E2 Project and Relationship Management Questions and Answers

The initial Balanced Scorecard design, defined by Kaplan and Norton, used four perspectives (or legs) for management control and the implementation of strategy. What are the FOUR original perspectives?

An organisation facing difficult business conditions as a result of strong competition is aware of the need to improve its performance in bringing new products to market.

The director is aware of conflicting problems the organisation faces in its approach to new product development between the marketing department and the research and development department.

Which term best describes this type of conflict?

Which of the models below identifies triggers for change from the macro environment?

GG, the new CEO in an organisation, was surprised to find out that the company does not undertake competitor analysis. He was told that, as the organisation operates in a very dynamic market,  things change too quickly to make analysis worthwhile.

Choose from the following the option that presents why competitor analysis is important.

Which of the following best describes the resource based view of strategy?

Identify ways in which an orgnisation can undertake qualitative research.

Select ALL that apply.

Which THREE of the following are determinants of national competitive advantage outlined in Porter's Diamond?

Performance appraisal systems are designed to meet a number of objectives. Which of the following is a positive objective of such a system?

An employee of a company has been asked to explain the difference between a Grievance and Disciplinary Action. The employee knows the definitions of both and, whilst they have two examples of actions which would result in Disciplinary Action, they can only think of one circumstance which may result in a Grievance, and this is Discrimination.

Which of the following could the employee use as an additional example of a Grievance? 

Many public companies remain committed to the rational approach to strategic decision making believing that the long term advantages outweigh the disadvantages.

Which TWO of the following factors are considered to be advantages of the rational approach?

Which of the following is NOT a benefit of a good audit system?

Identify THREE advantages of a matrix organisation structure for the execution of significant business projects:

Which of the following statements relating to disciplinary sanctions should not be true?

Select ALL that apply.

According to Mintzberg, a manager must exhibit which of the following skills in order to create the conditions for new ideas to flourish and strategies to emerge?

Select ALL that apply.

A company is considering introducing a new product into the market but has been advised to undertake some qualitative research prior to doing this. The marketing manager is uncertain as to what information it will get from this type of research.

Which of the following can be identified by carrying out qualitative research?    

A mission statement describes the organisation's basic function in society. Which of the following is NOT an element of a mission statement?

X is a manufacturing company that has achieved long term success by understanding the structure of its industry, and where necessary changing its strategy in order to achieve improved performance by outperforming its competitors.

Success has depended on the company exploiting the underlying economic factors (such as economies of scale) better than its competitors and maintaining this over time, so achieving sustainable competitive advantage.

Researchers would call this an "outside-in" approach to strategy, with the company choosing a strategy that responds to the challenges and changes posed by the external environment.

Which type of strategy is X adopting?

Which type of culture, according to Charles Handy, is identified by an individual's tasks being clearly defined and their power coming from their position in the hierarchy? 

A pharmaceutical organisation, whilst developing a drug for the remedy of a cold, discovered by carrying out research tests that the drug made people feel drowsy.

It decided to market this product as a night time cold remedy.

Which of the following best describes this organisation's approach to strategy?

Q has been appointed as the Commercial Director of a medium-sized publishing company that is facing strong competitive pressures in difficult trading conditions. Q is surprised to find that the firm is pursuing the formal/rational approach to strategy development.

Q is now preparing a presentation to the Board to change the basis of strategy development to an emergent approach.

Which THREE arguments could Q use in the presentation?

FF Ltd was established three years ago. Since then the company, which provides online financial advice, has experienced rapid growth and the management team has not really had the time to put management systems and procedures into place.

The organisation has asked you to look at the way in which the company deals with its disciplinary problems and procedures.

Choose from the following ALL that apply as recommended guidelines for drawing up a disciplinary procedure:

Harvey Maylor defined four stages in the life cycle of a project. This became known as the 4D model.

Match the correct stage to each activity.

The PRINCE2 project management methodology has consistent principles governing roles, plans, processes and risks. Which TWO of the following statements are correct?

After undertaking competitive analysis, a company has assembled the information and is now in a position to benchmark its performance against that of its competitor. A manager has been asked to carry out strategic benchmarking, but he is unsure of what information he should use.

Which TWO of the options below could be used to undertake Strategic Benchmarking?

Setting a mission is the first stage of the rational approach to strategy setting. According to David, which THREE of the following are useful areas to include in an organisation's mission statement?

Porter's Value Chain model is divided into two main categories. From the choices below identify the TWO categories:

Four orthopaedic surgeons in a busy hospital department have very different work habits. Each has their own team of medical technicians who are used to the surgeons' personal preferences and are very comfortable with their routines; they basically do the same things every day. This way of working has gone on for several years.

When a new administration manager suggested that they train all of the technicians to work with all the surgeons this led to significant resistance from all of the parties involved. The technicians were concerned that they would no longer be able to perform their usual daily tasks.

On the basis of the scenario what would be the main cause of their resistance?

Z is an entrepreneur that has just bought a chain of 10 prestigious restaurants. Z has decided that there is an urgent need for cost savings and plans to install state-of-the-art computer systems to make each restaurant more efficient and less dependent on manual processes. This means that every employee must be trained to operate the new systems and there will be changes in roles and responsibilities.

Z has decided to use the biggest restaurant as a training centre, where the new systems will first be installed. Staff from the other restaurants will then train at the biggest restaurant for a week while new systems are installed at their own restaurant.  Z has told the staff that no one will be dismissed because of the changes. The planned opening of a new restaurant will absorb any employees displaced due to the efficiency of the new systems.

Z is concerned about staff resistance. Which approach will be most effective in these circumstances?