Major Issues on Strategic Planning - Assignment Example

Question 2: Competitors: One category of competitors described is direct or immediate competitors. These are competitors of an organization who already exist; the health care agency normally competes with them on a daily basis. An immediate competitor operates in the same market, and they offer the same services as their competitors. On this basis, an immediate competitor actually competes for the same customers, with the organization. Immediate competitors normally pose a great threat to the health care organization (Fottler, 2010). On this basis, the company has to constantly monitor their pricing and innovative strategies, their technological activities, and the quality of service that they are offering. It is based on this knowledge that a health care organization may decide on the best approach to use, in competing with their competitors. Another type of competitor identified by Moseley are potential competitors. These are companies that are operating in other industries, but they are showing a high likelihood of wanting to invest in the health care industry. These are always referred to as new entrants (Zuckerman, 2012). It is important to explain that investing in the health care industry is a very costly process, and on this basis, new entrants are normally business organizations that have the capability of raising the necessary capital. Furthermore, it is important to explain that new entrants could be firms operating the same line of business, but operating in a different geographical location (Harrison, 2010). Other possible new entrants include organizations that offer related services, suppliers who are interested in integrating forward in the chain, with the intention of forming a hospital organization, organizations that seek to diversify their portfolios, because of increased competition, etc. Another type of competitors is indirect competitors. These are health care institutions that offer substitute products. It is important to explain that this is competition, because these organizations have the capability of satisfying the customers of a health organization, in a similar manner, as the organization under consideration (Stahl, 2004). In gathering data, concerning the threats that direct competitors pose, there is a need of carrying out market research, through surveys, and observations. Surveys would enable the health care organization to collect data, based on the quality of service it offers, in comparison to the quality of service offered by its competitors. This type of information is very important because it will provide the necessary information that will guide the company in having knowledge on how to improve its services, and the rate of pricing that it should impose on its services. Observation is also another important strategy that a health care organization can use in gathering data, on its immediate competitors (Langabeer, 2008). This can be achieved through numerous visitations to the hospital facilities. Information such as the quality of service, pricing strategies, and the skills that employees of the organization have, can be gathered through this method. This type of information can be used in determining the pricing strategy of the organization, and the motivational policies to enact, for purposes of developing the skills of an organizations employee. Finally, for purposes of gathering information about its competitors, the company can peruse through their websites, and online reviews of the health care organizations by its customers (Zuckerman, 2012). This is an important method of knowing the mission of the company, its strengths, and weaknesses. The organization can thereafter develop policies aimed at countering the strengths of these organizations, so that they may achieve a competitive advantage over them. Question 3: Two Strategies of Reducing Costs or Increasing Revenues: For purposes of reducing costs, there is a need of measuring the costs that ban organization incurs at the medical care level, and thereafter devise an appropriate accounting strategy, that can help in the reduction of such costs (Harrison, 2010). This process would also involve tracking the expenses that the organization would incur, in treating various diseases and ailments. This requires a complete understanding of the resources that the organization would use in treating patients, who are under their care. This includes knowledge on equipments, personnel, facilities, costs of supplies, and administrative costs. Based on these facts, the best methods of identifying these costs, and initiating measures of reducing them, are through the use of activity based costing technique (Moseley, 2009). This accounting technique is rarely used in the health care industry; however, it has the capability of identifying the various costs incurred by the organization, and the methods of reducing these costs, without having an impact on how efficient the health care organization is able to provide its services (Zuckerman, 2012). The use of activity based costing will help in the identification of standardized processes, matching of health care personnel with their respective skills, and offering of care services in a very cost effective and efficient method. Through the adoption of this technique, chances are high that the company would save on 25% of its health care costs, hence reflecting it on its pricing strategies (Glaser and Salzberg, 2011). Another important method is the use of a discounted price, while serving its customers. The hospital organization should reduce the prices of its services, in a manner that it does not make losses, nor does it make exorbitant profits. It can only achieve this objective, by buying products at discounted prices, and at the same time, reducing the administrative costs, such as the wages of employees (Moseley, 2009). The organization may get discounted prices for their supplies when it manages to buy these products in bulk. Two non-financial strategies that can be used to achieve a competitive advantage: One non-financial strategy that an organization can use, is engaging in volunteer activities. Under this strategy, the company and its members of staff, can decide to either plant trees, clean the streets, provide free consultancy services to students wishing to undertake a career in health care, etc (Moseley, 2009). Through these volunteer activities, the organization would be building on its brand image, which is essential in making a company to achieve a competitive advantage over its rivals. Another important strategy is a good managerial practice that is undertaken by the company. A good managerial practice, would involve identification of the vision, mission and objectives of the health care organization, and clearly communicating these objectives to its members of staff (Moseley, 2009). A good managerial practice would also involve encouraging the employees of the organization to be innovative in the manner which they are serving the patients of the company. There will also be a need of good communication strategies, between the management, employees, and patients of the organization. This would force the leaders of the company to have good communication skills, and device strategies that would make it possible for them to communicate efficiently with their juniors and all stakeholders of the company. Part II: Opportunities: One of the opportunities that these strategies would present is the improvement of the quality of health care that people would receive. According to priority 1, the department of health care aims at ensuring that there is a safe delivery of health care services to people. This is an opportunity to hospital organizations because of the reduction of the various costs associated with readmissions, and poor delivery of health care services (Langabeer, 2008). By looking at the priority areas, Priority 1 indicates that it aims at reducing the harm caused by offering health care services, by identifying the hospital conditions that can make this possible, as well as reducing the hospital readmissions caused by poor delivery of services. To achieve this objective, there will be a need of training and retraining the health care officials that are within an organization. This is for purposes of enabling them acquire the necessary skills that can help in accurate diagnosis and treatment of the medical problems and conditions suffered by patients. Furthermore, the hospital organizations will have to invest heavily on research and technology for purposes of coming up with innovative ideas that can help in improving the provision of the health care services within the country (Ginter and Duncan, 2013). This is another opportunity that health care organizations will derive from these priorities. Innovation is a very important aspect that every health care organization must embrace, for purposes of efficiently serving the needs of its patients. Through innovation, health care organizations would develop solutions that have the capability of efficiently diagnosing and treating a disease or ailments. Furthermore, innovation would help in the identification of health care process that are time consuming and that negatively affect the delivery of health care services (Glaser and Salzberg, 2011). Furthermore, through innovation, chances are high that health care agencies would manage to come up with new health care models of delivery. These models would be an improvement in the current health care models, hence leading to efficiency and improvement in the quality of health care delivery. Another opportunity is that the health care organizations will manage to create a better working condition with the communities that they serve. This is because health care organizations will be allowed to allow the communities to participate in the delivery of health care services (Zuckerman, 2012). This is an opportunity because with the collaboration of these communities, the management of health care organizations will identify various hazards that affect these people, hence develop measures aimed at protecting the community against these health hazards. Threats: One of the major threats is an increase in the costs of providing health care services. This is because hospital organizations must invest heavily in improving the skills of its employees, and on technology, to make this a reality. This would amount to an increase in administrative costs, resulting to an increase in the overall costs of providing health care services (Glaser and Salzberg, 2011). A high cost of service production would mean that some people may not afford to access these health care services, hence frustrating an effort by the government to make accessibility of health care services universal. However, to mitigate on these threats, there is a need of using the activity based accounting techniques that have an impact of identifying the wasteful processes within an organization, and finding ways of eliminating them. Another threat is that health care organizations might not achieve efficiency in the production of high quality services, because of lack of enough skilled medical practitioners. The health care industry is normally limited, because it does not have enough personnel, who can help in the provision of these services (Harrison, 2010). The organization can mitigate on these threats, by offering mentorship and training programs on its new employees. This is for purposes of improving their skills, and making sure that they are efficient in whatever they are carrying out. Finally engaging the community is a threat, because the goals and needs of the community might not be in line with the goals and needs of the hospital organization. These conflicting needs might affect the health care delivery of the hospital organization; hence there is a need of carrying out activities aimed at reconciling these different needs into similar needs (Savage, 2005). The organization can achieve this objective by community with the members of the community on its objectives, and why it is useful to them, and the hospital organization. Efficient communication is therefore an important strategy that these organizations can use in reconciling their different needs and objectives with their surrounding communities. References: Fottler, M. (2010). Strategic human resource management in health care. Bingley, UK: Emerald. Top of Form Bottom of Form Ginter, P., & Duncan, W. (2013). Strategic management of health care organizations (7th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, Wiley. Top of Form Bottom of Form Glaser, J., & Salzberg, C. (2011). The strategic application of information technology in health care organizations (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Top of Form Bottom of Form Harrison, J. (2010). Essentials of strategic planning in healthcare. Chicago, Ill.: Health Administration Press ;. Top of Form Bottom of Form Langabeer, J. (2008). Health care operations management: A quantitative approach to business and logistics. Sudbury, Mass.: Jones and Bartlett. Top of Form Bottom of Form Moseley, G. (2009). Managing health care business strategy. Sudbury, Mass.: Jones and Bartlett. Top of Form Bottom of Form Savage, G. (2005). International health care management. Amsterdam: Elsevier JAI. Top of Form Bottom of Form Stahl, M. (2004). Encyclopedia of health care management. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications. Top of Form Bottom of Form Zuckerman, A. (2012). Healthcare strategic planning (3rd ed.). Chicago: Health Administration Press. Read More