& Answers with Rationale (125 Q&A)
SECTION I: MULTIPLE CHOICE (40 Questions)
1. What variable does information systems (IS) help to determine for an
organization's business strategy to adapt and remain competitive?
A. Organizational culture
B. Sustainable Competitive Advantage
C. Employee satisfaction
D. Supply chain length
Answer: B
Rationale: IS is a critical enabler for identifying and sustaining competitive advantage by
aligning technology investments with strategic business goals.
2. Which framework assesses whether a firm’s IT strategy has produced value by
focusing on resources rather than raising competitive barriers?
A. Porter’s Five Forces
B. Resource-Based View (RBV)
C. Value Chain Model
D. Balanced Scorecard
Answer: B
,Rationale: The RBV examines internal resources (including IT) as sources of sustained
competitive advantage, emphasizing value creation over barrier erection.
3. A strategy in which companies cooperate and compete simultaneously with
companies in their value net is called:
A. Strategic Alliance
B. Co-opetition (Co-operation)
C. Elastic Enterprise
D. Vertical Integration
Answer: B
Rationale: Co-opetition blends cooperation and competition, allowing firms to create value
jointly while still competing in other areas.
4. What includes a company, its competitors, complements, customers, suppliers,
and the interactions among all of them?
A. Value Chain
B. Value Net
C. Supply Chain
D. Industry Matrix
Answer: B
Rationale: The Value Net framework captures the full ecosystem of relationships that affect
a firm’s strategic position.
5. An inter-organizational relationship that affords one or more companies a strategic
advantage is a:
A. Joint Venture
B. Strategic Alliance
C. Merger
,D. Licensing Agreement
Answer: B
Rationale: Strategic alliances are partnerships formed to share resources and capabilities
for mutual strategic benefit.
6. Which type of enterprise has a core competency of adding partners as necessary
to quickly respond to customer needs?
A. Virtual Organization
B. Elastic Enterprise
C. Modular Corporation
D. Boundaryless Firm
Answer: B
Rationale: The elastic enterprise is characterized by its flexibility to scale partnerships up or
down in response to demand.
7. Activities that relate directly to the value created in a product or service (e.g.,
inbound logistics, operations, marketing, service) are called:
A. Support Activities
B. Primary Activities
C. Secondary Activities
D. Ancillary Activities
Answer: B
Rationale: Primary activities are the core value-adding steps in Porter’s value chain.
8. Activities that ensure the existence and continued coordination of primary
activities (e.g., procurement, technology, HR, firm infrastructure) are:
A. Primary Activities
B. Support Activities
, C. Core Competencies
D. Value Drivers
Answer: B
Rationale: Support activities provide the backbone that enables primary activities to function
effectively.
9. The authority to initiate, approve, implement, and control various decisions
necessary to plan and run the business is known as:
A. Accountability
B. Decision Rights
C. Governance
D. Empowerment
Answer: B
Rationale: Decision rights define who has the formal authority to make specific types of
decisions within an organization.
10. What must be allocated during the organizational design process?
A. Financial capital
B. Decision Rights
C. Physical assets
D. Human resources
Answer: B
Rationale: Organizational design explicitly determines the distribution of decision-making
authority across roles and units.
11. A document-sharing platform that enables large groups to collaborate across
different times and locations is a:
A. Blog