edinburgh Napier university
SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT
sOE 09901
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT in a Global Context (Hong Kong)
BA (Hons) Marketing Management
Academic session:
2012/13
Diet:
May 2013
Exam duration:
2 hours 30 minutes
Reading time:
(excluding reading time)
Total exam time:
2 hours 30 minutes
Please read full instructions before commencing writing
Exam paper information
Total number of pages: TWO pages
Number of questions: FIVE questions
You should attempt THREE questions
All questions carry equal marks
Special instructions
None
Special items
None
Examiner: R Lannon
ATTEMPT THREE QUESTIONS.
1. Select an industry of your choice and apply appropriate frameworks to assess the external environment facing firms operating in that industry.
2. ‘Pursuing both cost leadership strategy and a differentiation strategy at the same time is always going to lead to superior performance’.
Discuss the alternative generic strategies firms can choose from and argue whether you agree with the above statement.
3. A local restaurant which focuses on traditional local recipes has been very successful and attracts a strong following from younger, local professional customers as well as foreign tourists. The owner of the restaurant wants to grow the business and is producing a long term growth strategy to present to potential new investors.
Using Ansoff’s product/market matrix of growth options, advise the owner on the alternative options he/she can pursue indicating the risks and competencies associated with each option.
4. ‘To succeed in the current business environment, international firms must adopt a transnational strategy which can be summarised as think global, act local’.
With reference to alternative international strategies, argue why this international strategy has become so popular and why it is difficult to achieve.
5. Explain the reasons why strategic change is so challenging and suggest what actions managers can take to