Test Bank for Marketing Planning and Strategy 1st Edition Mutiple Choice Questions Procter & Gamble divided its business into 39 categories under which: a brand managers for various detergents can demand new packages at the same time b brand managers in the same line of business can compete for a share of P&G’s ad budget c the category manager decides the positioning of different brands d minor brands such as Dreft detergent has the same claim on manufacturing as Tide Which of the following is not a reason for doing strategic planning? a to earn a desired level of profit b because of a complex business environment c because of technological developments d to make a choice between many equally attractive investments e none of the choices given Managing strategic planning for focus and flexibility requires: a building on what the company does best b developing core skills c sketching future scenarios and responding to opportunities d all of the choices given McKinsey & Company, an international consulting firm, identify five global forces and trends that have forced strategic marketers to question their current assumptions as they change the opportunities and the challenges that confront both Australian and global companies Which one of the below is not one of these? a emerging markets as the centres for consumerism and innovativeness b the necessity to improve developed market productivity c decreasing global networks d the tension between rapidly rising resource consumption and sustainability Strategic planning emerging perspectives include: a harnessing information b managing through people c managing for competitive advantage d all of the choices given _ considers future changes in areas of importance to a company and tries to assess the impact of these changes on company operations a Planning b Forecasting c Strategy d none of the choices given In its strategic role, marketing consists of establishing a match between the _ and its _ a customer/needs b firm/environment c management/employees d none of the choices given Planning should cause: a a lot of disruption as major changes will be occurring b as little disruption as possible c a restructure of the company, so that it can remain competitive d all of the choices given Strategy in a firm is: a the pattern of major objectives, purposes or goals b essential policies and plans for achieving goals c definition of what business the company is in d definition of the kind of company is or is to be e all of the choices given While planning is admittedly complex, successful planning systems have some fundamental characteristics Which of the following is not one of these? a wholehearted support of the chief executive officer b actual planning process is kept as simple as possible c all planning is done by the corporate planner and his or her staff d encouragement of decisions with long-term implications The planning process: a is the same thing as forecasting b is usually a detailed five-year operational plan c should be custom-made for each particular company d usually takes approximately two years to complete e none of the choices given As the global financial crisis (GFC) hit in 2008, executives shifted their focus to: a short term cost-cutting goals b growth/survival c constraint d differentiation Responsibility for planning lies with the: a marketing researcher b staff assistants c consultants d line managers The philosophy of _ planning has its foundation in operations research a satisfying b optimising c adaptivising d none of the choices given Many firms pursue growth internally through the _ effort a marketing system b research and development c financial d capital The trend of technological changes will _ in the future a fall b rise c remain stable d improve In an analysis of three different philosophies of planning, Ackoff established the following three labels a marketing, human resources and finance b satisfying, optimising and adaptivising c demanding, objectifying, solutions d goals, objectives, outcomes Planning perspectives develop in response to needs that arise: a internally b externally c both internally and externally d none of the options given In the 1990s, Procter & Gamble reorganised along the category lines because: a the brand management system created conflicts and inefficiencies b businesses have been growing fast and retail trade has been losing clout c the consumer market is becoming concentrated d all of the choices given Companies find planning useful in all of the following ways, except: a for choosing growth opportunities from among competing alternatives b for evaluating risk associated with different projects c in maintaining organisational flexibility d for globalisation of business In its strategic role, marketing establishes a: a position for each brand b match between the firm and its environment c promotional budget for each line of business d none of the choices given Strategic planning should not: a become an exercise in forecasting b be restored to the care of line management responsibilities c change the role of planner from being a purveyor of incrementalism to that of a crusader d require top management to assume a more explicit role The marketing decision-making approach that directs us to develop our product offering - and our entire marketing program - to meet the needs of our customer base is the _ approach a environmental b systems c societal marketing d marketing concept Optimising some functions instead of the whole company is _ for exhibiting superior corporate performance a less than adequate b adequate c more than adequate d socially desirable Planning should: a be flexible b evolve gradually c be simple d all of the choices given Any organisation needs strategy when: a resources are finite when there is uncertainty about competitive strengths and behaviour b when commitment of resources is irreversible c when there is uncertainty about control of the initiative d all of the choices given In 2010, IBM focuses on which three things? a basic goals, objectives of the business and human resources b product-market matches, research and development and marketing c vision, strategic planning and execution strategies d goals, objectives and research and development The guiding force behind decision making should be: a profits b the strategic planning process c forecasts d past trends e none of the choices given A unit that is comprised of one or more products having a common market base whose manager has complete responsibility for integrating all functions into a strategy against an identifiable competitor is called: a a strategic business unit b a strategy centre c a strategic planning unit d an independent business unit e all of the choices given Strategy: a specifies direction b influences competitors’ behaviour c influences the evolution of the market d all of the choices given e none of the choices given Business ecosystem refers to: a a framework for managers to explore and analyse b a technique for measuring performance c a framework for gaining a broad perspective of the business d both a and c In a great many firms, the function represents the greatest degree of contact with the external environment b legal c financial d marketing e none of the choices given Telstra started a self-renewal process in 2010 which included: a investing heavily in the latest technologies b developing SBU’s c implementing the use of Twitter accounts, Facebook sites, a flickr account, YouTube channels d None of the choices given According to Hewlett-Packard’s former CEO Carly Fiorina, the role of CEO in strategy is to: a encourage discussion of the white spaces b examine overlaps and gaps among business strategies c stress areas not addressed by individual businesses d all of the choices given _ levels of aggregation make SBUs identical to product/market segments that may lack ‘strategic autonomy’ a Higher b Lower c Complex d Separate e none of the choices given Future planning is also known as _ planning a long-range b corporate c comprehensive d formal e all of the options given Which of the following is not a prerequisite to well in strategic planning? a matching short-term goals to long-term perspectives b organising the company into strategic business units c demonstrating interest in new product development d developing a framework for evaluating and balancing competing requests from business units All SBUs must have: a a distinct business mission b an explicit management philosophy c an interdivisional overlap d all of the choices given Successful planning requires: a complex networking arrangements between the CEO and internal and external stakeholders b the CEO mirco manages each department c the CEO remains at arm’s length of the plan d that the CEO be completely supportive of planned perspective True - False Questions A portfolio of business should be designed and managed to achieve each individual business’s strategy, rather than overall corporate strategy True False The first and most widely used approach to marketing decision making is the marketing systems approach True False The value of effective strategic planning is virtually unchallenged in today’s business world True False P&G reorganised along the category lines with the purpose of devising marketing strategies and fitting brands together, then formulating competing brand strategies and allocating resources among them True False Strategic planning is a paper-and-pencil activity which does not require CEO’s involvement True False The planning process is difficult, while its actual implementation is relatively simple True False The systems approach, instructs the marketer to view the marketing process holistically and view product not as an individual entity but as just one aspect of the customer’s total need-satisfaction system True False A definition of planning should be based on what planning is supposed to be in an organisation True False A firm has the most control over its external environment True False Any organisation needs strategy when resources are infinite True False Planning is essentially a process directed toward making today’s decision with tomorrow in mind and a means of preparing for future decisions so that they may be made more rapidly, economically and with as little disruption to the business as possible True False The key to profitable operations is to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage based on stockholders’ expectations True False Companies that well in strategic planning clearly define their goals and develop rational plans to implement them True False The beginning of the financial year is the best time for initiating planning activities True False The emphasis has shifted from planning as a basis of all an organisation’s efforts and decisions to planning as an aspect of the organisation True False Business strategy seeks to unify all business lines of a company and point them at an overall goal True False The guiding force behind decision making should be the strategic planning process True False Different functions or activities need to reinforce each other for developing a successful strategy True False Organisations that follow an internal and historical perspective have a much better chance of success than those that take an externally focused view True False Generally, organisations have identifiable existing strategic perspectives; however, not many organisations have explicit strategy for the intended future True False The three types of strategic decisions are satisfying, optimising, and adaptivising True False Planning and forecasting are different True False An SBU cannot overlap divisions, and a division cannot include more than one unit True False Contemporary environments are characterised by dynamism True False The SBU concept is essentially the same as the brand management system except that the SBU manager has more clout True False Decentralised planning was characteristic of the 1960s True False Today, markets are closed Barriers are easy to install and maintain Thus, it is difficult for competitors to enter True False Free Text Questions Various philosophies of planning include _, _ and _ Answer Given satisfying, optimising, adaptivising Planning for future action has been called by many different names: _ planning, _ planning, comprehensive planning and formal planning Answer Given long-range, corporate Any organisation needs strategy when commitment of resources is _ Answer Given irreversible The guiding force behind decision making should be the _ _ _ Answer Given the strategic planning process _ considers future changes in areas of importance to a company and tries to assess the impact of these changes on company operations Answer Given Forecasting Strategic planning is the responsibility of the Answer Given chief executive officer The planning process should be _ for each particular company Answer Given custom-made Growth is a type of _ Answer Given objective ... business and human resources b product-market matches, research and development and marketing c vision, strategic planning and execution strategies d goals, objectives and research and development... flexibility d for globalisation of business In its strategic role, marketing establishes a: a position for each brand b match between the firm and its environment c promotional budget for each line... refers to: a a framework for managers to explore and analyse b a technique for measuring performance c a framework for gaining a broad perspective of the business d both a and c In a great many