Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
Sustainable Competitive Advantage - CORRECT ANSWER - Financial performance that
consistently outperforms industry averages
Operational Effectiveness - CORRECT ANSWER - Performing the same tasks better than
rivals perform them.
Fast Follower Exists when: - CORRECT ANSWER - 1. Savvy rivals watch a pioneer's
efforts
2. Learn from their successes and missteps
3. Then enter the market quickly with a comparable or superior product at a lower cost 4. Before
the first mover can dominate.
Strategic Positioning - CORRECT ANSWER - Performing different tasks than rivals or
the same tasks in a different way.
Straddling - CORRECT ANSWER - When a firm attempts to match the benefits of a
success position while maintaining its existing position.
True sustainable advantage comes from assets and business models that are simultaneously
(Resource-based Theory): - CORRECT ANSWER - Valuable
Rare
Difficult to imitate
For which there are no substitutes.
Powerful resources: - CORRECT ANSWER - 1. Imitation-Resistant Value Chains: Others
find hard to replicate
2. Brand: Proxy for quality and inspires trust
, 3. Scale: Advantages related to size; economies of scale
4. Switching Costs and Data: Costs consumer incur by switching providers
5. Differentiation: Be different; move away from being commoditized
6. Network Effects: When the value of a product or service increases as its number of users
expands.
7. Distribution Channels: The path through which products or services get to customers
8. Patents.
Technology can play a key role in creating and reinforcing assets for sustainable advantage. This
includes: - CORRECT ANSWER - a. Enabling an imitation resistant value chain
b. Strengthening a firm's brand
c. Collecting useful data
d. Establishing switching costs
e. Creating a network effect
f. Creating or enhancing a firm's scale advantage
g. Enabling product or service differentiation
h. Offering an opportunity to leverage unique distribution channels.
Transaction Processing Systems (TPS) - CORRECT ANSWER - Transactions; daily
events
Detailed reports; lists; summaries
Operations personnel; first-line supervisors
Management Information Systems (MIS) - CORRECT ANSWER - Summary transaction
data; high-volume data; simple models
Summary and exception reports
Middle managers
Decision Support Systems (DSS) - CORRECT ANSWER - Optimized for data analysis,
analytic models and data analysis tools.