MBA Business Strategy 2

Question 1

What is 'vertical integration' as a corporate strategy?

Accepted Answer

Expanding a company's operations into different stages of its supply chain (upstream or downstream)

Answer

Expanding into unrelated industries

Answer

Merging with a direct competitor

Answer

Licensing technology to other companies

Question 2

What is the 'resource-based view' (RBV) of competitive advantage?

Accepted Answer

Sustainable competitive advantage stems from unique internal resources and capabilities that are valuable, rare, inimitable, and non-substitutable (VRIN)

Answer

Firms should focus on external market opportunities rather than internal resources

Answer

All firms in an industry have access to the same resources

Answer

Resources are irrelevant; only market positioning matters

Question 3

What is 'scenario planning' in strategic management?

Accepted Answer

Developing multiple plausible future scenarios to test strategies and improve organizational resilience

Answer

Planning employee work schedules for different seasons

Answer

Creating detailed project timelines for each department

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Scheduling product launches based on market research

Question 4

What is 'blue ocean strategy'?

Accepted Answer

Creating uncontested new market spaces by making competition irrelevant through innovation

Answer

A cost-cutting strategy for mature markets

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A strategy for entering highly competitive markets aggressively

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A pricing strategy for premium luxury products

Question 5

What does 'strategic fit' refer to in corporate strategy?

Accepted Answer

The alignment between a company's strategy, its internal capabilities, and the external environment

Answer

Ensuring all employees understand the company mission statement

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Matching job candidates to company culture

Answer

The consistency of a brand's visual identity across markets

Question 6

What is a 'joint venture' as a strategic alliance?

Accepted Answer

A new entity co-owned by two or more firms to pursue a specific strategic objective

Answer

A licensing agreement to use another company's intellectual property

Answer

A hostile takeover of a competitor

Answer

A merger where two companies fully combine operations