2．In business，there's a speed difference：lt's the difference between how important a firm's leaders say speed is to their competitive strategy and how fast the company actually moves．The difference is important regardless of industry and company size．Companies fearful of losing their competitive advantage spend much time and money looking for ways to pick up the speed．
In our study of 343 businesses，the companies that chose to go，go，go to try to gain an edge ended up with lower sales and operating incomes than those that paused at key moments to make sure they were on the right track．What's more，the firms that"slowed down to speed up"improved their top and bottom lines，averaging 40% higher sales and 52% higher operating incomes over a three-year period．
How did they disobey the laws of business physics，taking more time than competitors yet performing better？They thought differently about what"slower"and"faster"mean．Firms sometimes fail to understand the difference between operational speed （moving quickly） and strategic speed （reducing the time it takes to deliver value）．Simply increasing the speed of production，for example，may be one way to try to reduce the speed difference．But that often leads to reduced value over time，in the form of lower-quality products and services．
In our study，higher-companies with strategic speed always made changes when necessary．They became more open to ideas and discussion．They encouraged new ways of thinking．And they allowed time to look back and learn．By contrast，performance suffered at firms that moved fast all the time，paid too much attention to improving efficiency，stuck to tested methods，didn't develop team spirit among their employees，and had little time thinking about changes．
Strategic speed serves as a kind of leadership．Teams that regularly take time to get things right，rather than plough ahead full bore，are more successful in meeting their business goals．That kind of strategy must come from the top．
41．What does the underlined part"gain an edge"in Paragraph 2 mean？A
A．Get an advantage．
B．Increase the speed．
C．Reach the limit．
D．Set a goal．
42．The underlined part"the laws of business physics"in Paragraph 3 meansD．
A．spending more time and performing worse
B．spending more time and performing better
C．spending less time and performing worse
D．spending less time and performing better
43．What can we learn from the text？C
A．How fast a firm moves depends on how big it is．
B．How competitive a firm is depends on what it produces．
C．Firms guided by strategic speed take time to make necessary changes．
D．Firms guided by operational speed take time to develop necessary team spirit．
44．According to the author，what is the key to deciding strategic speed？C
A．Pausing at key moments．
B．The size of company．
C．The boss．
D．The quality of the products．
45．Which could be the best title for the text？D
A．Improve Quality？Serve Better．
B．Deliver Value？Plough Ahead．
C．Reduce Time？Move Faster．
D．Need Speed？Slow Down．
分析 本文是一篇新闻报道类阅读，属于议论文，主要阐述了在商业竞争中并不是速度越快越好，相反那些速度慢的公司会根据情况实时调整战略往往会取的竞争的优势．
解答 41．A．推理判断题．根据第一段中"Companies fearful or losing their competitive advantage spend much time and money looking for ways to pick up the speed．"和第二段中的"the companies that chose to go，go，go to try to gain an edge ended with lower sales and operating incomes…"可知那些害怕丢掉竞争优势的公司会一味的追求速度． 故选A．
42．D．推理判断题．根据第三段中第一句话可知那些"不遵循"（disobey）商业法则的公司比竞争者花的时间多（速度慢）却表现得更好，反过来商业法则应该是"花更少的时间（速度快），做得更好"．故选D．
43．C．细节理解题．根据倒数第二段中的"higher performing companies with strategic speed always made changes when necessary"可知受战略速度指导的公司会实时的对公司的战略做出调整．根据第一段中的"The difference is important regardless of industry and company size．"可知公司行动的快慢，竞争力的大小与公司的大小和生产的东西无关，排除A、B项． 故选C．
44．C．推理判断题．根据Firms sometimes fail to understand the difference between operational speed （moving quickly） and strategic speed （reducing the time it takes to deliver value）．可以推测出，老板会决定战略速度．故选C．
45．D．主旨大意题．本文主要阐述了在商业竞争中并不是速度越快越好，相反那些速度慢的公司会根据情况实时调整战略往往会取的竞争的优势．故D项"我们真的需要速度吗？慢点吧！"符合题意．故选D．
点评 本文是一篇新闻报道类阅读，题目涉及多道细节理解题，推理判断题，主旨大意题．做题时学生应仔细阅读原文，把握文章主要内容，联系文章上下文内容并结合所给选项含义，从中选出正确答案，一定要做到有理有据，切忌胡乱猜测
