Practice Test 1

1. Maya is helping plan a charity event for her student org. The group buys a scheduling app, but members keep using random group chats and handwritten notes, so tasks are still missed. Maya says the problem must be the app because the club “has the technology now.” Her friend says the club is ignoring part of the information system that is harder to change than software.

Which part of the information system is MOST likely causing the problem?

2. A first-year student builds a budgeting spreadsheet for her roommates. She labels one tab “expenses,” but fills it with comments like “we should really stop ordering food late at night.” Her roommate says the file mixes up two MIS ideas and that the useful part for later analysis is only one of them.

Which concept is the roommate MOST likely pointing to?

3. A campus coffee shop owner hears nonstop excitement about AI ordering kiosks. He notices that every article says the kiosks will “change everything,” but none of the vendors can explain how the tool would fit his small shop’s workflow or pay for itself. He wants a framework that reminds him not to confuse hype with lasting value.

Which concept would help him MOST?

4. A student who already knows Excel very well creates a guide for her internship team. She leaves out half the steps because they seem “obvious,” and the team keeps making mistakes. She gets frustrated and says the instructions were clear.

Which concept BEST explains her mistake?

5. A student-run resale business used to track sales once a week on paper. After moving to cheap cloud spreadsheets and phone-based scanning, the team starts tracking sales by item, hour, and location in real time. The leaders say the bigger change was not just “more computers,” but the ability to collect more detailed performance measures.

Which chain of ideas BEST explains this shift?

6. A smoothie shop near campus can be copied pretty easily. Another shop could rent a nearby space, buy similar blenders, and sell similar drinks within a month. The owner says the real challenge is not starting the business but staying profitable once copycats appear.

Which idea BEST fits this situation?

7. A startup sells class-note templates for business students. Its founder says, “Our goal is not just to make a good product. We want something hard for other sellers to match for years.” Her mentor says she is describing a stronger concept than simple competitive advantage.

Which concept is the mentor referring to?

8. A boutique bakery starts using software to predict demand by day and weather. It buys less excess inventory, reduces rush-order costs, and wastes fewer ingredients. The owner says the software matters because it improved a set of related actions, not just one isolated task.

What is the BEST way to describe what improved?

9. A small clothing seller says, “We will win because our shirts are cheaper than everyone else’s.” A classmate replies, “That only works if your whole system supports low cost. Another firm could beat you by offering something buyers value enough to pay more for.”

Which strategic idea is the classmate using?

10. A delivery app is deciding where technology can improve performance. The team maps inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, marketing, and service, then asks where software could lower cost or improve speed.

Which framework are they MOST likely using?

11. A new tutoring app connects students who need help with students who want paid tutoring jobs. At first, the app offers very low prices to students booking sessions and free signup bonuses to tutors. The founder says the company may not earn much right away on one side because getting both sides onto the platform matters more.

Which concept BEST explains this decision?

12. A resale marketplace gets more useful to buyers when more sellers join, because selection improves. It also gets more useful to sellers when more buyers join, because the chance of making a sale rises. A student says this is “just regular network effects,” but another says the key detail is that the added value is moving across different user groups.

Which concept BEST fits?

13. A rideshare driver keeps both Uber and Lyft open at the same time. She says she uses whichever app offers the better fare in the moment and does not feel committed to either one. A classmate says this behavior weakens the platform’s ability to lock in users.

Which concept BEST explains the driver’s behavior?

14. A food delivery app becomes popular on campus. Students like it because many restaurants are already listed, and restaurants like it because so many students use it. A rival app with fewer users struggles even though its design is slightly better.

Which concept MOST directly explains why the first app is hard to catch?

15. A small ticketing platform for student events charges event hosts nothing but charges attendees a small convenience fee. The founder says this makes sense because hosts will not join unless there are many events listed, while attendees only pay once they see enough value.

Which side is MOST likely the subsidy side?

16. A legacy textbook publisher keeps improving printed books for professors who already prefer them. Meanwhile, a small startup offers a rough but cheap digital study tool aimed at students who cannot afford the full textbook. Over time, the tool gets much better and starts replacing the old product.

Which concept BEST explains what happened?

17. A successful camera company ignores early phone cameras because they are low quality and unattractive to serious photographers. Years later, phone cameras improve enough for most everyday users, and the camera company loses a huge share of casual buyers. The company’s executives say they were serving their best customers the whole time.

Which idea BEST explains their mistake?

18. A meal-prep company keeps adding better packaging, more flavor options, and premium ingredients for current subscribers. Another firm enters with a simpler plan for students on tight budgets, and most managers dismiss it as “too basic to matter.”

Which contrast BEST fits the situation?

19. A professor tells a class that not every new technology is disruptive. A student points to a faster laptop model and says, “This proves all major improvement is disruption.” The professor says the student is confusing two different kinds of innovation.

Which response is MOST accurate?

20. A large music company sees a new app used mostly by high school students making short amateur songs with simple tools. Executives laugh because professionals still prefer expensive studio software. Five years later, the app improves, gains creators of all skill levels, and changes how many songs are made and shared.

Why was the company’s early reaction strategically dangerous?

21. Zara store managers send frequent feedback on what shoppers ask for, what sells quickly, and what is being ignored. Designers use that information to adjust products fast, and operations changes production and shipping in response.

Which idea MOST directly explains Zara’s advantage?

22. A traditional clothing retailer places huge overseas orders six months in advance to get low unit costs. Zara-style rivals place smaller, more frequent orders and restock based on current demand signals. The traditional retailer often ends the season with piles of unwanted inventory.

Which tradeoff is the traditional retailer handling poorly?

23. A startup tells investors it wants to “be the next Zara,” but its whole model depends on long planning cycles, large batches, and slow store feedback. One investor says the company is copying Zara’s category but not Zara’s actual source of advantage.

What is the investor MOST likely referring to?

24. A fast-fashion retailer decides to shorten product runs so stores can test new styles quickly and reorder only winners. A finance student complains that this sounds inefficient because the firm loses some scale benefits. The operations manager says the firm is buying something more valuable.

What is the manager MOST likely saying the firm is buying?

25. A retailer’s design team argues that trend spotting is all that matters in fashion. Another manager says that even brilliant design does not create advantage if products arrive too late or stores cannot adjust quickly.

Which chapter idea BEST supports the second manager?