Strategic Management Finals First part with its own Reference page Answer three questions from below. Your total submission should not exceed three pages. Please note you should use 1.5 spacing, 12-p

Product Life Cycle (PLC)

Definition of Product Life Cycle

Product life cycle (PLC) can be defined as a process a product goes through from the time it is first introduced in the market until its disposal. This process entails several distinct stages. These stages are largely influenced by the nature of the marketplace, the product development process, and types of demand made on the market (Ginter, Duncan, & Swayne, 2018). The first phase is the introductory phase. In these phase there are fewer competitors, prices are relatively high and intensive marketing and promotion is necessary while promoting the product or services. The growth stage is the second stage. It involves rapid growth of outlet, prices are too high and promotion is specific to the brand. The third stage is the maturity stage.

In this stage, there is rapid growth, prices stabilize, promotion became common and distribution is widespread. The last stage of product life cycle is the decline stage. The product in this phase continues to decline.

Product life cycle is a powerful tool for marketing, increasing customer base, improving revenue cash flow, and capital access (Ginter, Duncan, & Swayne, 2018). The weakness associated with the product life cycle includes high operation and marketing costs needed in promoting the product and over-investment. An organization implements adaptive strategies considering the product life cycle, cost of operation and market share. For example harvesting strategy is implemented when sales have declined and when the company wants to cut costs associated with promotion.

The concerns of maintaining the market share will force the company to retain the product or services within reach of customers. Still, an organization chooses adaptive strategies such as liquidation to generate cash flow and cut on cost by selling some of the organizational assets. Retrenchment is employed by a company when it intends on reducing the cost of operation and redefining the target market and geographical coverage (Ginter, Duncan, & Swayne, 2018). Enhancement strategy is employed by organization that targets on revamping the existing product or services back to its profitability. The process of revamping the existing product or services involves an introduction of technology or program that makes the services offered more flexible and efficiently delivered.

Feedback from Professor: Good work

Reference

Ginter, P. M., Duncan, W. J., & Swayne, L. E. (2018). Strategic management of health care organizations. 8th Edition

Diversity as Strategy

Lou Gerstner initiated new approach diversity by focusing on their differences as strategy to win more diverse customers. He created millions by leveraging on those diverse groups. Gerstner made diversity a market-based strategy because the market was turning out to be more diverse and multicultural. This strategy of trying to understand the market enabled IBM to invent new approach of reaching out to broader range of customers. The work of the women taskforce made it easy for the company to grow its market especially the business owned and those operated by women and diverse population (Thomas, 2004). Through that IBM was able to provide much-needed sales and services support to small and midsize businesses.

In 2001 after receiving a recommendation from people with disabilities IBM came up with an initiative that focused on increasing the product more broadly accessible to align their initiatives with the new legislation (Thomas, 2004). The new legislation required government agencies to make accessibility a criterion for awarding federal contracts. IBM executive projected that this initiative was going to generate more revenue. IBM's new strategy on diversity was not focused on minimizing the difference but intensifying through leveraging on those opportunities presented. IBM's approach and intention on diversity was to learn from diverse population and through that IBM would make the necessary improvements.

Diversity was untapped resources therefore; tapping on those resources could make a huge difference in the company profitability and efficiency and further strengthen the company competitive edge. The dissenting opinion made it difficult for the women to present their views but once women task force was invented it easy for the women group to secure support for their group initiative (Thomas, 2004). Furthermore, workplace diversity was perceived as a bridge of attracting a more diverse customer set.

To reach and appeal diverse customers all advertising guidelines were to represent the constituencies in all aspects of IBM marketing and promotion. This concept can be employed in healthcare setting to attract diverse customers and improve services delivery that meet the need of diverse cultures.

Healthcare organizations clients originate from diverse cultures that share different cultural beliefs. If healthcare workforce is diverse and it is organized into constituencies that represent each culture then it is possible to avoid discrimination of patients in healthcare setting. Still, the clinicians will use the information collected from the community they serve to promote culturally competent staff hence avoiding biases and negative attitudes toward patients. Furthermore, the diversity concept can be applied to improve service delivery by integrating patient’s beliefs, cultures and values while developing treatment plan. Advertising and promotional advertisements can be designed with diversity needs in mind to attract and appease different cultures.

Feedback from Professor: - editing - initiated a new approach.  What recommendation from the disabled community? Run-on sentences.  Explanation was limited.  Last paragraph - where is strategy?

Reference

Thomas, D. A. (2004). Diversity as a strategy. Harvard business review, 82(9), 98-98. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2004/09/diversity-as-strategy

Organizational Culture

Organizational culture is the implicit, invisible, intrinsic, and formational consciousness of the organization. It guides the behavior of individuals and as well as it shapes individuals' behavior. Organizational culture elements include shared assumptions, shared values, and behavioral norms (Ginter, Duncan, & Swayne, 2018). The shared assumptions represent a common understanding of the organization which comprises of the mission and vision statements. Mission describes the current state of the organization while a vision statement outlines what the company targets to achieve in the future. A shared vision is the common understanding of how things are done.

Successful implementation of strategy requires managers to know how to maintain and change organizational culture. A strategy is effectively implemented when it is aligned with organizational culture. Goal and initiative must be devised that would support organizational culture. Value, vision, and shared emotion bring a company together making it easy to implement a strategy. Organizational culture may shape the organization capacity and receptiveness to change as well as the ability to nurture the speed at which thing are accomplished within an organization. Lack of unity and sense of purpose may affect strategy implementation due to resistance for change from workers resisting change.

Managers can develop positive culture by devising a vision and mission that would align employees to the vision and promoting employees engagement in each process of strategy development and implementation. Once behavioral norms, mission, and vision, and strategic goals are developed and employees are fully engaged in each process of the strategy development then it is easy to implement the proposed strategy without facing employee resistance.

Reference

Ginter, P. M., Duncan, W. J., & Swayne, L. E. (2018). Strategic management of health care organizations. 8th Edition

Feedback from Professor: If culture is shaped by behavior, how does management shape the culture?  Exhibit behaviors that embody the mission, vision and values

Market Segmentation Strategies

Health care provider to use their value chain in the market segmentation process

Market segmentation is the process of defining customers into groups that share similar needs, hence focusing on those needs with an aim in recruiting and retaining those customers (Ginter, Duncan, & Swayne, 2018). Healthcare providers need to use the value chain in the market segmentation process to refine the services offered to customers, serve customers' needs and wants in a better ways. Making changes in the value chain helps healthcare organization refines it services, inform the organization on pricing, advertising and promotion. Upgrading care services and pricing services as per care offered helps healthcare organizations in retaining its customers and acquiring new customers.

How does the value chain support any value-added support strategy?

The value chain involves set of activities required to create value for customer. Those activities required to fulfill customers’ needs are added value strategies. The values added strategies are refined more through organizational structure, organizational culture, and strategic resources. This value-added support strategy enhances value-added strategies in creating value for customer. The value-added strategies are the end products of value-added support strategies and action plans employed to achieve value-added strategies (Ginter, Duncan, & Swayne, 2018).

Recognize the uniqueness of customers in a designated market segment

Customer's uniqueness is determined by their wants, perception about price, product quality, and their expectation about a service. Values added strategies are designed to improve how the product is marketed, how service is offered and other services that add value to customers for example customer support or follow-up on care service.

Reference

Ginter, P. M., Duncan, W. J., & Swayne, L. E. (2018). Strategic management of health care organizations. 8th Edition

Feedback from Professor: - How does the value chain help segment the market - not explained

Value-Based Competition

Value-Based/Positive Sum Competition

Value-based competition is competition toward being unique on how to deliver value to customers and not the best. Positive sum competition help gain a competitive advantage. All firms engaging in positive-sum competition wins and ensures customers attain the best. In the process firm only compete in earning higher returns, focus on improving profitability, meeting the diverse needs of target customers, and competing through innovation (Porter, & Teisberg, 2006). The end result is multiple winners that take a similar initiative to improve product quality.

2. Zero-Sum Competition

Zero-sum competition is defined as competition that determines a winner and the losers whereby the loser incur all the cost while the winners take away the customers from the loser's side (Porter, & Teisberg, 2006). Companies in constant prices wars lowering prices to an extent that new player or smaller retailers cannot cope instead new firm end up losing customers. The manufacturer places pressure on suppliers to find ways to sell those products lower. As a result, the selling company ends up selling the product lower to attract and retain customers. In a healthcare organization, the existing player in the industry may enter into price wars to retain and attract new customers.

3. Competing around the medical condition

Competing around medical conditions is a strategy employed by healthcare organizations to compete on providing services to a patient. The healthcare organization tries to meet customer needs, that depends on how the business organizations and how value is created. Healthcare organization defines there business around specific function, specialties or in term of service lines (Porter, & Teisberg, 2006).

Healthcare organization can position them in the market by choosing a set of the medical condition which will help the healthcare organization achieve true excellence in promoting patient value.

4. Narrow or broad-based strategies

A broad brand strategy is a strategy employed by healthcare organizations to increases market share by either increasing associative network by adding more favorable brand association. Increasing favorable brand cover more market segment. Healthcare organizations may enter into several networks of care to increase market share and cover large areas.

5. Scope/experience/quality outcomes 

Quality outcome hierarchy is defined as the concept of achieving quality in health care. Measures, reporting, and comparing care is one of the most important steps in unlocking outcome improvement and making an important choice for reducing cost. To achieve quality, change in the structure, organization, measurement, and time horizon to shift full healthcare cycle management (Porter, & Teisberg, 2006). Healthcare providers must be concern about the whole care cycle and not about particular prevention.

Feedback from Professor: Good work

Reference

Porter, M. E., & Teisberg, E. O. (2006). Redefining health care: creating value-based competition on results. Harvard business press.