How often Planning is asked
Where it was asked
What costs marks here
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The questions
Oct/Nov 2018, Q421 mark · multiple choice
Tsogo Sun creates and sustains long-term value by focusing on several key pillars, such as satisfying reasonable stakeholder requirements, ensuring financial strength and durability, and keeping its products relevant to the customer experience. A central part of the group's plan for organic growth is developing its casino and hotel real estate. Tsogo Sun invests more than R800 million every year in expanding, refurbishing and maintaining its existing casinos and hotels. Which of the following best describes this kind of activity?
Oct/Nov 2018, Q431 mark · multiple choice
As part of its growth strategy, Tsogo Sun has acquired and revamped hotels that were in financial distress, such as the former Grace Hotel in Rosebank, where the TSG group opened a new five-star deluxe boutique hotel called 54 on Bath in 2012. This gave the group a competitive edge as it boldly moved into a new market. Which corporate strategy has Tsogo Sun adopted in this scenario?
Oct/Nov 2018, Q441 mark · multiple choice
Planning creates a blueprint of an organisation's goals and sets out the plans needed to reach them. Which specific benefit of planning is being described by this statement?
Oct/Nov 2018, Q451 mark · multiple choice
Complete the statement: lower-level managers use ______ goals in order to develop ______ goals.
Oct/Nov 2018, Q461 mark · multiple choice
A goal is said to be ______ when it is realistic but still presents a challenge.
Oct/Nov 2018, Q471 mark · multiple choice
Which ONE of the following statements is an example of a project?
May/Jun 2017, Q421 mark · multiple choice
Tsogo Sun has operated in the hospitality industry for more than 44 years, and as part of its strategy it has, over recent years, bought and refurbished distressed hotels before returning them to profitable operation. In 2014 Tsogo Sun launched a newly refurbished Sun Square Hotel targeted at local economy-class travellers seeking comfort and class at an affordable price. Identify which type of strategy this represents.
May/Jun 2017, Q431 mark · multiple choice
Continuing with the Tsogo Sun case (a hospitality group with over 44 years in the industry that has strategically acquired and revamped distressed hotels), determine what its long-term strategic goals are derived from.
May/Jun 2017, Q441 mark · multiple choice
Planning creates a blueprint of an organisation's goals and formulates the plans needed to attain them. Identify which benefit of planning is being described by this statement.
May/Jun 2017, Q451 mark · multiple choice
Select which one of the listed options is classified as an operational plan.
May/Jun 2017, Q461 mark · multiple choice
Identify which specific corporate strategy involves a business taking over other businesses that supply its raw materials or serve as its outlets.
May/Jun 2017, Q471 mark · multiple choice
Consider the rule that pilots cannot be scheduled for more than 35 hours in any seven-day week, nor more than 100 hours in a 28-day cycle, and that they must receive a 36-hour break every seven days as well as 30 days off within an 84-day cycle. Determine what type of planning document this rule represents, and what category of plan it falls under (i.e. fill in the blanks: 'This is an example of a ____, which is a ____ plan').
Oct/Nov 2015, Q421 mark · multiple choice
Questions 42 to 45 are based on a case scenario about Google: the company's ongoing success depends on the daily, hands-on involvement of its co-founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Innovation is described as the topic discussed most often at board meetings, since it is seen as the reason Google stays ahead of and out in front of its competitors. Given that Sergey Brin and Larry Page, as co-founders of Google and members of top management, need to plan effectively, they must make sure that the goals of every part of the organisation can be reconciled with each other and with the organisation's overall primary goals. Which specific benefit of planning does this situation illustrate: does planning promote coordination, ensure cohesion, facilitate control, or provide direction?
Oct/Nov 2015, Q431 mark · multiple choice
Questions 42 to 45 are based on a case scenario about Google: the company's ongoing success depends on the daily, hands-on involvement of its co-founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Innovation is described as the topic discussed most often at board meetings, since it is seen as the reason Google stays ahead of and out in front of its competitors. Sergey Brin holds the view that goals should not be set too conservatively, and that people should aim to achieve what most others would not attempt; however, he also insists that a goal must remain realistic even while being challenging. Which criterion for effective goals is being described here: must goals be specific, measurable, attainable, or relevant?
Oct/Nov 2015, Q441 mark · multiple choice
Questions 42 to 45 are based on a case scenario about Google: the company's ongoing success depends on the daily, hands-on involvement of its co-founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Innovation is described as the topic discussed most often at board meetings, since it is seen as the reason Google stays ahead of and out in front of its competitors. Sergey Brin and Larry Page need to make sure that the goals they set at departmental level are compatible with the goals of the subsections beneath those departments. What term describes this kind of compatibility: horizontal consistency, vertical consistency, cohesion, or coordination?
Oct/Nov 2015, Q451 mark · multiple choice
Questions 42 to 45 are based on a case scenario about Google: the company's ongoing success depends on the daily, hands-on involvement of its co-founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Innovation is described as the topic discussed most often at board meetings, since it is seen as the reason Google stays ahead of and out in front of its competitors. Suppose Sergey Brin and Larry Page decide to adopt a management-by-objectives (MBO) approach for setting goals at Google. Which of the following represents a disadvantage they should be aware of when implementing MBO: that individual goals are not aligned with organisational goals, that it is a bureaucratic approach, that operational goals may displace strategic goals, or that employees can become demotivated by the approach?
Oct/Nov 2015, Q461 mark · multiple choice
Questions 42 to 45 are based on a case scenario about Google: the company's ongoing success depends on the daily, hands-on involvement of its co-founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Innovation is described as the topic discussed most often at board meetings, since it is seen as the reason Google stays ahead of and out in front of its competitors. Hops are one of the main ingredients used by SABMiller in brewing its beer. If SABMiller decided to acquire its own hops suppliers in order to secure a more reliable, higher-quality supply, what name would be given to this long-term strategy: product development, innovation, vertical integration, or horizontal integration?
Oct/Nov 2015, Q471 mark · multiple choice
Questions 42 to 45 are based on a case scenario about Google: the company's ongoing success depends on the daily, hands-on involvement of its co-founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Innovation is described as the topic discussed most often at board meetings, since it is seen as the reason Google stays ahead of and out in front of its competitors. Following the 2008 recession, JB Hardware suffered a significant drop in profits and was compelled to cut costs and eliminate unprofitable products in order to survive as a business. Which specific corporate strategy did JB Hardware apply during this period: liquidation, a diversification strategy, a divestiture strategy, or a turnaround strategy?
The full Spot Map and the marks by year.