Answers to the Strategist quiz (#492)

Strategy Quiz (#492) answers

1. It first came to light in the 1490s when two explorers, Rodrigo De Jerez and Luis de Torres, working for Christopher Columbus, spotted and imbibed the habits of Cubans who stuffed a particular commodity in the leaves or ears of corn and consumed it. Jerez’s addiction to it caused his imprisonment when he returned to Spain. China is the largest and India is the second largest producer of this commodity.

Tobacco

2. Backseat spreader, Dark Brown5 (DB5), Dark Secrets, Mangry and Beauty and the Yeast are all terms submitted by users of a particular brand whose main ingredient is also the key ingredient for beer and bread makers. It is a brand founded in the UK with a French name. Identify it.

Marmite. It is concentrated brewer’s yeast that can be stored in a bottle and eaten. It is a French term for a large covered earthenware. Originally, the British Marmite was supplied in earthen pots.

3. Who said, “Obvious prospects for physical growth in a business do not translate into obvious profits for investors”?

Benjamin Graham, who was an inspiration to Warren Buffet.

4. In 1977 Rosabeth Moss Kanter of the Harvard Business School wrote a book titled “Men and Women of the Corporation: A study of power and the role of women in a large corporation”. This book gave rise to the usage of now a very strong and often used word in management leading to the emancipation of employees. What is it?

Empowerment

5. Which airline is a first one to shun the phrase “best in class” and introduce a new one called “Welcome to Experience Class”? It has a world famous DJ curate special Spotify playlists for its passengers.

Air Nippon Airways of Japan has launched an innovative and co-creative campaign, Welcome to Experience Class, and plans to run this for a year

6. The first chapter of one of the best-selling business books starts with an introduction of the CEO of Canadian company Cirque du Soleil. Name it.

Blue Ocean Strategy. Written by W Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne

7. During the 1870s, a clerk from another company was appointed by James Gamble of P&G to solve a communications problem in his factory. He wanted to ship customer orders the same day he received them. This led to the invention of the teletype machine. Name the person who was hired.

Thomas Alva Edison

8. What is the term used when a new brand is introduced by a company that already has an established brand in the same product category. The intent is to increase overall market share in the category and crowd out competition.

Flanker Brand

9. Which company’s name when translated into English means Honk-Honk?

Didi, the taxi service started by Cheng Wei

10. Identify this company from its logo. It has its registered office in Hyderabad?

Lycos Internet Limited. The good old gem from the early dotcom era is now owned by Hyderabad-based Ybrant Technologies

There was one correct entry to quiz No 492. The winner is V Raghavan from Gurgaon.