Quiz

Test you understanding of key chapter concepts by working through this quiz. You can check your answer by clicking on the arrow to the right or on what you think the correct answer is.  The correct answer will then be revealed to you for that question. 

1. Strategy is all about:

  1. Foresight and a holistic view of the firm
  2. The short-term objectives of the firm and ways of meeting them
  3. Defining marketing goals and targets
  4. Enhancing sales performance

Answer: 

a. Foresight and a holistic view of the firm

2. What makes strategizing necessary?

  1. Rapid changes in the business landscape
  2. More sophisticated organizational structures
  3. Pressure to innovate
  4. All of the above

Answer: 

d. Pressure to innovate

3. Which of the following was a strategist?

  1. Machiavelli
  2. Sun-Tzu
  3. Herodotus
  4. All of them 

Answer: 

d. All of them

4. How do modern conceptions of strategy relate to classical conceptions?

  1. They are the same
  2. There is no relation
  3. As legitimations for current views
  4. None of the above      

Answer: 

c. As legitimations for current views

5. Machiavelli’s contribution to strategy suggests that:

  1. To remain powerful is the highest priority
  2. To listen to your employee’s needs is of utmost importance
  3. Delegation of authority enhances team performance
  4. None of the above     

Answer: 

a. To remain powerful is the highest priority

6. Based on Clausewitz’s arguments, we can infer that:

  1. Strategy is based on a pre-determined wisdom and rational thinking
  2. Strategy unfolds sequentially yet rationally
  3. Strategy has a non-rationalistic element in it induced by passions and feelings
  4. a and b above

Answer: 

c. Strategy has a non-rationalistic element in it induced by passions and feelings

7. The establishment of modern-day strategy as a discipline can be traced back to:

  1. The 1960–70s, drawn from economics
  2. The industrial revolution in north-west England
  3. The 1980s, with the advent of large US multinational corporations
  4. The 1930s, drawn from social psychology

Answer: 

a. The 1960–70s, drawn from economics

8. Modern conceptions of strategy as planning played a major role in:

  1. The First World War
  2. The Peloponnesian Wars
  3. The Second World War
  4. The Vietnam War

Answer: 

c. The Second  World War

9. Which of the following was a crucible of early strategy thinking?

  1. Marks & Spencer’s
  2. Zara
  3. West Point
  4. Ancient Greece

 Answer: 

c. West Point

10. In Cummings and Daellenbach’s study, reviewing papers in Long Range Planning, what are the recurring themes that constitute the baseline of strategy research in the last 40 years?

  1. Corporate
  2. Technology
  3. Mergers and acquisitions
  4. All of the above

Answer: 

d. All of the above