Which of the following does not exemplify a policy or procedure that facilitates strategy execution?

GBA 490 Chapter 11

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. changes in strategy often require resource realloca

Managers charged with implementing and executing strategy need to be deeply involved in the budgeting and resource allocation process because of all the following reasons EXCEPT:
A. too little funding deprives organizational units of the necessary resourc

From a strategy-implementing/strategy-executing perspective, operating budget allocations should:
A. primarily be based on the number of new strategic initiatives being implemented in each operating department.
B. be based on the number of people employed

New strategies often entail 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. bu

Visible actions to reallocate operating funds and move people into different and new organizational units:
A. can be dysfunctional in trying to implement a new strategy because of the anxiety and insecurity that big changes in budgets cause among company

A company's operating budget must:
A. be strategy-driven in order to amply fund the performance of key value chain activities.
B. be risk-averse, so as not to run the risk of inadvertently creating barriers to building the needed competencies and capabili

Merely fine-tuning the execution of a company's existing strategy normally requires :
A. big shifts of resources from one area to another.
B. a larger allocation of resources to the effort.
C. trimming costs and shifting resources to activities that have

Apple decides to reallocate resources by curtailing online ad budgets and investing heavily in scratch-resistant Sapphire, the material that differentiates iPhone from competitive brands. What is MOST LIKELY the reason for reallocation of resources?
A. Ma

Kimberly-Clark, the manufacturer of Kleenex tissues and Huggies diapers, streamlines its healthcare business by listing Halyard Health as a separately traded company. The company's move is likely to:
A. promote healthcare wings of rival companies.
B. incr

Cavco Construction divests funds from its commercial property ventures to invest in gated community properties close to New York, signaling a change of strategy. Which of the following statements about Cavco is most likely true?
A. Cavco is impeding the e

Well-conceived policies and operating procedures facilitate strategy execution in all of the following ways EXCEPT they:
A. provide top-down guidance regarding how things are to be done.
B. help ensure consistency in how execution-critical activities are

Prescribing policies and operating procedures aids the task of implementing strategy by:
A. helping ensure that worker eligibility for incentive bonuses is measured consistently and awarded fairly.
B. fostering the use of best practices, TQM, Six Sigma, a

Providing top-down guidance can aid the task of implementing strategy:
A. provided they promote greater use of and commitment to best practices and total quality management.
B. because really effective internal policies and procedures are not easily dupli

A useful guideline in designing strategy-facilitating policies and operating procedures is:
A. to prescribe enough policies to give organizational members clear direction in implementing strategy and to place reasonable boundaries on their actions. This t

Which of the following is NOT a benefit of prescribing policies and operating procedures to aid management's task of implementing strategy?
A. Placing limits on independent action and helping overcome resistance to change
B. Providing top-down guidance to

In prescribing policies and procedures that facilitate independent action on the part of empowered employees for good strategy execution companies need to do ALL of the following EXCEPT:
A. give organization members clear direction and place reasonable bo

Which of the following exemplifies good strategy execution?
A. The policy document of Dominos ensures consistency in service behavior patterns across outlets.
B. The policy document of Pizza Today allows for differences in product range and quality across

Which of the following does NOT facilitate strategy execution?
A. Hyundai service centers follow same routines when receiving vehicles for servicing.
B. Ford encourages staff to skip practices out of sync with the company's mission.
C. General Motors show

Company managers can significantly advance the cause of superior strategy execution by doing all of the following EXCEPT:
A. employing best practices methods and using process management tools to drive continuous improvement in how internal operations are

A "best practice" refers to:
A. a policy or procedure that is unusually effective.
B. a method of performing an activity or business process that consistently delivers superior results compared to other approaches and that at least one company has demonst

A "best practice" refers to:
A. a method of performing an activity or business process that at least one company has demonstrated works particularly well in terms of delivering some highly positive operating outcome.
B. the best-known procedure for perfor

The idea behind benchmarking and best practices is to:
A. identify which companies are the best performers of a strategically relevant activity and then copy their methods exactly.
B. search the world for a company that performs a strategically relevant t

The backbone of the process of identifying, studying, and implementing best practices is:
A. business process reengineering
B. a corporate culture that has a core value of operating excellence
C. benchmarking
D. Six Sigma quality control techniques
E. the

Which of the following is NOT a method that company managers can use to promote operating excellence in performing value chain activities?
A. Utilize benchmarking.
B. Adapt best practices.
C. Install TQM and/or Six Sigma quality control techniques.
D. Und

Which of the following is NOT a tool or method that managers can use to promote operating excellence and further the cause of good strategy execution?
A. Benchmarking
B. Business process reengineering
C. Strategic resource training
D. TQM and Six Sigma qu

Because functional organization structures often result in pieces of strategically relevant activities and capabilities being scattered across many different functional departments, companies have found that:
A. it is necessary to give these functional de

Business process reengineering is a tool for:
A. expediting the redesign of existing products and shortening the design-to-market cycle.
B. radically redesigning and streamlining how an activity (workflow) is performed, by pulling the pieces of strategy-c

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 that is in charge of

Total quality management (TQM):
A. entails creating a total quality culture that strives for continuously improving the performance of every value chain activity and is driven by a philosophy of managing a set of business practices: 100 percent accuracy i

Total quality management (TQM) emphasizes all of the following EXCEPT which?
A. 100 percent accuracy in performing tasks
B. Continuous improvement in all phases of operations
C. Adoption of industry standard operating practices
D. Benchmarking and total c

Total quality management (TQM) programs:
A. deal exclusively with procedures to achieve defect-free manufacturing and assembly.
B. nearly always contribute more to the achievement of operating excellence than either business process reengineering or Six S

Which of the following statements about total quality management (TQM) is FALSE?
A. TQM aims at instilling enthusiasm and commitment to doing things right from the top to the bottom of the organization.
B. TQM produces significant results very quickly, wi

Six Sigma programs:
A. utilize advanced statistical methods to improve quality by reducing defects and variability in the performance of business processes.
B. consist of a disciplined, statistics-based system aimed at producing not more than 2.5 defects

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

Six Sigma processes:
A. are based on three principles: (1) all work is a statistically controllable process; (2) no well-controlled process allows variability; and (3) defect-free work requires tight statistical controls.
B. can be used for both improving

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.
B. an improvement system used to develop new processes or

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 D

The statistical thinking underlying Six Sigma is based on which of 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 proce

Which of the following statements about Six Sigma quality programs is true?
A. While Six Sigma programs often improve the efficiency of numerous operating processes, there is evidence that the approach can stifle innovative activities.
B. Six Sigma is a p

A company that successfully and methodically applies Six Sigma methods to its value chain, activity by activity, can:
A. clearly consider what it will take to overtake rivals with the industry's overall best strategy.
B. make major strides in improving th

An ambidextrous organization is one that:
A. pursues incremental improvements in operating efficiency, while R&D and other processes that allow the company to develop new ways of offering value to customers are given freer rein.
B. is capable of using eff

The big difference between business process reengineering and continuous improvement programs like TQM or Six Sigma is that:
A. reengineering is a tool for installing process organization, whereas TQM/Six Sigma concern defect-free production methods and d

To obtain maximum benefits from benchmarking, best practices, reengineering, TQM, and Six Sigma programs aimed at facilitating better strategy execution, managers need to:
A. start with a clear idea of what specific outcomes really matter, such as a Six S

Without a strategic framework, managers lack the context in which to:
A. fix things that really matter to business-unit performance and competitive success.
B. carry out company-wide goals related to the dynamics of a single business model.
C. employ the

To build a total quality culture and achieve full value from the use of TQM or Six Sigma initiatives, managers can take such action steps as:
A. signaling unequivocal and unyielding commitment to total quality, continuous improvement, and operating excell

Although it is relatively easy for rivals to implement process management tools, it is much more difficult and time-consuming for them to:
A. instill a deeply ingrained culture of operating excellence.
B. keep employees well-informed about the strides bei

Which of the following exemplifies one of the most widely used methods of gauging how well a company is executing its strategy?
A. Merrill & Company has a disconnected organizational arrangement whereby pieces of an activity are performed in different fun

Which of the following does NOT exemplify business process reengineering?
A. Blue Mountain creates teams of mixed-occupation freelancers to design Christmas cards.
B. Speedmore integrates three distribution units to form a consolidated zonal distribution

Which of the following takes the route of business process reengineering to attain operational excellence?
A. AT&T works toward creating a total quality culture by continuously reviewing the performance of every value chain activity.
B. Acer Phones uses a

Which of the following makes use of Six Sigma programs to improve quality and strategy execution?
A. Memphis & Company applies advanced statistical methods to identify and remove the causes of defects.
B. Milwaukee Hospital relocates its pathological lab

Installing well-conceived, state-of-the-art support systems is an important managerial component of implementing and executing strategy because:
A. such systems are essential to being able to engage in effective benchmarking and continuous improvement.
B.

Well-conceived, state-of-the-art information and operating systems:
A. are essential because business process reengineering efforts, TQM, Six Sigma, and benchmarking programs can't be carried out effectively without them.
B. not only enable better strateg

The broad areas that internal information business systems need to cover include all of the following EXCEPT:
A. financial performance data.
B. supplier/strategic partner data.
C. customer data.
D. operations data.
E. competitor data.

The broad areas that internal information business systems need to cover include all of the following EXCEPT:
A. financial performance data.
B. corporate culture data.
C. customer data.
D. operations data.
E. employee data.

Information systems provide managers with a means for monitoring all of the following EXCEPT:
A. the results that flow from the actions of subordinates.
B. the performance of empowered workers.
C. weekly operating statistics.
D. employees with over-the-sh

Which of the following is NOT integral to superior strategy execution and operating excellence?
A. Having real-time information systems that permit company managers to stay on top of implementation initiatives and daily operations and to intervene if thin

Which of the following is NOT a recommended way for managers to monitor the operating performance of employees to ensure superior strategy execution?
A. Scrutinizing daily and weekly operating statistics without resorting to constant over-the-shoulder sup

A company wants to plan a state-of-the-art information and operating system to enable better strategy execution. Which of the following is the most likely reason for the company's move?
A. It wants to embrace modern technology.
B. It wants to gain a compe

Management's most powerful tool for mobilizing organizational commitment to competent strategy execution and operating excellence is the:
A. diligent and persistent use of benchmarking and best practices.
B. proper use of a reward structure with motivatio

Management's most powerful tool for winning employee commitment to good strategy execution is:
A. the establishment of strategy-supportive policies and procedures.
B. empowering employees and encouraging them to adopt best practices.
C. setting stretch ob

The strategic role of a company's reward system is to:
A. compensate employees for performing their assigned duties in a diligent fashion.
B. boost employee morale in ways that create widespread job satisfaction.
C. enlist employees' commitment to success

Reward and incentive systems serve as a(n):
A. direct stimulus for satisfying the basic expectations of the standard job and mechanisms.
B. indirect motivational tool designed to convert employee commitment into high-powered incentives.
C. indirect type o

Enlisting employees' sustained and energetic commitment to good strategy execution and achievement of the strategic priorities and financial objectives is best done by:
A. having top executives commit to making employees the company's most valuable compet

In trying to gain employees' wholehearted commitment to good strategy execution and operating excellence, managers are well advised to use all of the following incentives EXCEPT:
A. providing attractive perks and fringe benefits.
B. giving awards and publ

Which of the following is NOT likely to be effective in trying to gain employees' wholehearted commitment to good strategy execution?
A. Strictly enforcing all rules in the employee handbook with the use of fines.
B. Giving awards and public recognition t

A motivation and incentive system that is aimed at spurring stronger employee commitment to good strategy execution:
A. should focus on incorporating more positive than negative motivational elements.
B. should be tied first and foremost to whether employ

From the standpoint of promoting successful strategy execution, it is important that the firm's motivation and reward system:
A. be completely free of such elements as tension, pressure, anxiety, job insecurity, and tight deadlines�a no-pressure/no-advers

A reward system that accentuates positive rewards for good performance:
A. works best in strong culture organizations, while negative motivational approaches and reward systems tend to be most successful in weak culture organizations.
B. is especially eff

A no-pressure/no-adverse-consequences work environment does not necessarily lead to:
A. superior strategy execution or operating excellence.
B. satisfactory outcomes because there is always a cadre of ambitious people who relish the challenge.
C. workforc

To create a strategy-supportive system of rewards and incentives, a company must:
A. reward people for accomplishing results, not just for dutifully performing assigned tasks.
B. focus jobholders' attention and energy on what to do as opposed to what to a

Motivational and incentive compensation practices that aim at winning the commitment of company personnel to good strategy execution typically:
A. use only positive rewards and never involve the use of tension, fear, job insecurity, stress, or anxiety.
B.

The first principle in designing an effective compensation system and the most dependable way to keep people focused on strategy execution and the achievement of performance targets is to:
A. establish ethical compensation policies and convince employees

A well-designed reward system:
A. ties rewards to performance outcomes directly linked to good strategy execution and the achievement of financial and strategic objectives.
B. should be free of elements that induce stress, anxiety, tension, pressure to pe

An important consideration in designing a strategy-supportive reward system is to:
A. link the payment of all monetary rewards to the company's bottom-line profitability.
B. employ incentives that will help motivate employees to put in long hours and sacr

The guidelines for designing an incentive compensation system that will help drive successful strategy execution include:
A. making the performance payoff a major, not minor, piece of the total compensation package.
B. having incentives that apply to the

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 beatin

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. Keep

The resolute standard for judging whether individuals, teams, and organizational units have done a good job must be measured by:
A. comparing industry performance standards against the company's own internal criteria.
B. the level of rapid growth in indus

The managing director of a paper products company, wanted to introduce nonmonetary incentives to enhance employee motivation and spur strategy execution. When presented with some ideas, he chose all of the following EXCEPT:
A. rewarding employees even for

The top management at a new social media technology company would like to revamp its incentive compensation system to attract ambitious employees. What would be their best approach?
A. Make the performance bonus at least 3 to 4 percent of base salary to h

What does a successful strategy execution require?

Which of the following statements accurately describe the process of executing a business strategy?

Which of the following is a principal managerial component of the strategy execution process?

What are the three key actions in building an organization capable of good strategy execution?