What Is NOT a Rationale for a Company to Pursue

question 71

Multiple Choice

What is NOT a rationale for a company to pursue outsourcing as a strategy execution step in order to enhance the performance of value chain activities?

• A)Outsourcing support services often has the disadvantage of raising fixed and variable costs.
• B)Outsourcing critics contend that shifting responsibility for performing value chain activities to outside specialists can hollow out a company's knowledge base and capabilities, leaving it at the mercy of outside suppliers, and short of the resource strengths to be a master of its own destiny.
• C)Outsourcing the performance of certain value chain activities to able suppliers can add to a company's arsenal of capabilities and contribute to better strategy execution.
• D)The real debate surrounding outsourcing is not about whether too much outsourcing risks loss of control but about how to use outsourcing in a manner that produces greater competitiveness.
• E)Outsourcing can enable a company to heighten its strategic focus and concentrate its full energies and resources on even more competently performing those value chain activities that are at the core of its strategy and for which it can create unique value.

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Definitions:

Winning Strategy

A plan or approach designed to achieve victory or success in a competition, conflict, or challenging situation.

No-Win Issues

Topics or challenges that cannot be satisfactorily resolved, often leading to outcomes that satisfy no party fully.

Fuzzy Positions

Vague or unclear stances on issues, often intentionally, to avoid alienating potential supporters.

Expert Audiences

Specific groups of individuals with advanced knowledge or skills in a particular domain or field.