Introduction to strategic Management

A company’s strategic plan:

• maps out the company’s history.
• links the company’s financial targets to control mechanisms.
• outlines the competitive moves and approaches to be used in achieving the desired business results.
• all of these.

A company’s strategic vision describes:

• why the company does certain things in trying to please its customers.
• management’s storyline of how it intends to make a profit with the chosen strategy.
• management’s aspirations for the future and delineates the company’s strategic course and long-term direction.
• what future actions the enterprise will likely undertake to outmaneuver rivals and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.

Well-stated objectives are:

• quantifiable or measurable, and contain deadlines for achievement.
• clear, succinct, and concise so as to identify the company’s risk and return options.
• directly related to the dividend payout ratio for stockholder returns.
• all of these.

An organisation with good capital structure, would be placed where in the SWOT analysis?

• Opportunity

• Strength

• Weakness

• Threat

Which of the following SWOT elements are external factors for a business?

• Strengths and Weaknesses

• Strengths and Opportunities

• Opportunities and Threats

• Weaknesses and Threats

Which of the factors below will enable an organisation to obtain Competitive Advantage?

• Excellent Quality of Product

• Higher Profit

• Lesser innovation

• Bad customer service

The goal of most organisation is to choose a strategy that

• Maximizes the value of the firm for its shareholders

• Emphasizes high sales

• Minimizes costs

• Controls both costs and expenses

The company decides to open its marekt to foreign countries where there is a need for your product. How does this information fit into the SWOT analysis?

• It's a threat

• It's an opportunity

• It's a strength

• It's a weakness

Your leading product has a 30% market share which is 10% higher than your best competitor. Where would you analyze this information in SWOT analysis?

• Weaknesses

• Strengths

• Threats

• Opportunities

The THREAT section is mainly areas that:

• Can be easily removed and turned in to strengths

• Cannot be removed or ignored and will need planning to work with or around. Are a potential risk to your development.

• Nasty things that have been said to you

• Are areas that you threaten your safety