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Chapter 4 Environmental Scanning and Industry Analysis
Chapter 4 Environmental Scanning and Industry Analysis
4) The task environment includes the economic, technological, political-legal, and sociocultural
forces.
Answer: FALSE
7) Today's organizations must scan the natural environment for factors that might previously
have been taken for granted.
Answer: TRUE
11) One of the demographic variables in the societal environment is the changing household
composition.
Answer: TRUE
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12) One of the breakthrough developments in technology is the portable information device.
Answer: TRUE
13) A multinational corporation is a company with significant assets and activities in multiple
countries.
Answer: TRUE
14) The origin of competitive advantage lies in the ability to identify and respond to
environmental change well in advance of competition.
Answer: TRUE
15) The willingness to reject unfamiliar as well as negative information is called issues priority.
Answer: FALSE
16) A corporation's internal strategic factors are those key environmental trends that are judged to
have both a medium to high probability of occurrence and a medium to high probability of impact
on the corporation.
Answer: FALSE
18) According to Michael Porter, the weaker each of the competitive forces, the more limited
companies are in their ability to raise prices and earn greater profits.
Answer: FALSE
19) According to Michael Porter, a high force can be regarded as threat because it is likely to
reduce profits.
Answer: TRUE
20) An entry barrier is an obstruction that makes it difficult for a company to enter an industry.
Answer: TRUE
22) The need to invest huge financial resources in manufacturing facilities in order to produce
large commercial airplanes creates a significant barrier to entry to any competitor for Boeing and
Airbus.
Answer: TRUE
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23) Governments can do little to erect barriers to entry in an industry.
Answer: FALSE
24) NutraSweet can serve as a product substitute for sugar satisfying the same need.
Answer: TRUE
25) A buyer may be powerful when changing suppliers’ costs a great deal.
Answer: FALSE
26) A consolidated industry is dominated by a few large firms, each of which struggles to
differentiate its products from the competition.
Answer: TRUE
28) The only factor used to determine whether an industry will be primarily multidomestic or
primarily global is the pressure for local responsiveness.
Answer: FALSE
29) McDonald's and Olive Garden are in the same strategic group.
Answer: FALSE
30) Reactors are companies with a limited product line that focus on improving the efficiency of
their existing operations.
Answer: FALSE
33) An industry matrix summarizes the key success factors within a particular industry.
Answer: TRUE
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35) Business intelligence is one of the fastest growing fields within strategic management.
Answer: TRUE
36) A.C. Nielsen is an example of an outside organization providing a firm with competitive
intelligence.
Answer: TRUE
37) To combat the increasing theft of company secrets, the U.S. government passed the
Economic Espionage Act.
Answer: TRUE
38) Faulty underlying assumptions are the most frequent cause of forecasting errors.
Answer: TRUE
39) Extrapolation rests on the assumption that the world is relatively dynamic and changes
quickly in the short run.
Answer: FALSE
40) Statistical modeling is a quantitative forecasting technique that attempts to discover causal or
at least explanatory factors that link two or more time series together.
Answer: TRUE
42) The combination of the degree of complexity and the degree of change existing in an
organization's external environment is/are called
A) strategic factors.
B) strategic issues.
C) environmental uncertainty.
D) strategic fit.
E) scenarios.
43) According to the text, one reason environmental uncertainty is a threat to strategic managers
is because
A) it is a costly and time consuming process.
B) the strategic manager cannot control the environment.
C) it forces the strategic manager to be reactive.
D) it hampers their ability to develop long-range plans.
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E) there are too many uncontrollable variables.
46) Which of the following is NOT an element of the organization's task environment?
A) local communities
B) trade associations
C) governments
D) technological developments
E) special interest groups
47) Which environment was generally perceived by business people to be a given until the 20th
century?
A) the task environment
B) the natural environment
C) the industry
D) the societal environment
E) the external environment
48) Which of the following is NOT a major force in the societal environment 社会环境 ?
A) political-legal forces
B) labor forces
C) economic forces
D) technological forces
E) sociocultural forces
49) All of the following are technological breakthroughs already having a significant impact on
many industries EXCEPT
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A) growing health consciousness.
B) alternative energy sources.
C) genetically altered organisms.
D) smart, mobile robots.
E) virtual personal assistants.
51) Which of the following is NOT one of the eight sociocultural trends mentioned in the text?
A) Increasing environmental awareness.
B) Growth of the seniors market.
C) Decline of the mass market.
D) Increasing food consumption.
E) Impact of Generation Y boomlet.
53) A company with significant assets and activities in multiple countries is known as a(n)
.
A) multinational corporation
B) repatriated corporation
C) transferable corporation
D) duplicate corporation
E) emancipated corporation
54) When strategic managers have a willingness to reject unfamiliar as well as negative
information it is referred to as
A) strategic paralysis. 战略瘫痪
B) corporate inertia. 公司惯性
C) management indifference. 管理冷漠
D) strategic myopia 战略性近视 .
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E) Corporate apathy
55) The issues priority matrix 优先矩阵 used in environmental scanning is composed of two
axis or dimensions which are labeled
A) importance to the industry and likelihood of occurrence.
B) industry growth rate and probable competitive position.
C) probability of occurrence 发生的可能性 and probable impact on the corporation. 可能对
公司造成影响
D) probable industry attractiveness and business strength/competitive position.
E) issue importance and relative power of stakeholder groups.
56) What are the key environmental trends that are judged to have a medium to high probability
of occurrence and a medium to high probability of impact on the corporation?
A) external strategic factors
B) scenarios
C) industry forces
D) strategic issues
E) historical concerns
59) In addition to Porter's Five Forces, another force added in the text is
A) bargaining power of unions.
B) other stakeholders.
C) threat of prospects.
D) threat of shareholders.
E) bargaining strength of employees.
60) The collective strength of the interaction of potential entrants, buyers, substitutes, suppliers,
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firm rivalry, and other stakeholders determine
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A) the level of government action in an ind
B) ustry.
C) the probable industry attractiveness and business strength position.
D) the ultimate profit potential in the industry measured in terms of long-run return on
invested capital.
E) the aggregate level of demand for a product line.
F) the amount of pressure from the societal environment.
61) According to Porter's model, a strong or high force is likely to reduce profits and can be
regarded as a(n)
A) benefit.
B) opportunity.
C) advantage.
D) threat.
E) risk.
62) According to Porter's model, a low force can enable the company to earn greater profits and
can be regarded as a(n)
A) benefit.
B) opportunity.
C) advantage.
D) threat.
E) risk.
63) Which of the following is NOT descriptive of the "threat of new entrants?"
A) Depends on the presence of entry barriers.
B) Have a desire to gain market share.
C) Depends on the reaction of existing competitors.
D) Does not impact industry attractiveness.
E) Brings new capacity and substantial resources.
64) Which barrier to entry uses brand identification to force new entrants to spend heavily to
overcome existing customer loyalty?
A) rivalry among existing firms
B) switching costs
C) capital requirements
D) product differentiation
E) access to distribution channels
65) Which barrier to entry uses cost advantages associated with large size?
A) rivalry among existing firms
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B) switching costs
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C) cost disadvantages independent of size
D) capital requirements
E) economies of scale
67) Intel was able to gain a significant cost advantage over its competitors in the production and
sale of microprocessors because of
A) capital requirements.
B) product differentiation.
C) switching costs.
D) economies of scale.
E) access to distribution.
68) Which of the following is NOT descriptive of intense rivalry 激烈的竞争 among firms?
A) slow industry growth
B) high fixed costs
C) high exit barriers
D) few competitors or competitors that are roughly equal in size and power
E) product offerings that are highly differentiated
69) Which of the following is NOT descriptive of "threat of substitute products 替代产品 or
services?"
A) Substitute products appear to be different, but satisfy the same need as another product.
B) If the cost of switching is low, substitutes may have a strong effect on an industry.
C) Identifying substitutes is relatively easy since they look similar.
D) Possible substitute products or services may not appear to be easily substitutable.
E) Substitutes limit the potential returns of an industry.
70) A sugar company that is worried that consumers may buy artificial sweetener instead of
sugar is concerned about the
A) threat of new entrants.
B) rivalry among existing firms.
C) threat of substitute products.
D) bargaining power of suppliers.
E) bargaining power of buyers.
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71) Which of the following is NOT descriptive of a high level of bargaining powers 讨价还价的
权力 of buyers?
A) Changing suppliers costs very little.
B) Alternative suppliers are plentiful because of standardization of the product.
C) The purchased product represents a high percentage of buyer's costs.
D) The buyer buys a large proportion of the seller's product or service.
E) A buyer earns high profits and is very insensitive to costs and service differences.
72) When General Motors considers making its own automotive parts, Delphi Automotive
Supply Company would be concerned with the
A) bargaining power of suppliers.
B) bargaining power of buyers.
C) rivalry among existing competitors.
D) threat of substitutes.
E) threat of new entrants.
73) Which of the following is NOT descriptive of a high level of bargaining power of suppliers?
A) Substitutes are readily available.
B) The product or service is unique.
C) The supplier industry is dominated by a few companies, but sells too many.
D) The purchasing industry buys only a small portion of the supplier group's goods and services.
E) Suppliers are able to integrate forward and compete directly with their present customers.
74) Other software companies could not compete with Microsoft based on the hesitation 犹豫
of consumers to try a new software. Which of Porter's forces does this reflect?
A) threat of new entrants
B) bargaining power of buyers
C) threat of substitutes
D) bargaining power of suppliers 供应商的议价能力
E) rivalry among existing firms
75) A company or an industry whose product works well with a firm's product and without
which the product would lose much of its value is considered to be a(n)
A) complementor. 补充
B) oligopoly.
C) strategic group.
D) industry leader.
E) staggered company.
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C) Hewlett Packard and Compaq.
D) Gateway and Dell.
E) America Online and CompuServe.
77) According to the text, the strength of each of the six driving forces of industry competition
varies according to the
A) effectiveness of the strategic planning.
B) stage of industry evolution.
C) industry growth rate and competitive position.
D) changes in the political environment.
E) amount of government regulation.
78) In a fragmented 支离破碎 industry (An industry in which no single enterprise has large
enough share of the market to be able to influence the industry's direction.)
A) no firm has large market share.
B) prices drop as new competitors enter the market.
C) economies of scale are used to reduce costs.
D) companies integrate to further reduce costs.
E) all of the above.
79) The U.S. major home appliance industry, including the companies of Maytag, Whirlpool,
General Electric, and Electrolux, is an example of an industry
A) that has evolved from an oligopoly to a monopoly.
B) in which each company maintained a distinct product line.
C) that was once fragmented, but now is consolidated.
D) that has experienced consistent, increasing sales.
E) experiencing a successful strategy of product specialization because of product differentiation.
80) An industry dominated by a few large firms, all of which struggle with product
differentiation, is known as
A) multidomestic.
B) Consolidated 综合.
C) global.
D) indigenous.
E) worldwide.
81) In which type of international industry do corporations tailor their products to the specific
needs of consumers in a particular country?
A) consortium industry
B) global industry
C) indigenous industry
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D) multidomestic industry 多国产业
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E) worldwide industry
82) Which type of international industry manufactures and sells the same products with only
minor adjustments made for individual countries around the world?
A) consortium industry
B) global industry
C) indigenous industry
D) multidomestic industry
E) worldwide industry
84) The two factors that tend to determine whether an industry will be primarily multidomestic or
primarily global are (1) the pressure for coordination within the MNCs operating in that industry
and (2):
A) the pressure for local responsiveness on the part of individual country markets.
B) the power of the local country governments to restrict MNC actions.
C) the need for brand management in the various MNCs operating within that industry.
D) the importance of differentiating with integrating mechanisms in regional cooperatives.
E) the likelihood of terrorist activity impacting that industry.
85) When the pressure for coordination is strong and the pressure for local responsiveness is
weak for multinational corporations within a particular industry, the industry will tend to become
A) global.
B) consolidated.
C) multidomestic.
D) risky.
E) indigenous.
86) When the pressure for local responsiveness is strong and the pressure for coordination is
weak for multinational corporations in an industry, the industry will tend to become
A) global.
B) consolidated.
C) multidomestic.
D) risky.
E) indigenous.
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87) What is a set of business units or firms that "pursue 追求 similar strategies with similar
resources?"
A) strategic group
B) collective collaboration
C) cooperative
D) integral association
E) strategic assembly
88) Which of the following is NOT one of the general strategic types?
A) Initiators 发起人
B) Reactors 反应堆
C) analyzers
D) prospectors 淘金者/ 展望
E) defenders 捍卫者
89) Which strategic orientation is demonstrated by companies that have a limited product line
and focuses on improving the efficiency of their existing operations?
A) initiators
B) reactors
C) analyzers
D) prospectors
E) defenders
90) A company that operates in at least two different product-market areas in which one product
is stable and the other one is variable, reflects which strategic orientation?
A) initiators
B) reactors
C) analyzers
D) prospectors
E) defenders
91) Companies with fairly broad product lines that focus on product innovations and market
opportunities, reflect which strategic orientation?
A) initiators
B) reactors
C) analyzers
D) prospectors
E) defenders
94) A table which summarizes the key success factors within a particular industry is called a(n)
A) EFAS Table.
B) IFAS Table.
C) SFAS Table.
D) TOWS Matrix.
E) industry matrix.
95) Those variables that can affect significantly the overall competitive positions of companies
within any particular industry are known as
A) external strategic factors.
B) internal strategic factors.
C) matrix factors.
D) key success factors.
E) industry scenario.
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C) The Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals states that illegal activities are foolish
because the vast majority of worthwhile competitive intelligence is available publicly via annual
reports, web sites, and libraries.
D) A number of firms hire consultants with questionable reputations who do what is necessary to
get information when the selected methods do not meet SPIC ethical standards or are illegal.
E) all of the above
99) A study of nearly 500 of the world's largest corporations indicated which of the following to
be the most widely practiced form of forecasting?
A) statistical modeling
B) scenario-writing
C) delphi technique
D) brainstorming
E) trend extrapolation趋势外推
102) A non-quantitative approach to forecasting that requires simply the presence of people with
some knowledge of the situation to be predicted is called
A) simulations.
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B) the delphi technique.
C) signal monitoring.
D) brainstorming. 集思广益
E) scenarios.
104) A forecasting technique using quantitative measures that attempt to discover causal or at
least explanatory factors that link two or more time series together is called
A) the delphi technique.
B) statistical modeling.
C) trend extrapolation.
D) trend-impact analysis.
E) morphological analysis.
105) The most widely used forecasting technique used after trend extrapolation is
A) statistical modeling.
B) simulations.
C) scenario-writing.
D) expert opinion.
E) brainstorming.
106) Which one of the following is NOT part of the process of industry scenarios 行业情景?
A) Examine possible shifts in societal variables.
B) Identify uncertainties in each of the six forces in the task environment.
C) Generate at least 15 scenarios.
D) Make a range of plausible assumptions 似是而非的假设 about future trends.
E) Analyze the industry situation that would prevail 战胜 under each scenario.
107) The technique recommended by the text to organize an analysis of external strategic factors
is called
A) IFAS.
B) EFAS.
C) SFAS.
D) S.W.O.T.
E) the issues priority matrix.
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108) In the EFAS Table, the indicator of how well a particular company is responding to current
and expected factors in its external environment is characterized by the
A) IFAS.
B) industry matrix.
C) total weighted score.
D) S.W.O.T. weighted score.
E) SFAS weighted score.
110) List eight current sociocultural trends in the U.S. that are transforming North America and
the world.
Answer:
Eight current sociocultural trends in the U.S. that are transforming North American and
the world are as follows:
Increasing environmental awareness
Growing health consciousness
Expanding seniors market
Impact of Generation Y boomlet
Decline of the mass market
Changing pace and location of life
Changing household composition
Increasing diversity of workforce and markets
New entrants to an industry typically bring to it new capacity, a desire to gain market
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share, and substantial resources. The threat of entry depends on the presence of entry
barriers and the reaction that can be expected from existing competitors.
A competitive move by one firm can be expected to have noticeable effect on its competitors
and thus may cause retaliation or counter efforts. Intense rivalry is related to the presence
of the number of competitors, rate of industry growth, product or service characteristics, the
amount of fixed costs, capacity, the height of exit barriers, and the diversity of rivals.
(continued)
Substitute products are those products that appear to be different but can satisfy the same
need as another product.
Buyers affect an industry through their ability to force down prices, bargain for higher
quality or more services, and play competitors against each other.
Suppliers can affect an industry through their ability to raise prices or reduce the quality of
purchased goods and services.
The sixth force includes a variety of stakeholder groups from the task environment. The
importance of these stakeholder groups varies by industry.
113) What are the two factors that tend to determine whether an industry will be primarily
multidomestic or primarily global?
Answer:
The factors that tend to determine whether an industry will be primarily multidomestic or
primarily global are pressure for coordination within the multinational operations operating
in that industry and pressure for local responsiveness on the part of individual country
markets. A multidomestic industry is one in which companies tailor their products
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to the specific needs of consumers in a particular country. A global industry is one in which
companies manufacture and sell the same products, with only minor adjustments made for
individual countries around the world.
114) Describe the four strategic types of the Miles and Snow typology.
Answer:
According to Miles and Snow, there are four general types of firms based on a common
strategic orientation and a combination of structure, culture, and processes consistent with
that strategy. Defenders are companies with a limited product line that focus on improving
the efficiency of their existing operations. Prospectors are companies with fairly broad
product lines that focus on product innovation and market opportunities. Analyzers are
corporations that operate in at least two different product-market areas, one stable and one
variable. Reactors are corporations that lack a consistent strategy-structure-culture
relationship.
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