County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response
The anthrax attacks of 2001 exposed serious inadequacies in the response of the U.S. public health system to meet such grave threats. The public health infrastructure required rebuilding to respond to any type of large-scale health emergency. The Public Health Department at Penville County had been charged with implementing an emergency preparedness and response system for the county. Federal funds were provided to the county to develop an emergency preparedness infrastructure that met the requirements specified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. County public officials had to coordinate their efforts to ensure seamless communication, coordination, and information exchange between various divisions within the public health department, external entities, and the state public health agency. Focuses on the director of Public Health Department and the challenges he faced. Explores issues related to structure, organization, culture, and technology infrastructure.
Authors :: Lynda M. Applegate, Ajay Vinze, Minu Ipe
Swot Analysis of "County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response" written by Lynda M. Applegate, Ajay Vinze, Minu Ipe includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that County Health facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Communication, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, International business, IT, Leadership, Organizational structure, Risk management, Strategic planning and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, there is backlash against globalization, geopolitical disruptions, increasing energy prices, technology disruption,
increasing commodity prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the County Health, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which County Health operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of County Health
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Organizational Development field.
4. Making a Organizational Development topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of County Health
Strengths County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of County Health in County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– County Health is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled County Health in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of County Health in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– County Health is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled County Health to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped County Health to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– County Health is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by Lynda M. Applegate, Ajay Vinze, Minu Ipe can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Strong track record of project management
– County Health is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Successful track record of launching new products
– County Health has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. County Health has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Diverse revenue streams
– County Health is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– County Health has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Learning organization
- County Health is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at County Health is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For County Health digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. County Health has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Organizational Resilience of County Health
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that County Health does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Weaknesses County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
County Health has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Lynda M. Applegate, Ajay Vinze, Minu Ipe suggests that, County Health is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, County Health has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response, is just above the industry average. County Health needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract County Health 's lucrative customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response, it seems that the employees of County Health don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
Need for greater diversity
– County Health has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Products dominated business model
– Even though County Health has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though County Health has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, County Health is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at County Health has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Opportunities County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for County Health to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. County Health can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help County Health to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, County Health can build a diversified supply chain model across various countries in - South East Asia, India, and other parts of the world. This reconfiguration of global supply chain can help, as suggested in case study, County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Manufacturing automation
– County Health can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Organizational Development segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of County Health has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help County Health to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response case study. County Health can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– County Health can develop new processes and procedures in Organizational Development industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, County Health can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– County Health has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help County Health to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help County Health to increase its market reach. County Health will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Leveraging digital technologies
– County Health can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Organizational Development industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. County Health can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. County Health can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for County Health in the consumer business. Now County Health can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Threats County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response are -
Increasing wage structure of County Health
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of County Health.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– County Health high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
High level of anxiety and lack of motivation
– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. County Health needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of County Health.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for County Health in the Organizational Development industry. The Organizational Development industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents County Health with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– County Health can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Consumer confidence and its impact on County Health demand
– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. County Health will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Environmental challenges
– County Health needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. County Health can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Regulatory challenges
– County Health needs to prepare for regulatory challenges as consumer protection groups and other pressure groups are vigorously advocating for more regulations on big business - to reduce inequality, to create a level playing field, to product data privacy and consumer privacy, to reduce the influence of big money on democratic institutions, etc. This can lead to significant changes in the Organizational Development industry regulations.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of County Health business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of County Department of Public Health: Organizing for Emergency Preparedness and Response is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that County Health needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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