Study Guide
BA 449 Study Guide for Exam #1
Power Point Set #1 (Chapter 1)
1. With hindsight it appears that Microsoft made strategic errors in 1998 and 2003, which enabled Google to be more successful. What could Microsoft have done differently? (Slides #5-6; Text, pp. 3-4)
2. What is competitive advantage? What is sustainable competitive advantage? (Slide #6; Text, pp. 4-5)
3. What is Strategy? Apply these ideas to our Wal-mart case. (Slides #7-9; Text, pp. 6-8; Handout #4)
4. What are some important criteria of Strategy? (Slide #10; Text, p. 9)
5. What are the three key drivers of economic value? (Slide #11)
6. In determining differential economic performance, what are industry effects, and what are firm effects? What percentage of the variance does each effect explain? (Slide #14; Text, p. 8)
7. Define Corporate, Business, and Functional level Strategy. (Slides #15-18; Text, pp. 10-11; and see especially Handout #3)
8. What is meant by a “razor blade” business model? (Slide #19; Text, p. 11)
9. In what sense is the competitive landscape covered by Google and Microsoft an example of multi-point competition? (Slide #20; Text, p. 12)
10. What evidence is there to support the claim that we are witnessing an acceleration of technological change? (Slides #21-22; Text, pp. 13-14)
11. How does the online apparel store, Threadless, illustrate the concept of crowdsourcing? (Slide #26; Text, p.17)
12. Describe the stakeholder theory of the corporation. Who are the external stakeholders? Who are the internal stakeholders? (Slides #28-29; Text, pp. 18-19)
Power Point Set #2 (Chapter 2)
13. In what ways does the case Teach for America illustrate the concepts of Vision, Mission, and Values? (Slides #4-5; Text, p. 31)
14. What is the difference between a customer-oriented mission and a product-oriented mission? How did the fact that the U.S. railroads had a product-oriented mission rather than a customer- oriented mission lead to losing customers?
Power Point Set #1 (Chapter 1)
1. With hindsight it appears that Microsoft made strategic errors in 1998 and 2003, which enabled Google to be more successful. What could Microsoft have done differently? (Slides #5-6; Text, pp. 3-4)
2. What is competitive advantage? What is sustainable competitive advantage? (Slide #6; Text, pp. 4-5)
3. What is Strategy? Apply these ideas to our Wal-mart case. (Slides #7-9; Text, pp. 6-8; Handout #4)
4. What are some important criteria of Strategy? (Slide #10; Text, p. 9)
5. What are the three key drivers of economic value? (Slide #11)
6. In determining differential economic performance, what are industry effects, and what are firm effects? What percentage of the variance does each effect explain? (Slide #14; Text, p. 8)
7. Define Corporate, Business, and Functional level Strategy. (Slides #15-18; Text, pp. 10-11; and see especially Handout #3)
8. What is meant by a “razor blade” business model? (Slide #19; Text, p. 11)
9. In what sense is the competitive landscape covered by Google and Microsoft an example of multi-point competition? (Slide #20; Text, p. 12)
10. What evidence is there to support the claim that we are witnessing an acceleration of technological change? (Slides #21-22; Text, pp. 13-14)
11. How does the online apparel store, Threadless, illustrate the concept of crowdsourcing? (Slide #26; Text, p.17)
12. Describe the stakeholder theory of the corporation. Who are the external stakeholders? Who are the internal stakeholders? (Slides #28-29; Text, pp. 18-19)
Power Point Set #2 (Chapter 2)
13. In what ways does the case Teach for America illustrate the concepts of Vision, Mission, and Values? (Slides #4-5; Text, p. 31)
14. What is the difference between a customer-oriented mission and a product-oriented mission? How did the fact that the U.S. railroads had a product-oriented mission rather than a customer- oriented mission lead to losing customers?