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605-655 (Medium)|   Business|   Short Passage|                              
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In corporate purchasing, competitive scrutiny is typically limited to 29 Jan 2023, 23:37
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1. Which of the following best describes the relation of the second paragraph to the first?

(A) The second paragraph offers proof of an assertion made in the first paragraph.
(B) The second paragraph provides an explanation for the occurrence of a situation described in the first paragraph.
(C) The second paragraph discusses the application of a strategy proposed in the first paragraph.
(D) The second paragraph examines the scope of a problem presented in the first paragraph.
(E) The second paragraph discusses the contradictions inherent in a relationship described in the first paragraph.

I am struggling with B and C of this question : I picked up B because I thought P2 is the more details of the 4 types mentioned in P1, so I thought this is explanation of 4 types in P1. also, I cannot understand the application in C, for me , application is something that tells you how to use the 4 types in different circumstances.

I recognized i frequently missed this kind of questions. I must have some reasoning bug or I haven't master the skills of this kind questions, would you please point out the test points behind this kind questions?

thanks in advance
There are a couple different things that are important to remember with this question. The first is the particulars of the question. In this instance, the question is asking for the relation of the two paragraphs. This means we have to identify the purpose of each paragraph. And the next thing to remember is that we have to be diligent in our process of elimination. We need to find reasons to eliminate answers and not talk ourselves into answers.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at (B):

Quote:
(B) The second paragraph provides an explanation for the occurrence of a situation described in the first paragraph.
The problem is that the first paragraph does not describe a situation. It describes a corporate purchasing strategy, namely competitive scrutiny with “indirect” purchases. Moreover, the second paragraph doesn’t explain an occurrence. It talks about how competitive scrutiny can/cannot be applied in four different situations. For those reasons, we can eliminate (B).

And here’s (C):

Quote:
(C) The second paragraph discusses the application of a strategy proposed in the first paragraph.
As we identified above, the strategy discussed in the first paragraph is competitive scrutiny with “indirect” purchases. The second paragraph then describes how the competitive scrutiny can/cannot be applied in four different situations. This is exactly what is detailed in (C). “To apply” means to put into practice. And the second paragraph discusses how competitive scrutiny with “indirect” purchases can be put into practice. So, (C) is the best answer choice.

One other note on these questions: as we did above, it can be helpful to break down each part of an answer choice. For example, with (B), what exactly is the explanation in the second paragraph? Or with (C), what is the strategy proposed in the first paragraph? Being precise with the answer choices can make it much easier to eliminate incorrect options.

I hope that helps!
Show more

Struggling b/w option B & C?
Why it cannot be B? it surely describes a situation in P1.
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In corporate purchasing, competitive scrutiny is typically limited to 05 Feb 2023, 10:33
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Question 1


samagra21
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Which of the following best describes the relation of the second paragraph to the first?

(A) The second paragraph offers proof of an assertion made in the first paragraph.
(B) The second paragraph provides an explanation for the occurrence of a situation described in the first paragraph.
(C) The second paragraph discusses the application of a strategy proposed in the first paragraph.
(D) The second paragraph examines the scope of a problem presented in the first paragraph.
(E) The second paragraph discusses the contradictions inherent in a relationship described in the first paragraph.

I am struggling with B and C of this question : I picked up B because I thought P2 is the more details of the 4 types mentioned in P1, so I thought this is explanation of 4 types in P1. also, I cannot understand the application in C, for me , application is something that tells you how to use the 4 types in different circumstances.

I recognized i frequently missed this kind of questions. I must have some reasoning bug or I haven't master the skills of this kind questions, would you please point out the test points behind this kind questions?

thanks in advance
There are a couple of different things that are important to remember with this question. The first is the particulars of the question. In this instance, the question is asking for the relation of the two paragraphs. This means we have to identify the purpose of each paragraph. And the next thing to remember is that we have to be diligent in our process of elimination. We need to find reasons to eliminate answers and not talk ourselves into answers.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at (B):

Quote:
The second paragraph provides an explanation for the occurrence of a situation described in the first paragraph.
The problem is that the first paragraph does not describe a situation. It describes a corporate purchasing strategy, namely competitive scrutiny with “indirect” purchases. Moreover, the second paragraph doesn’t explain an occurrence. It talks about how competitive scrutiny can/cannot be applied in four different situations. For those reasons, we can eliminate (B).

And here’s (C):

Quote:
The second paragraph discusses the application of a strategy proposed in the first paragraph.
As we identified above, the strategy discussed in the first paragraph is competitive scrutiny with “indirect” purchases. The second paragraph then describes how the competitive scrutiny can/cannot be applied in four different situations. This is exactly what is detailed in (C). “To apply” means to put into practice. And the second paragraph discusses how competitive scrutiny with “indirect” purchases can be put into practice. So, (C) is the best answer choice.

One other note on these questions: as we did above, it can be helpful to break down each part of an answer choice. For example, with (B), what exactly is the explanation in the second paragraph? Or with (C), what is the strategy proposed in the first paragraph? Being precise with the answer choices can make it much easier to eliminate incorrect options.

I hope that helps!

Struggling b/w option B & C?
Why it cannot be B? it surely describes a situation in P1.
Show more
Question 1 asks us to "describe the relation of the second paragraph to the first." So, we're trying to understand why the author wrote each paragraph, and how they fit together.

Could you say that P1 describes a situation? I suppose you could, in a broad sense. But what the author REALLY cares about in that paragraph isn't just neutral description. He/she actually argues for a particular business strategy: "companies should use [two things] to evaluate the feasibility of subjecting suppliers of indirect purchases to competitive scrutiny." Then, in the second paragraph, the author describes how the above would play out when applied in different scenarios.

All of this aligns really nicely with (C): "The second paragraph discusses the application of a strategy proposed in the first paragraph."

(B), on the other hand, runs into issues when describing the role of both paragraphs. As mentioned above, the point of the first paragraph isn't to describe stuff, it's to propose a business strategy. Additionally, the second paragraph doesn't "provide an explanation" for the first paragraph. To "provide an explanation" for something would be to explain how that situation came about initially, or to provide a backstory for that situation.

Instead of filling in the backstory, the second paragraph describes what could happen if the proposed strategy was applied. So the second paragraph is looking AHEAD to what could happen, not behind to provide an explanation for something that already happened.

For these reasons, (B) is out and (C) is the correct answer to question 1.

I hope that helps!
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In corporate purchasing, competitive scrutiny is typically limited to 05 Mar 2024, 05:55
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Hello, for Q2, why is B correct though?
Sounds like the purchaser pays less but in exchange they only buy from the supplier..

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Q2 E
Q4 E.

Whats wrong with these options ?

Question 2


Question 2 asks, "Which of the following can be inferred about supplier partnerships, as they are described in the passage?"

According to the passage, supplier partnerships are "arrangements in which the purchaser forgoes the right to pursue alternative suppliers."

So if firm A enters into supplier partnership with firm B, then firm A commits to purchasing agreed-upon supplies from firm B — and firm A cannot pursue those same supplies from any other firm.

After defining this term, the author spends all of paragraph 2 describing four situations and explaining how firms should think about supplier partnerships within each situation:

    1. Many alternatives and change is relatively easy -> Open pursuit of alternatives will likely yield the best results.
    2. Many alternatives but change is difficult -> Continuously test the market and use the results to secure concessions from existing suppliers.
    3. Few alternatives but change is easy -> Negotiate concessions from existing suppliers.
    4. Few alternatives and change is difficult -> Partnerships may be unavoidable.

Now, here's what Choice (E) says about supplier partnerships:

Quote:
(E) They are least appropriate when the purchasers' ability to change suppliers is limited.
This does NOT match how the author breaks down purchasers' options in paragraph 2.

The breakdown of situations suggests that supplier partnerships are least appropriate in situation 1, where firm A has the most flexibility to dictate the terms of supply (e.g. through frequent competitive bidding).

Change is also easy in situation 3. But does this means that supplier partnerships are just as inappropriate here as they are in situation 1?

Nothing in the passage implies that. In situation 1, firm A has practically no reason to enter into a supplier partnership. But in situation 3, firm A has few choices for suppliers. Even if the author's advice for situation 3 is to negotiate concessions from those suppliers, firm A has much less leverage in this situation. Consequently, it is logically more appropriate for firm A to consider a supplier partnership in situation 1 than in situation 3.

That's why we can eliminate choice (E).

Question 4


This one asks, "It can be inferred that the author of the passage would be most likely to make which of the following recommendations to a company purchasing health care benefits for its employees?"

According to the passage, providers of employee health-care benefits fall into situation 2.

So let's revisit the author's own words for that situation. Here's the breakdown of situations and advice again, from paragraph 2:

    1. Many alternatives and change is relatively easy -> Open pursuit of alternatives will likely yield the best results.
    2. Many alternatives but change is difficult -> Continuously test the market and use the results to secure concessions from existing suppliers.
    3. Few alternatives but change is easy -> Negotiate concessions from existing suppliers.
    4. Few alternatives and change is difficult -> Partnerships may be unavoidable.

Now, choice (E) says that the author would likely recommend the following:

Quote:
(E) Acknowledge the difficulties involved in replacing the current provider of health care benefits and offer to form a partnership with the provider.
This absolutely does NOT line up with the passage. In situation 2, the author does NOT recommend forming a partnership. That action would contradict the author's recommendation to "continuously test the market and use the results to secure concession," and that's why we eliminate (E).

This error is especially clear when comparing (E) to choice (C), which is a spot-on match for how the author uses health-care benefit providers to illustrate situation 2:

Quote:
(C) Obtain bids from other providers of health care benefits in order to be in a position to negotiate a better deal with the current provider.
I hope this helps!
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In corporate purchasing, competitive scrutiny is typically limited to 05 Apr 2024, 11:23
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Question 2


unicornilove
Hello, for Q2, why is B correct though?
Sounds like the purchaser pays less but in exchange they only buy from the supplier..


 
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­You're correct that in “supplier partnerships” the purchaser only buys from a particular supplier. But then we learn that these partnerships "can inappropriately shelter suppliers from rigorous competitive scrutiny that might afford the purchaser economic leverage."

If partnerships shelter the supplier from competition, what can we infer about the price? Well, the purchaser gives up their economic leverage, which means that they may pay a higher price.

That's why (B) is the correct answer to question 2.

I hope that helps!­
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In corporate purchasing, competitive scrutiny is typically limited to 17 Oct 2024, 16:30
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For the first question, the official solution says that D is wrong and that the first paragraph is not presenting a problem? I don’t understand how this can be isn’t it presenting the problem that exclusive business supplier partnerships presents to a corporate purchaser can somebody please explain this?
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In corporate purchasing, competitive scrutiny is typically limited to 01 Nov 2024, 13:19
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Question 1


Dbrunik
For the first question, the official solution says that D is wrong and that the first paragraph is not presenting a problem? I don’t understand how this can be isn’t it presenting the problem that exclusive business supplier partnerships presents to a corporate purchaser can somebody please explain this?
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The passage isn't exactly presenting exclusive supplier partnerships as a problem to be solved. Instead, the author basically says, "supplier partnerships have a disadvantage for corporate purchasers (little or no economic leverage for the purchaser), so companies should use these two variables to evaluate their options (supplier partnerships vs. subjecting suppliers to competitive scrutiny).

In one case (Type 4), the author would agree that a supplier partnership is probably the best route, even though it has that disadvantage. So it's a little odd to say that "supplier partnerships" are the problem presented when it's also cited as one of the four solutions (albeit the least desirable, at least in terms of economic leverage).

You could argue that the first paragraph does indirectly present a problem -- the problem of deciding whether or not to go with supplier partnerships for indirect purchases. But it's still a bit of a stretch to say that the first paragraph is there to PRESENT a specific problem. And even if we stretch the meaning of "presenting a problem", the second paragraph certainly does not examine the SCOPE of any problem that we come up with -- that would involve describing how big the problem is, what the ramifications are, and so on.

Could you get creative and come up with an argument in favor of (D)? Sure, but choice (C) does a much BETTER job of describing the relation of the second paragraph to the first.

For more on that, check out these two posts:

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In corporate purchasing, competitive scrutiny is typically limited to 08 Jun 2026, 06:45
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Which best describes the relation of paragraph 2 to paragraph 1?
✓ Correct: (C) — Paragraph 2 discusses the application of a strategy proposed in paragraph 1.
Paragraph 1 proposes the two-variable framework. Paragraph 2 applies it across the 4 types. Classic framework → application structure.
my eliminations were right: A (not proof), B (no occurrence explained), D (not examining scope of a problem), E (no contradictions). All correct reasoning.

[color=#141413]What can be inferred about supplier partnerships?
✓ Correct: (B) — They can result in purchasers paying more than in a competitive-bidding situation.
Logic chain: partnerships forgo competitive scrutiny → supplier faces no pressure → supplier can charge more → buyer pays more than they would have with competition. Fully supported.
On D and E: D is an overreach — the passage doesn't say partnerships aren't feasible for direct purchases. E contradicts the passage — partnerships are most appropriate when switching is difficult (Type 4), not least appropriate. The issue isn't that they're "new topics" — both variables and direct purchases are mentioned. The reason to eliminate is overreach vs. contradiction.[/color]

[color=#141413]Which factor distinguishes an indirect purchase from other purchases?
✓ Correct: (D) — The relationship of the purchased item to the purchasing company's end product.
Directly stated in the passage: indirect purchases are "not directly related to production." D mirrors this exactly.
On E: "Degree of importance in business operations" is never discussed — this is a true overreach/new component. On A: competitive scrutiny is what should happen to indirect purchases, not what defines them. On B: number of suppliers is one of the two evaluation variables, not the definition. All good eliminations.[/color]
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