Information Systems, Organizations, and Strategy

According to the chapter's opening case, Sears Holdings CEO Lou D’Ambrosio's strategy for reviving sales involved a more intensive use of technology and what other key activity?

What are the three elements of the technical microeconomic definition of an organization as described in the chapter?

Which feature of an organization is described as precise rules, procedures, and practices developed to cope with virtually all expected situations?

According to the chapter, which of the following is NOT a disruptive technology?

Which economic theory views the firm as a 'nexus of contracts' among self-interested individuals and is used to explain how IT can reduce management costs?

What is the primary effect of information technology on organizational hierarchies, as described by behavioral researchers?

According to Porter's competitive forces model, which of the following is NOT one of the five forces shaping an industry?

What information systems strategy is exemplified by Walmart's continuous replenishment system?

What is the term for the ability to offer individually tailored products or services using the same production resources as mass production, as exemplified by Nike's NIKEiD program?

Which model highlights specific activities in the business where competitive strategies can best be applied and where information systems are most likely to have a strategic impact?

In the value chain model, which of the following is considered a primary activity?

A value web is described as a collection of independent firms that use information technology to coordinate their value chains to produce a product or service for a market collectively. This is an extension of what other model?

What is a core competency?

According to the principles of network economics, what happens to the marginal cost of adding another participant to a network?

What is the term for a movement between levels of sociotechnical systems, often required when adopting strategic information systems?

What percentage of firms, according to research cited in the chapter, successfully align their IT with their business goals?

In the Interactive Session on automakers, what technology did Ford use to allow designers to experience a proposed interior and identify potential blind spots or awkward knob placements?

The behavioral view of an organization differs from the technical view by emphasizing that building new systems involves changing the:

In the Interactive Session about Starbucks, what was a primary goal of creating a 'lean team' to streamline in-store processes?

Which organizational structure, according to Mintzberg's classification, is described as a 'task force organization that must respond to rapidly changing environments'?

The chapter argues that information systems can flatten organizations. According to the text, what is a primary reason this occurs?

What is the term for comparing the efficiency and effectiveness of your business processes against strict standards and then measuring performance?

According to the text, a business firm can be seen as a collection of what?

What is the primary negative impact of the Internet on competitive forces, according to the chapter?

What term does the chapter use for a business model that uses networks to link people, assets, and ideas, enabling it to ally with other companies without being limited by traditional organizational boundaries?

In the business ecosystem strategic model, what are firms like Microsoft and Walmart, which create the platforms used by other niche firms, called?

What is a primary reason that competitive advantage conferred by strategic systems does not necessarily last long?

Which of Mintzberg's five organizational structures is most likely to have parallel, non-integrated patient record systems?

How does transaction cost theory explain the effect of information technology on firm size?

The chapter highlights four types of IT-enabled organizational change. Which type represents the most risk and the highest reward?

The example of Ford Motor Company's 'invoiceless processing' which reduced accounts payable headcount by 75 percent is used to illustrate which type of organizational change?

What are the two main categories of activities in the business value chain model?

The case of Li & Fung, which manages production for fashion companies without owning any factories, is used to illustrate which network-based strategy?

What is the primary management challenge in building a successful e-commerce presence?

Which of the following would NOT be a question asked during a strategic systems analysis as outlined in the Management Checklist?

What is the 'user-designer communications gap'?

The chapter describes the Internet's impact on switching costs for customers. What is the general effect?

How many employees does the global consulting service Accenture have, according to the text?

What type of information systems are increasingly used by senior management to display graphs and charts of key performance indicators on a single screen?

What is the primary characteristic of a 'niche' strategy in Porter's framework?

The mobile Internet platform is presented as an example of which network-based strategic concept?

What is the primary purpose of business process management (BPM)?

The chapter mentions a study of 1,471 IT projects which found that the average cost overrun was what percentage?

In the systems development process, which activity involves defining the problem, identifying its causes, and specifying the solution?

What is the primary tool for representing a system's component processes and the flow of data between them in structured methodologies?

Object-oriented development is based on which two key concepts?

What is the oldest method for building information systems, characterized by a phased, 'waterfall' approach?

What is the primary advantage of prototyping in systems development?

What is a major organizational risk associated with end-user development?

Which technology enables Web sites to automatically change their layout according to a visitor's screen resolution, whether on a desktop, tablet, or smartphone?