Organizational Strategy, Competitive Advantage, and Information

Although ERP systems are built around the idea of best practice, some organisations will choose not to adopt the ERP best practice, seeking instead to modify the design of the system. The mostly likely reason for doing so is:

• 
  adopting an ERP system off the shelf erodes competitive advantage because everyone else has the same software at their disposal.

• modifying the ERP system will lower the cost of implementation because redundant features are removed.

A cost leadership strategy would indicate that:

• suppliers who can provide goods at a lower price and the longest settlement period should be selected.

• suppliers who can provide goods of suitable quality at a lower price should be selected.

• suppliers who can provide goods at the lowest price should be selected.

Which of the following is NOT a benefit of adopting a business process perspective within the organisation?

• Better customer service and customer relations.

• Tighter organisational control.

• Less non-value-adding activities.

• Greater efficiency and effectiveness in using resources.

What is a business process?

• Any activity performed by a business.

• Any core activity that produces a profit.

• Any activity performed by a manufacturing company providing that it produces a profit.

• A series of interlocking activities that work together across the organisation to achieve some predetermined organisational goal.

Which of the following statements regarding BPR is not true?

• BPR is an attempt at downsizing.

• Ethical issues are involved in BPR.

• Social issues are involved in BPR.

• Employees can be extremely wary when BPR is mentioned.

Business processes can provide an organisation with a competitive advantage. This competitive advantage is more likely to come from:

• the design of business processes that are unique or offer something different.

• the design of business processes that are more efficient and effective.

• the design of business processes that have lower costs of execution.

• the design of business processes that are more competitive and flexible.

The business process can yield benefits for an organisation through:

• offering customers cheaper prices.

• improved customer service and customer relations through a value adding emphasis.

• ignoring customer service and focussing on superior product design.

• outsourcing all customer service activities.

Michael Porter sees a business as having two options when deciding on a strategy. These two options are:

• differentiation and cost leadership.

• economies of scope and differentiation.

• economies of scale and entry barrier.

• price competition and product abundance.

Michael Porter puts forward five forces that shape the industry in which a firm operates. Which of the following is NOT one of the forces?

• Threat of substitute products or services.

• Rivalry among existing competitors.

• Threat of new entrants.

• Legislative power of the government.

Business processes can provide an organisation with a competitive advantage. This competitive advantage is more likely to come from:

• the design of business processes that are more efficient and effective.

• the design of business processes that have lower costs of execution.

• the design of business processes that are more competitive and flexible.

• the design of business processes that are unique or offer something different.