Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care
Great Western Hospital (GWH) is a community hospital in Wiltshire, South West England and one of England's largest maternity providers, responsible for delivering over 9,000 babies per year. The case discusses the efforts of Dr. Harini Narayan, consultant obstetrician and gynecologist, to reorganize antenatal care delivery at GWH. Rather than treating high-risk pregnancies as a homogeneous group, Dr. Narayan pioneered the development of eleven condition-based, high-risk clinics led by dedicated multidisciplinary teams of physicians, midwives and nurses. The case profiles the Multiple Pregnancy Clinic in particular and its impact on perinatal indicators and outcomes.
Authors :: Michael E. Porter, Emma Stanton, Samuel Takvorian
Swot Analysis of "Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care" written by Michael E. Porter, Emma Stanton, Samuel Takvorian includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Gwh Narayan facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Risk management and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, wage bills are increasing, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing transportation and logistics costs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Gwh Narayan, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Gwh Narayan 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Gwh Narayan
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Strategy & Execution field.
4. Making a Strategy & Execution topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Gwh Narayan
Strengths Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Gwh Narayan in Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Gwh Narayan is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Gwh Narayan has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Gwh Narayan in the sector have low bargaining power. Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Gwh Narayan to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– Gwh Narayan is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Gwh Narayan in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Gwh Narayan has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Gwh Narayan 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.
Analytics focus
– Gwh Narayan 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 Michael E. Porter, Emma Stanton, Samuel Takvorian 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Gwh Narayan 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Strong track record of project management
– Gwh Narayan is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Gwh Narayan to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Gwh Narayan to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Gwh Narayan has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Gwh Narayan to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care are -
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Strategy & Execution strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care HBR case study mentions - Gwh Narayan takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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 Gwh Narayan has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Gwh Narayan 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 - Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Gwh Narayan 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Gwh Narayan, firm in the HBR case study Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Lack of clear differentiation of Gwh Narayan products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Gwh Narayan needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Michael E. Porter, Emma Stanton, Samuel Takvorian suggests that, Gwh Narayan 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Gwh Narayan is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Gwh Narayan needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Gwh Narayan to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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 Gwh Narayan 's lucrative customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care, it seems that the employees of Gwh Narayan 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.
Opportunities Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care | 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Gwh Narayan can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Gwh Narayan can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Gwh Narayan in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Strategy & Execution segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Gwh Narayan 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Gwh Narayan to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Gwh Narayan to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Gwh Narayan 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, Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Gwh Narayan is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Gwh Narayan 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Gwh Narayan to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Manufacturing automation
– Gwh Narayan can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Strategy & Execution 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Gwh Narayan can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Gwh Narayan 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Gwh Narayan to increase its market reach. Gwh Narayan 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Gwh Narayan can develop new processes and procedures in Strategy & Execution 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.
Threats Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Gwh Narayan 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Gwh Narayan 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 Strategy & Execution industry regulations.
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. Gwh Narayan 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.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Gwh Narayan in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Gwh Narayan in the Strategy & Execution industry. The Strategy & Execution 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Gwh Narayan is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Environmental challenges
– Gwh Narayan 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. Gwh Narayan can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Gwh Narayan with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Gwh Narayan.
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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Strategy & Execution field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Gwh Narayan can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Gwh Narayan 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Gwh Narayan has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Gwh Narayan needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Strategy & Execution sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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 Great Western Hospital: High-risk Pregnancy Care 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 Gwh Narayan needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
