Answers to the Strategist quiz #572

Answers to the Strategist quiz #572

1. It can be found in the earliest surviving poetry, composed by Homer in the 8th Century BC. In the Iliad he describes some of the tech wonders produced by Hepahaistos god of metallurgy and craftsmanship. Name the concept that relates very well to what is happening in the tech world today.

Ans: Automata. An organised machine which imitates the movement of a living body. Hephaistos manufactured mechanical golden maid servants, endowed with the gift of speech and intelligence like the present day robots

2. As a CEO he made this company one of the most powerful ones in the world. The Dean of Princeton called him a poor student, a cut up and a predetermined failure. He barely graduated from Brown University and was known as a playboy with a penchant for girls, fast cars and was seen at the New York and Hollywood clubs in the 1930s. He took a job in his father’s company and used to complete his yearly sales quota on the first day itself and spend rest of the year partying. Name him.

Ans: Thomas J Watson Jr. — the former chief executive officer of IBM

3. Who is the first in India to use biodiesel produced from used cooking oil to power its trucks?

Ans: Hardcastle Restaurants Pvt Ltd, the master franchisee for McDonald’s in west and south India, is now powering all its delivery trucks in Mumbai with bio-diesel made from its used cooking oil

4. Who has recently launched a “Disruption Consulting” practice in India for brands?

Ans: Ad agency TBWA India

5. What is the term used to describe imperfect information about finding out where jobs are and where workers are for the appropriate jobs.

Ans: Search Friction

6. This person is known as the billionaire's banker. His firm purchased a very famous landmark building in Chicago that drew inspiration from the shape of the Giralda tower of Seville's Cathedral combined with French Renaissance details. Name the person and the building he owns. Warrant Buffet is known to have said that he is the only banker he trusts.

Ans: Byron Trott, a trusted advisor to clients with names like Buffett, Walton, and Pritzker bought the iconic Wrigley Building in Chicago that was built in the 1920s

7. Mckinsey worked with this Fortune top 5 customer in the early 1980s and tried to repeat their then recent success with AT&T. They recommended restructuring this company by Product type and not brand. By moving people around it destroyed institutional knowledge and informal networks within the company and sowed the seeds that led to its bankruptcy in 2009.  Name the company.

Ans: General Motors

8. Which brand used these lines in its ads “American by Birth, Rebel by Choice”?

Ans: Harley Davidson

9. Which company recently has introduced a new tagline “Built on Trust” while celebrating its platinum Jubilee year?

Ans:  Blue Star

10. Identify the images and establish the unique distinction they both have.

Ans: The Big Mac from McDonalds and the famous Billy Shelf Book case from Ikea. Both are  famous for financial indices named after them. The Big Mac Index launched by The Economist and the Billy bookcase Index by Bloomberg have become one of the best known ways to compare purchasing power in the world