1. Is Blackberry’s decision to lay off 4,500 employees is an example of strategic or operational planning?
2. How could BlackBerry have benefited from conducting industry and company (SWOT) situational analysis?
3. Which grand strategy was BlackBerry considering to use in the case?
4. If BlackBerry considered opening up its retail stores, would that be considered a forward or backward integration strategy?
5. Has BlackBerry’s primary adaptive strategy of the past few years been prospecting, defending, or analyzing?
6. Has BlackBerry’s primary competitive strategy against its competitors been product differentiation, cost leadership, or focus?
7. Is the functional operational strategy of finding more customers the responsibility of marketing, human resources, operations, or finance?
8. Does Blackberry have a core competency? If so, what is it?
9. Which management functions, skills, and management levels are most important in implementing the growth strategy for BlackBerry?
10. Which environmental factors were most instrumental in BlackBerry’s competition with Apple, Samsung, and Google during the late 2000s?
11. Use the Internet to find an article that discusses the forecast for smartphone usage across the globe.