Strategic Management Model Test Paper - 5 (Answers) | Model Test Papers for CA Intermediate PDF Download

 Page 1


PAPER 6B: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 
PART I 
1. (A) (i) (c) (ii) (b) (iii)  (c) (iv)  (a) (v)  (c)
1. (B) (i) (a) (ii) (c) (iii)  (a)
PART II 
1. (a)  The collaboration between TechNova, a software development firm, and
ElectroWave, an electronics and hardware manufacturing company, 
represents a co-generic merger. This type of external growth strategy 
involves the merger of companies from related but non-competing 
industries, allowing them to leverage complementary strengths and 
diversify their product offerings. 
TechNova specializes in creating cutting-edge software, while 
ElectroWave focuses on manufacturing advanced electronic devices. By 
joining forces, they can combine their expertise to design innovative 
laptops and smartphones, creating products that neither company could 
have developed as effectively on their own. This strategic partnership 
allows them to enter new markets, enhance their competitive advantage, 
and explore synergies between software and hardware. 
The co-generic merger provides significant opportunities for both 
companies to capitalize on shared technologies, streamline their 
operations, and expand their customer base. It is a strategic move that 
enables them to diversify while maintaining a strong focus on their core 
competencies, ultimately helping them to grow and compete more 
effectively in the global market. 
(b) Vikram Patel is facing declining sales due to a significant shift of
customers toward online platforms. Although he employs strategic
management tools, they cannot always overcome every obstacle or
guarantee success. The limitations of strategic management in Vikram’s
situation include:
? The environment in which strategies are developed is highly
complex and unpredictable. The entry of online bookstores, a new
type of competitor, introduced a different dynamic to the book retail
industry. These online platforms, with their extensive reach and
pricing power, have dominated the market, posing a formidable
challenge to traditional bookstores.
? Another limitation of strategic management is the difficulty in
forecasting future developments. Despite his strategic
management efforts, Vikram Patel did not anticipate the extent to
which online bookstores would impact his sales.
? While strategic management is a time-consuming process, it is
crucial for Vikram to continue managing strategically. These
ANSWERS OF MODEL TEST PAPER 5
609
Page 2


PAPER 6B: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 
PART I 
1. (A) (i) (c) (ii) (b) (iii)  (c) (iv)  (a) (v)  (c)
1. (B) (i) (a) (ii) (c) (iii)  (a)
PART II 
1. (a)  The collaboration between TechNova, a software development firm, and
ElectroWave, an electronics and hardware manufacturing company, 
represents a co-generic merger. This type of external growth strategy 
involves the merger of companies from related but non-competing 
industries, allowing them to leverage complementary strengths and 
diversify their product offerings. 
TechNova specializes in creating cutting-edge software, while 
ElectroWave focuses on manufacturing advanced electronic devices. By 
joining forces, they can combine their expertise to design innovative 
laptops and smartphones, creating products that neither company could 
have developed as effectively on their own. This strategic partnership 
allows them to enter new markets, enhance their competitive advantage, 
and explore synergies between software and hardware. 
The co-generic merger provides significant opportunities for both 
companies to capitalize on shared technologies, streamline their 
operations, and expand their customer base. It is a strategic move that 
enables them to diversify while maintaining a strong focus on their core 
competencies, ultimately helping them to grow and compete more 
effectively in the global market. 
(b) Vikram Patel is facing declining sales due to a significant shift of
customers toward online platforms. Although he employs strategic
management tools, they cannot always overcome every obstacle or
guarantee success. The limitations of strategic management in Vikram’s
situation include:
? The environment in which strategies are developed is highly
complex and unpredictable. The entry of online bookstores, a new
type of competitor, introduced a different dynamic to the book retail
industry. These online platforms, with their extensive reach and
pricing power, have dominated the market, posing a formidable
challenge to traditional bookstores.
? Another limitation of strategic management is the difficulty in
forecasting future developments. Despite his strategic
management efforts, Vikram Patel did not anticipate the extent to
which online bookstores would impact his sales.
? While strategic management is a time-consuming process, it is
crucial for Vikram to continue managing strategically. These
ANSWERS OF MODEL TEST PAPER 5
609
challenging times demand increased effort and adaptability on his 
part. 
? Strategic management can be costly. Vikram Patel might consider
hiring experts to understand customer preferences better and
adjust his strategies to offer more personalized services. These
customized offerings could be difficult for online stores to replicate,
giving him a competitive edge.
? The bookstores owned by Vikram Patel are much smaller in scale
compared to online stores. This makes it challenging for him to
predict how online platforms will manoeuvre strategically.
(c) The scenario being referred to is the organizational culture at Orion Tech
Solutions Pvt. Ltd. A strong culture encourages effective strategy
execution when there is alignment and drives performance even when
there is minimal alignment. A culture rooted in values, practices, and
behavioural norms that align with the requirements for successful
strategy execution energizes employees across the organization to
perform their roles in a manner that supports the strategy. Orion's
culture, built around principles such as listening to customers,
encouraging employees to take pride in their work, and providing a high
degree of decision-making autonomy, is highly conducive to successfully
executing a strategy focused on delivering superior software solutions.
A strong strategy-supportive culture at Orion makes employees feel
genuinely better about their jobs, work environment, and the
organization's goals. It motivates them to embrace the challenge of
realizing the company’s vision, perform their duties competently and
enthusiastically, and collaborate effectively with others.
2. (a)  As industry’s Key Success Factors (KSFs) are those things that most
affect industry members’ ability to prosper in the marketplace – the 
particular strategy elements, product attributes, resources, 
competencies, competitive capabilities and business outcomes that spell 
the difference between profit & loss and ultimately, between competitive 
success or failure. KSFs by their very nature are so important that all 
firms in the industry must pay close attention to them. They are the 
prerequisites for industry success, or, to put it in another way, KSFs are 
the rules that shape whether a company will be financially and 
competitively successful. 
(b) Channels represent the distribution system through which
organizations distribute their products or provide services to customers.
They play a pivotal role in reaching target markets, maximizing sales,
and establishing competitive advantages.
Channel analysis is important when the business strategy is to scale up
and expand beyond the current geographies and markets. When a
business plans to grow to newer markets, they need to develop or
leverage existing channels to get to new customers. Thus, analysis of
channels that suit one’s products and customers is of utmost importance.
610
Page 3


PAPER 6B: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 
PART I 
1. (A) (i) (c) (ii) (b) (iii)  (c) (iv)  (a) (v)  (c)
1. (B) (i) (a) (ii) (c) (iii)  (a)
PART II 
1. (a)  The collaboration between TechNova, a software development firm, and
ElectroWave, an electronics and hardware manufacturing company, 
represents a co-generic merger. This type of external growth strategy 
involves the merger of companies from related but non-competing 
industries, allowing them to leverage complementary strengths and 
diversify their product offerings. 
TechNova specializes in creating cutting-edge software, while 
ElectroWave focuses on manufacturing advanced electronic devices. By 
joining forces, they can combine their expertise to design innovative 
laptops and smartphones, creating products that neither company could 
have developed as effectively on their own. This strategic partnership 
allows them to enter new markets, enhance their competitive advantage, 
and explore synergies between software and hardware. 
The co-generic merger provides significant opportunities for both 
companies to capitalize on shared technologies, streamline their 
operations, and expand their customer base. It is a strategic move that 
enables them to diversify while maintaining a strong focus on their core 
competencies, ultimately helping them to grow and compete more 
effectively in the global market. 
(b) Vikram Patel is facing declining sales due to a significant shift of
customers toward online platforms. Although he employs strategic
management tools, they cannot always overcome every obstacle or
guarantee success. The limitations of strategic management in Vikram’s
situation include:
? The environment in which strategies are developed is highly
complex and unpredictable. The entry of online bookstores, a new
type of competitor, introduced a different dynamic to the book retail
industry. These online platforms, with their extensive reach and
pricing power, have dominated the market, posing a formidable
challenge to traditional bookstores.
? Another limitation of strategic management is the difficulty in
forecasting future developments. Despite his strategic
management efforts, Vikram Patel did not anticipate the extent to
which online bookstores would impact his sales.
? While strategic management is a time-consuming process, it is
crucial for Vikram to continue managing strategically. These
ANSWERS OF MODEL TEST PAPER 5
609
challenging times demand increased effort and adaptability on his 
part. 
? Strategic management can be costly. Vikram Patel might consider
hiring experts to understand customer preferences better and
adjust his strategies to offer more personalized services. These
customized offerings could be difficult for online stores to replicate,
giving him a competitive edge.
? The bookstores owned by Vikram Patel are much smaller in scale
compared to online stores. This makes it challenging for him to
predict how online platforms will manoeuvre strategically.
(c) The scenario being referred to is the organizational culture at Orion Tech
Solutions Pvt. Ltd. A strong culture encourages effective strategy
execution when there is alignment and drives performance even when
there is minimal alignment. A culture rooted in values, practices, and
behavioural norms that align with the requirements for successful
strategy execution energizes employees across the organization to
perform their roles in a manner that supports the strategy. Orion's
culture, built around principles such as listening to customers,
encouraging employees to take pride in their work, and providing a high
degree of decision-making autonomy, is highly conducive to successfully
executing a strategy focused on delivering superior software solutions.
A strong strategy-supportive culture at Orion makes employees feel
genuinely better about their jobs, work environment, and the
organization's goals. It motivates them to embrace the challenge of
realizing the company’s vision, perform their duties competently and
enthusiastically, and collaborate effectively with others.
2. (a)  As industry’s Key Success Factors (KSFs) are those things that most
affect industry members’ ability to prosper in the marketplace – the 
particular strategy elements, product attributes, resources, 
competencies, competitive capabilities and business outcomes that spell 
the difference between profit & loss and ultimately, between competitive 
success or failure. KSFs by their very nature are so important that all 
firms in the industry must pay close attention to them. They are the 
prerequisites for industry success, or, to put it in another way, KSFs are 
the rules that shape whether a company will be financially and 
competitively successful. 
(b) Channels represent the distribution system through which
organizations distribute their products or provide services to customers.
They play a pivotal role in reaching target markets, maximizing sales,
and establishing competitive advantages.
Channel analysis is important when the business strategy is to scale up
and expand beyond the current geographies and markets. When a
business plans to grow to newer markets, they need to develop or
leverage existing channels to get to new customers. Thus, analysis of
channels that suit one’s products and customers is of utmost importance.
610
There are typically three channels that should be considered: sales 
channel, product channel and service channel. 
? The sales channel - These are the intermediaries involved in
selling the product through each channel and ultimately to the end
user. The key question is: Who needs to sell to whom for your
product to be sold to your end user? For example, many fashion
designers use agencies to sell their products to retail organizations,
so that consumers can access them.
? The product channel - The product channel focuses on the series
of intermediaries who physically handle the product on its path from
its producer to the end user. This is true of Australia Post, who
delivers and distributes many online purchases between the seller
and purchaser when using eBay and other online stores.
? The service channel - The service channel refers to the entities
that provide necessary services to support the product, as it moves
through the sales channel and after purchase by the end user. The
service channel is an important consideration for products that are
complex in terms of installation or customer assistance. For
example, a Bosch dishwasher may be sold in a Bosch showroom,
and then once sold it is installed by a Bosch contracted plumber.
3. (a)  A strategic vision serves as a roadmap for a company’s future, detailing
the specifics of technology, customer focus, geographic and product 
markets, and the capabilities the organization aims to develop. It 
answers the critical question, “Where are we going?” and provides a 
compelling rationale for the chosen direction, ensuring it aligns with the 
company’s long-term objectives. 
A strategic vision outlines the organization’s aspirations, offering a 
broad, panoramic view of where it aims to be. It provides a clear 
direction, charts a strategic path for future endeavors, and helps in 
shaping the organizational identity. 
Essentials of a strategic vision 
? The entrepreneurial challenge in developing a strategic vision is to
think creatively about how to prepare a company for the future.
? Forming a strategic vision is an exercise in intelligent
entrepreneurship.
? A well-articulated strategic vision creates enthusiasm among the
members of the organization.
? The best-worded vision statement clearly illuminates the
direction in which organization is headed.
(b) The strategy in question is the growth/expansion strategy.
The Growth/Expansion strategy involves redefining the business,
expanding its scope, and significantly increasing investments. This
dynamic and vigorous approach is synonymous with promise and
611
Page 4


PAPER 6B: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 
PART I 
1. (A) (i) (c) (ii) (b) (iii)  (c) (iv)  (a) (v)  (c)
1. (B) (i) (a) (ii) (c) (iii)  (a)
PART II 
1. (a)  The collaboration between TechNova, a software development firm, and
ElectroWave, an electronics and hardware manufacturing company, 
represents a co-generic merger. This type of external growth strategy 
involves the merger of companies from related but non-competing 
industries, allowing them to leverage complementary strengths and 
diversify their product offerings. 
TechNova specializes in creating cutting-edge software, while 
ElectroWave focuses on manufacturing advanced electronic devices. By 
joining forces, they can combine their expertise to design innovative 
laptops and smartphones, creating products that neither company could 
have developed as effectively on their own. This strategic partnership 
allows them to enter new markets, enhance their competitive advantage, 
and explore synergies between software and hardware. 
The co-generic merger provides significant opportunities for both 
companies to capitalize on shared technologies, streamline their 
operations, and expand their customer base. It is a strategic move that 
enables them to diversify while maintaining a strong focus on their core 
competencies, ultimately helping them to grow and compete more 
effectively in the global market. 
(b) Vikram Patel is facing declining sales due to a significant shift of
customers toward online platforms. Although he employs strategic
management tools, they cannot always overcome every obstacle or
guarantee success. The limitations of strategic management in Vikram’s
situation include:
? The environment in which strategies are developed is highly
complex and unpredictable. The entry of online bookstores, a new
type of competitor, introduced a different dynamic to the book retail
industry. These online platforms, with their extensive reach and
pricing power, have dominated the market, posing a formidable
challenge to traditional bookstores.
? Another limitation of strategic management is the difficulty in
forecasting future developments. Despite his strategic
management efforts, Vikram Patel did not anticipate the extent to
which online bookstores would impact his sales.
? While strategic management is a time-consuming process, it is
crucial for Vikram to continue managing strategically. These
ANSWERS OF MODEL TEST PAPER 5
609
challenging times demand increased effort and adaptability on his 
part. 
? Strategic management can be costly. Vikram Patel might consider
hiring experts to understand customer preferences better and
adjust his strategies to offer more personalized services. These
customized offerings could be difficult for online stores to replicate,
giving him a competitive edge.
? The bookstores owned by Vikram Patel are much smaller in scale
compared to online stores. This makes it challenging for him to
predict how online platforms will manoeuvre strategically.
(c) The scenario being referred to is the organizational culture at Orion Tech
Solutions Pvt. Ltd. A strong culture encourages effective strategy
execution when there is alignment and drives performance even when
there is minimal alignment. A culture rooted in values, practices, and
behavioural norms that align with the requirements for successful
strategy execution energizes employees across the organization to
perform their roles in a manner that supports the strategy. Orion's
culture, built around principles such as listening to customers,
encouraging employees to take pride in their work, and providing a high
degree of decision-making autonomy, is highly conducive to successfully
executing a strategy focused on delivering superior software solutions.
A strong strategy-supportive culture at Orion makes employees feel
genuinely better about their jobs, work environment, and the
organization's goals. It motivates them to embrace the challenge of
realizing the company’s vision, perform their duties competently and
enthusiastically, and collaborate effectively with others.
2. (a)  As industry’s Key Success Factors (KSFs) are those things that most
affect industry members’ ability to prosper in the marketplace – the 
particular strategy elements, product attributes, resources, 
competencies, competitive capabilities and business outcomes that spell 
the difference between profit & loss and ultimately, between competitive 
success or failure. KSFs by their very nature are so important that all 
firms in the industry must pay close attention to them. They are the 
prerequisites for industry success, or, to put it in another way, KSFs are 
the rules that shape whether a company will be financially and 
competitively successful. 
(b) Channels represent the distribution system through which
organizations distribute their products or provide services to customers.
They play a pivotal role in reaching target markets, maximizing sales,
and establishing competitive advantages.
Channel analysis is important when the business strategy is to scale up
and expand beyond the current geographies and markets. When a
business plans to grow to newer markets, they need to develop or
leverage existing channels to get to new customers. Thus, analysis of
channels that suit one’s products and customers is of utmost importance.
610
There are typically three channels that should be considered: sales 
channel, product channel and service channel. 
? The sales channel - These are the intermediaries involved in
selling the product through each channel and ultimately to the end
user. The key question is: Who needs to sell to whom for your
product to be sold to your end user? For example, many fashion
designers use agencies to sell their products to retail organizations,
so that consumers can access them.
? The product channel - The product channel focuses on the series
of intermediaries who physically handle the product on its path from
its producer to the end user. This is true of Australia Post, who
delivers and distributes many online purchases between the seller
and purchaser when using eBay and other online stores.
? The service channel - The service channel refers to the entities
that provide necessary services to support the product, as it moves
through the sales channel and after purchase by the end user. The
service channel is an important consideration for products that are
complex in terms of installation or customer assistance. For
example, a Bosch dishwasher may be sold in a Bosch showroom,
and then once sold it is installed by a Bosch contracted plumber.
3. (a)  A strategic vision serves as a roadmap for a company’s future, detailing
the specifics of technology, customer focus, geographic and product 
markets, and the capabilities the organization aims to develop. It 
answers the critical question, “Where are we going?” and provides a 
compelling rationale for the chosen direction, ensuring it aligns with the 
company’s long-term objectives. 
A strategic vision outlines the organization’s aspirations, offering a 
broad, panoramic view of where it aims to be. It provides a clear 
direction, charts a strategic path for future endeavors, and helps in 
shaping the organizational identity. 
Essentials of a strategic vision 
? The entrepreneurial challenge in developing a strategic vision is to
think creatively about how to prepare a company for the future.
? Forming a strategic vision is an exercise in intelligent
entrepreneurship.
? A well-articulated strategic vision creates enthusiasm among the
members of the organization.
? The best-worded vision statement clearly illuminates the
direction in which organization is headed.
(b) The strategy in question is the growth/expansion strategy.
The Growth/Expansion strategy involves redefining the business,
expanding its scope, and significantly increasing investments. This
dynamic and vigorous approach is synonymous with promise and
611
success. It entails a substantial reformulation of goals, major initiatives, 
and strategic moves, including investments, exploration into new 
products, technologies, and markets, and innovative decision-making. 
While promising growth, this strategy navigates the enterprise through 
relatively unknown and risky paths, rich with potential but also pitfalls. 
Major Reasons for Adopting Growth/Expansion Strategy: 
• It may become imperative when environment demands increase in
pace of activity.
• Strategists may feel more satisfied with the prospects of growth
from expansion; chief executives may take pride in presiding over
organizations perceived to be growth-oriented.
• Expansion may lead to greater control over the market vis-a-vis
competitors.
• Advantages from the experience curve and scale of operations may
accrue.
• Expansion also includes intensifying, diversifying, acquiring and
merging businesses.
4. (a)  Implementation or execution is an operations-oriented, activity aimed
at shaping the performance of core business activities in a strategy-
supportive manner. In most situations, strategy-execution process 
includes the following principal aspects:  
? Developing budgets that steer ample resources into those
activities that are critical to strategic success.
? Staffing the organization with the needed skills and expertise,
consciously building and strengthening strategy-supportive
competencies and competitive capabilities and organizing the work
effort.
? Ensuring that policies and operating procedures facilitate
rather than impede effective execution.
? Using the best-known practices to perform core business
activities and pushing for continuous improvement.
? Installing information and operating systems that enable
company personnel to better carry out their strategic roles day in
and day out.
? Motivating people to pursue the target objectives
energetically.
? Creating culture and climate conducive to successful strategy
implementation and execution.
? Exerting the internal leadership needed to drive implementation
forward and keep improving strategy execution.
612
Page 5


PAPER 6B: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 
PART I 
1. (A) (i) (c) (ii) (b) (iii)  (c) (iv)  (a) (v)  (c)
1. (B) (i) (a) (ii) (c) (iii)  (a)
PART II 
1. (a)  The collaboration between TechNova, a software development firm, and
ElectroWave, an electronics and hardware manufacturing company, 
represents a co-generic merger. This type of external growth strategy 
involves the merger of companies from related but non-competing 
industries, allowing them to leverage complementary strengths and 
diversify their product offerings. 
TechNova specializes in creating cutting-edge software, while 
ElectroWave focuses on manufacturing advanced electronic devices. By 
joining forces, they can combine their expertise to design innovative 
laptops and smartphones, creating products that neither company could 
have developed as effectively on their own. This strategic partnership 
allows them to enter new markets, enhance their competitive advantage, 
and explore synergies between software and hardware. 
The co-generic merger provides significant opportunities for both 
companies to capitalize on shared technologies, streamline their 
operations, and expand their customer base. It is a strategic move that 
enables them to diversify while maintaining a strong focus on their core 
competencies, ultimately helping them to grow and compete more 
effectively in the global market. 
(b) Vikram Patel is facing declining sales due to a significant shift of
customers toward online platforms. Although he employs strategic
management tools, they cannot always overcome every obstacle or
guarantee success. The limitations of strategic management in Vikram’s
situation include:
? The environment in which strategies are developed is highly
complex and unpredictable. The entry of online bookstores, a new
type of competitor, introduced a different dynamic to the book retail
industry. These online platforms, with their extensive reach and
pricing power, have dominated the market, posing a formidable
challenge to traditional bookstores.
? Another limitation of strategic management is the difficulty in
forecasting future developments. Despite his strategic
management efforts, Vikram Patel did not anticipate the extent to
which online bookstores would impact his sales.
? While strategic management is a time-consuming process, it is
crucial for Vikram to continue managing strategically. These
ANSWERS OF MODEL TEST PAPER 5
609
challenging times demand increased effort and adaptability on his 
part. 
? Strategic management can be costly. Vikram Patel might consider
hiring experts to understand customer preferences better and
adjust his strategies to offer more personalized services. These
customized offerings could be difficult for online stores to replicate,
giving him a competitive edge.
? The bookstores owned by Vikram Patel are much smaller in scale
compared to online stores. This makes it challenging for him to
predict how online platforms will manoeuvre strategically.
(c) The scenario being referred to is the organizational culture at Orion Tech
Solutions Pvt. Ltd. A strong culture encourages effective strategy
execution when there is alignment and drives performance even when
there is minimal alignment. A culture rooted in values, practices, and
behavioural norms that align with the requirements for successful
strategy execution energizes employees across the organization to
perform their roles in a manner that supports the strategy. Orion's
culture, built around principles such as listening to customers,
encouraging employees to take pride in their work, and providing a high
degree of decision-making autonomy, is highly conducive to successfully
executing a strategy focused on delivering superior software solutions.
A strong strategy-supportive culture at Orion makes employees feel
genuinely better about their jobs, work environment, and the
organization's goals. It motivates them to embrace the challenge of
realizing the company’s vision, perform their duties competently and
enthusiastically, and collaborate effectively with others.
2. (a)  As industry’s Key Success Factors (KSFs) are those things that most
affect industry members’ ability to prosper in the marketplace – the 
particular strategy elements, product attributes, resources, 
competencies, competitive capabilities and business outcomes that spell 
the difference between profit & loss and ultimately, between competitive 
success or failure. KSFs by their very nature are so important that all 
firms in the industry must pay close attention to them. They are the 
prerequisites for industry success, or, to put it in another way, KSFs are 
the rules that shape whether a company will be financially and 
competitively successful. 
(b) Channels represent the distribution system through which
organizations distribute their products or provide services to customers.
They play a pivotal role in reaching target markets, maximizing sales,
and establishing competitive advantages.
Channel analysis is important when the business strategy is to scale up
and expand beyond the current geographies and markets. When a
business plans to grow to newer markets, they need to develop or
leverage existing channels to get to new customers. Thus, analysis of
channels that suit one’s products and customers is of utmost importance.
610
There are typically three channels that should be considered: sales 
channel, product channel and service channel. 
? The sales channel - These are the intermediaries involved in
selling the product through each channel and ultimately to the end
user. The key question is: Who needs to sell to whom for your
product to be sold to your end user? For example, many fashion
designers use agencies to sell their products to retail organizations,
so that consumers can access them.
? The product channel - The product channel focuses on the series
of intermediaries who physically handle the product on its path from
its producer to the end user. This is true of Australia Post, who
delivers and distributes many online purchases between the seller
and purchaser when using eBay and other online stores.
? The service channel - The service channel refers to the entities
that provide necessary services to support the product, as it moves
through the sales channel and after purchase by the end user. The
service channel is an important consideration for products that are
complex in terms of installation or customer assistance. For
example, a Bosch dishwasher may be sold in a Bosch showroom,
and then once sold it is installed by a Bosch contracted plumber.
3. (a)  A strategic vision serves as a roadmap for a company’s future, detailing
the specifics of technology, customer focus, geographic and product 
markets, and the capabilities the organization aims to develop. It 
answers the critical question, “Where are we going?” and provides a 
compelling rationale for the chosen direction, ensuring it aligns with the 
company’s long-term objectives. 
A strategic vision outlines the organization’s aspirations, offering a 
broad, panoramic view of where it aims to be. It provides a clear 
direction, charts a strategic path for future endeavors, and helps in 
shaping the organizational identity. 
Essentials of a strategic vision 
? The entrepreneurial challenge in developing a strategic vision is to
think creatively about how to prepare a company for the future.
? Forming a strategic vision is an exercise in intelligent
entrepreneurship.
? A well-articulated strategic vision creates enthusiasm among the
members of the organization.
? The best-worded vision statement clearly illuminates the
direction in which organization is headed.
(b) The strategy in question is the growth/expansion strategy.
The Growth/Expansion strategy involves redefining the business,
expanding its scope, and significantly increasing investments. This
dynamic and vigorous approach is synonymous with promise and
611
success. It entails a substantial reformulation of goals, major initiatives, 
and strategic moves, including investments, exploration into new 
products, technologies, and markets, and innovative decision-making. 
While promising growth, this strategy navigates the enterprise through 
relatively unknown and risky paths, rich with potential but also pitfalls. 
Major Reasons for Adopting Growth/Expansion Strategy: 
• It may become imperative when environment demands increase in
pace of activity.
• Strategists may feel more satisfied with the prospects of growth
from expansion; chief executives may take pride in presiding over
organizations perceived to be growth-oriented.
• Expansion may lead to greater control over the market vis-a-vis
competitors.
• Advantages from the experience curve and scale of operations may
accrue.
• Expansion also includes intensifying, diversifying, acquiring and
merging businesses.
4. (a)  Implementation or execution is an operations-oriented, activity aimed
at shaping the performance of core business activities in a strategy-
supportive manner. In most situations, strategy-execution process 
includes the following principal aspects:  
? Developing budgets that steer ample resources into those
activities that are critical to strategic success.
? Staffing the organization with the needed skills and expertise,
consciously building and strengthening strategy-supportive
competencies and competitive capabilities and organizing the work
effort.
? Ensuring that policies and operating procedures facilitate
rather than impede effective execution.
? Using the best-known practices to perform core business
activities and pushing for continuous improvement.
? Installing information and operating systems that enable
company personnel to better carry out their strategic roles day in
and day out.
? Motivating people to pursue the target objectives
energetically.
? Creating culture and climate conducive to successful strategy
implementation and execution.
? Exerting the internal leadership needed to drive implementation
forward and keep improving strategy execution.
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(b) The PESTLE framework assists in analyzing the macro-environment by
systematically evaluating six external factors that impact an
organization’s operations and strategy.
1. Political Factors: This includes government policies, regulations,
political stability, and taxation. Understanding these factors helps
organizations anticipate regulatory changes and government
interventions that could affect their business environment.
2. Economic Factors: This involves assessing economic conditions
such as interest rates, inflation, exchange rates, and economic
growth. These factors influence business costs, consumer
purchasing power, and overall market conditions.
3. Social Factors: This examines demographic trends, lifestyle
changes, cultural norms, and consumer attitudes. Insights into
social factors help businesses align their products and services
with evolving consumer preferences and societal trends.
4. Technological Factors: This includes technological advancements,
innovation rates, and technological infrastructure. These factors
impact production processes, product development, and competitive
positioning.
5. Legal Factors: This involves understanding business laws,
employment regulations, health and safety standards, and compliance
requirements. Legal factors are crucial for ensuring regulatory
compliance and avoiding legal risks.
6. Environmental Factors: This covers ecological issues, sustainability
practices, and environmental regulations. Awareness of
environmental factors helps businesses adapt to climate change and
meet sustainability goals.
By analyzing these factors, the PESTLE framework provides a
comprehensive understanding of the macro-environment, helping
organizations anticipate changes, adapt strategies, and make
informed decisions.
OR 
A tool to identify the market positions of rival companies by grouping 
them into like positions is strategic group mapping. A strategic group 
consists of those rival firms which have similar competitive approaches 
and positions in the market.  
The procedure for constructing a strategic group map and deciding 
which firms belong in which strategic group are as follows: 
1. Identify the competitive characteristics that differentiate firms in
the industry typical variables that are price/quality range (high,
medium, low); geographic coverage (local, regional, national,
global); degree of vertical integration (none, partial, full); product-
line breadth (wide, narrow); use of distribution channels (one,
some, all); and degree of service offered (no-frills, limited, full).
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