Week 4 Assignment

Question 1

From what perspective might innovation be called the single most important building block of competitive advantage?

Question 2

What are the strengths of formal strategic planning? What are its weaknesses?

Question 3

Why is it important to understand the drivers of profitability, as measured by the return on invested capital?

Question 4

What role can top management play in helping a company achieve superior efficiency, quality, innovation, and responsiveness to customers?

Question 5

Under what environmental conditions are price wars most likely to occur in an industry? What are the implications of price wars for a company? How should a company try to deal with the threat of a price war?

Question 6

Evaluate the accuracy of the following statement: Formal strategic planning systems are irrelevant for firms competing in high-technology industries where the pace of change is so rapid that plans are routinely made obsolete by unforeseen events.

Question 7

Which is more important in explaining the success and failure of companies: strategizing or luck?

Question 8

What do you think are the sources of sustained superior profitability?

Question 9

When is a company’s competitive advantage most likely to endure over time?

Question 10

Is it possible for a company to be the lowest cost producer in its industry and simultaneously have an output that is most valued by customers?