieces in the organizational scheme.E. benefit such an organizational scheme has in making the empowerment of employees more effective.

Q: If management is to match a company's organization structure to its strategy in an effective way, then it is essential A. that company personnel be empowered to make both strategic decisions and operating decisions. B. for strategy-critical value-chain activities to be the main building blocks on the organization chart. C. that value chain activities be deliberately organized so as to produce maximum strategic fit. D. to define the jobs of company personnel in terms of the functions to be performed rather than in terms of the results to be achieved. E. for the company to be organized around cross-functional teams rather than around functional specialties and functional departments.

Q: Which one of the following is not a means of building and strengthening competitively valuable resources and capabilities? A. engaging in experience-building activities such as collaborative efforts in R&D engineering and design B. shifting from decentralized to centralized decision-making so as to give senior executives more authority and control in driving cultural change C. acquiring capabilities through mergers and acquisitions D. entering into collaborative partnerships with suppliers, competitors, or other companies that possess needed expertise E. None of these choices is correct.

Q: Which of the following is generally not among the practices that companies use to staff jobs with the best people they can find? A. careful screening and evaluation of job applicants B. rotating people through jobs that span functional and geographic boundaries C. weeding out the 20 percent lowest-performing employees each year D. striving to retain talented, high-performing employees via promotions, salary increases, and other perks E. coaching average performers to improve their skills and capabilities

Q: Which one of the following statements about recruiting and retaining capable employees is true?A. The quality of an organization's people is always an essential ingredient of successful strategy executionknowledgeable, engaged employees are a company's best source of creative ideas for the nuts-and-bolts operating improvements that lead to operating excellence.B. Recruiting and retaining capable employees is an essential element of developing a distinctive competence.C. Recruiting and retaining capable employees is closely tied to developing strong information capital capabilities.D. It is very difficult for a company to competently execute its strategy and achieve operating excellence without a cadre of young managerial talent committed to staying with the company for at least a decade.E. In many industries, adding to a company's talent base and building intellectual capital are more important than having a good situational fit between the company's strategy and its external environment.

Q: Recruiting and retaining capable employeesA. is usually much more important to good strategy execution than is assembling a capable top management team.B. is important because the quality of an organization's people is always an essential ingredient of successful strategy executionknowledgeable, engaged employees are a company's best source of creative ideas for the nuts-and-bolts operating improvements that lead to operating excellence.C. is more important during periods of rapid growth than during periods of crisis and attempted turnarounds.D. is an important organization-building element, particularly when it comes to transforming a competence into a core competence or distinctive competence.E. is easily the most critical aspect in building competitively valuable core competencies and capabilities.

Q: The overriding aim in building a management team should be to A. select people who are committed to decentralizing decision making and empowering employees. B. assemble a critical mass of talented managers who can function as agents of change and further the cause of first-rate strategy execution. C. choose managers experienced in controlling costs and flattening the organization structure. D. select people who have similar management styles, leadership approaches, business philosophies, and personalities. E. choose managers who believe in having a strong corporate culture and deeply ingrained core values.

Q: Putting together a capable top management team A. should take top priority in building competitively valuable core competencies. B. is particularly important when the firm is pursuing unrelated diversification or making a number of new acquisitions in related businesses. C. is important in building an organization capable of proficient strategy execution but is nearly always less crucial than doing a superior job of training and retraining employees. D. entails filling key managerial slots with people who are good at figuring out what needs to be done and skilled in "making it happen" and delivering good results. E. is particularly essential for executing a strategy to keep a company's costs lower than rivals' and become the industry's low-cost leader.

Q: Building an organization capable of good strategy execution entailsA. staffing the organization, building core competencies and competitive capabilities, and structuring the organization and work effort.B. decentralizing authority for performing strategy-critical value chain activities, establishing at least two distinctive competencies, and hiring talented employees.C. investing heavily in employee training, using an empowered organization design and structure to maximize labor productivity, and employing effective incentive compensation systems.D. centralizing authority in the hands of a chief strategy implementer so as to create the leadership authority for driving implementation forward at a rapid pace.E. empowering employees, maximizing internal operating efficiency, and optimizing core competencies.

Q: The three components of building a capable organization are A. making periodic changes in the firm's internal organization to keep people from getting into a comfortable rut, instituting a decentralized approach to decision making, and developing the appropriate competencies and capabilities. B. hiring a capable top management team, empowering employees, and establishing a strategy-supportive corporate culture. C. putting a centralized decision-making structure in place, determining who should have responsibility for each value chain activity, and aligning the corporate culture with key policies, procedures, and operating practices. D. staffing the organization, building core competencies and competitive capabilities, and structuring the organization and work effort. E. optimizing the number of core competencies and competitive capabilities, making sure that all managers and employees are empowered, and maximizing internal operating efficiency.

Q: The principal managerial actions and initiatives undertaken in the strategy execution process include which of the following? A. building an organization with the capabilities, people, and structure needed for execution B. instituting policies and procedures that facilitate rather than impede effective strategy execution C. allocating ample resources to required activities D. tying rewards directly to the achievement of performance objectives E. all of these choices are correct.

Q: The principal managerial actions and initiatives undertaken in the strategy execution process include which of the following? A. deciding how much to spend on employee training B. instituting policies and procedures that facilitate rather than impede effective strategy execution C. doing an effective job of empowering employees D. revamping the value chain in a manner calculated to maximize operating efficiency E. selecting a capable top management team

Q: Which of the following is not among the types of actions and initiatives undertaken by management in the strategy execution process? A. building an organization capable of executing the strategy B. instituting policies and procedures that facilitate rather than impede strategy execution C. deciding which core competencies and value chain activities to leave as is and which ones to overhaul and improve D. pushing for continuous improvement in how value chain activities are performed E. tying rewards directly to the achievement of strategic and financial targets and to good strategy execution

Q: Good strategy execution A. requires a team effort with managers who have strategy-executing responsibility and making all employees active participants in the execution process. B. requires getting things done effectively and efficiently. C. allows companywide performance measures to be met. D. requires middle and lower-level managers to ensure strategy-critical activities are successfully implemented. E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: Executing strategy A. is primarily an operations-driven activity revolving around the management of people and business processes. B. tests a manager's ability to direct organizational change and achieve continuous improvement in operations and business processes. C. tests a manager's ability to create and nurture a strategy-supportive culture. D. tests a manager's ability to consistently meet or beat performance targets. E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: Once company managers have decided on a strategy, the emphasis turns to A. converting the strategy into actions and good results. B. empowering employees to revise and reorganize value chain activities to match the strategy. C. establishing policies and procedures that instruct company personnel in the ways and means of executing the strategy. D. developing a detailed implementation plan that sets forth exactly what every department and every manager needs to do to proficiently execute the company's strategy. E. building the core competencies and competitive capabilities needed to execute the strategy.

Q: There is a high correlation between socially responsible behavior that addresses social issues and a firm's competitive advantage and financial performance. Comment.

Q: Why should a company endeavor to be socially responsible in its actions and conduct?

Q: Explain what is meant by "sustainable business practices," and using that explanation, provide three examples of companies that pursue sustainability strategies.

Q: Explain how companies committed to environmental sustainability are able to address society's concerns about protecting the environment while lowering costs and/or creating value for customers.

Q: Explain the key tenets of the concept of environmental sustainability. How does striving for environmental sustainability impact strategic initiatives involving a company's shareholders, its employees, and the environment?

Q: What is the essence of the theory of corporate social responsibility (CSR)? How does the CSR theory differ from the concept of corporate citizenship?

Q: Explain what is meant by the "triple bottom line."

Q: Explain the difference between ethical universalism and integrative social contracts theory. Which school of thought do you think is most valid?Explain the reasons for your answer.

Q: Discuss briefly what is meant by the terms ethical universalism and ethical relativism. Where does integrative social contracts theory fit into the debate about ethical standards? Which of the three schools of thought stands on the strongest ground?

Q: What is meant by integrative social contracts theory? How does such an approach ensure a strong commitment to business ethics in companies with international operations?

Q: Explain the difference between the school of ethical universalism and the school of ethical relativism.

Q: What are the strengths and weaknesses of the thesis that ethical standards are (or should be) universal?

Q: What is the business case for why a company should pursue ethical strategies?

Q: Identify and briefly describe the three main drivers of unethical strategies and unethical managerial and business behavior.

Q: What are the chief causes of unethical strategies and unethical business behavior?

Q: What is the difference between ethics and business ethics?

Q: Which one of the following is false as concerns the merits of why acting in a socially responsible manner is "good business"?A. Companies with good reputations for contributing time and money to bettering society are better able to attract and retain employees compared to companies with tarnished reputations.B. There is a high correlation between socially responsible behavior that addresses social issues and a firm's competitive advantage and financial performance.C. To the extent that a company's socially responsible behavior wins applause from consumers and fortifies its reputation, a company may win additional patronage.D. Operating in a socially responsible manner protects the company from consumer, environmental, and human rights activist groups that are quick to criticize businesses whose behavior they consider to be out of line.E. Well-conceived social responsibility strategies help avoid or preempt legal and regulatory actions that could prove costly to the company.

Q: Which one of the following is not a part of the business case for why companies should act in a socially responsible manner?A. Every business has a moral duty to be a good corporate citizen.B. Acting in a socially responsible manner reduces the risk of reputation-damaging incidents.C. Acting in a socially responsible manner is in the overall best interest of shareholders.D. To the extent that a company's socially responsible behavior wins applause from consumers and fortifies its reputation, a company may win additional patronage.E. Acting in a socially responsible manner can generate internal benefits (as concerns employee recruiting, workforce retention, training, and improved worker productivity).

Q: The business case for why companies should act in a socially responsible manner includes such reasons asA. it generates internal benefits (as concerns employee recruiting, workforce retention, training, and improved worker productivity).B. it reduces the risk of reputation-damaging incidents.C. it is in the best interest of shareholders.D. the potential for increased buyer patronage.E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: Striving to be socially responsible entails touching such bases as A. what actions to take to enhance workforce diversity and make the company a great place to work. B. whether to make charitable contributions and donate money and the time of company personnel to community service endeavors. C. what, if any, actions to take to protect or enhance the environment (beyond what is legally required). D. exerting conscious efforts to ensure that all elements of the company's strategy are ethical and actions to make the company a great place to work. E. All of these choices are correct.

Q: A company's social responsibility strategy is typically comprised of all but which one of the following elements? A. Actions to enhance workforce diversity and make the company a great place to work B. Making charitable contributions and donating the time of company personnel to community service endeavors C. Actions to protect or enhance the environment D. Conscious efforts to ensure that all elements of the company's strategy are ethical and actions to protect or enhance the environment (beyond what is legally required) E. Actions to keep prices low enough that the company's profits will not be viewed by the general public as obscenely high or exorbitant

Q: Which of the following is not something a company should usually consider in crafting a strategy of social responsibility? A. actions to benefit shareholders (such as raising the dividend to boost the stock price) B. making charitable contributions and donating money and the time of company personnel to community service endeavors C. actions to ensure the company has an ethical strategy and operates honorably and ethically D. actions to protect or enhance the environment E. actions to create a workforce diversity program

Q: Companies committed to environmental sustainability A. consider the commitment to shareholders as a "first-order" priority, commitment to employees as a "second-order" priority, and commitment to the environmental protection as a "third-order" commitment. B. consider the commitment to the environment as a "first-order" priority, commitment to employees as a "second-order" priority, and commitment to shareholders as a "third-order" commitment. C. consider the commitment to the environment as a "first-order" priority, commitment to shareholders as a "second-order" priority, and commitment to employees as a "third-order" commitment. D. undertake initiatives directed at improving the company's triple bottom line (TBL), which places importance on economic, environmental, and social metrics. E. believe that it is important to convince consumers to change buying habits that first consider meeting the consumer's needs to first considering whether the product is environmentally friendly.