Strategic Management 20.01.25

According to Porter (1996), what is the essence of competitive strategy?

• Continuously improving operational effectiveness to outperform competitors.

• Benchmarking industry leaders and replicating their strategies.

• Reducing costs through process optimization and lean management.

• Differentiating your company by delivering a unique mix of value.

Which of the following statements relating to Rumelt’s (2011) “diagnosis” step in the kernel of good strategy is correct? 

• The most important characteristic of the diagnosis step is that the several valid diagnoses all have to be proven to be correct.  

• An ill-structured diagnosis for a situation does more than explain a situation – it also defines an obvious list of good approaches or actions. 

• The diagnosis of the situation should replace the overwhelming complexity of reality with a simpler story, that calls attention to its crucial aspects. 

• The diagnosis step must strictly follow predefined frameworks to ensure consistency across similar situations.

What is the primary focus of Porter’s Five Forces framework?

• To evaluate a company’s internal strengths and weaknesses.

• To understand the external market forces shaping industry competition.

• To assess a company’s operational efficiency in comparison to rivals.

• To develop strategies for entering new international markets.

What does the “VRIO” framework, as introduced by Barney (1991), emphasize?

• Resources must be Valuable, Replicable, Identifiable, and Overseeable for continuous improvement.

• Resources must be Verified, Reactive, Isolable, and Operational to ensure market adaptability.

• Resources must be Vast, Reliable, Integrated, and Optimized to achieve profitability.

• Resources must be Valuable, Rare, Inimitable, and Organizationally supported to sustain competitive advantage.

Which of the following best fits the “arenas” element of the Strategy Diamond
(Hambrick & Fredrickson, 2001)?

• The geographical and market areas where the company competes.

• The unique value proposition offered to customers.

• The methods by which the company grows, such as acquisitions.

• The speed and sequence of strategic initiatives.

Why is bounded rationality considered a challenge in the context of strategic innovation?

• It encourages entrepreneurs to confirm their worldview

• It limits human perception and can lead to erroneous judgments

• Bounded rationality facilitates anomaly detection

• It aligns well with the concept of theoretical sensitivity

What is a challenge highlighted by the "innovator's dilemma" in the context of disruptive innovations?

• Disruptive innovations have lower profit margins than sustaining innovations

• Good management practices can always prevent the negative impact of disruptive innovations

• Established players may continue investing in sustaining innovations even if they are aware of disruptive threats

• Disruptive innovations are always technologically difficult and expensive

According to Christensen's model, which type of innovation is technologically straightforward, addresses not yet established markets, and is adopted by new entrants?

• Incremental innovation

• Sustaining innovation

• Breakthrough innovation

• Disruptive innovation

What is a key characteristic of sustaining innovations?

• They are usually adopted by new entrants in the market

• They often lead to a discontinuation of an established trajectory of performance improvement

• They are valued in remote and emerging markets with fewer customers

• They appeal mostly to established customers in an existing mainstream market

According to Kim & Mauborgne's concept of Blue Ocean Strategy, what is the idea behind serving customers with a different "job to be done"?

• Catering to existing customer preferences

• Offering more product- and service components

• Identifying underserved customer segments with unmet needs

• Emphasizing features considered unimportant by competitors