Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
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Case Study Description of Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward?
Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital (KNMH) is a non-profit, non-government trust organization that is managed by the Gandhi-Nehru family, India's premier political family which gave the country three generations of prime ministers. Members of the family continue to be at the helm of the board. The hospital specializes in the areas of Obstetrics and Gynecology (O&G) and Oncology and has several supporting departments. It is a very reputed hospital in Allahabad, in the highly populated state of Uttar Pradesh in Northern India, and draws patients from nearby states, primarily from the Eastern part of India where infrastructure is largely underdeveloped, and from other developing countries such as Nepal and Bhutan. The hospital is endowed by the Trust. Due to its reach, it attracts funds from governmental and non-governmental agencies as an implementing agency for several of their health schemes and initiatives. The hospital operated independently and without a formal administrative structure for many years. Consequently, the governance as well as the efficiency of hospital operations had been going downhill for some time, with the result that patients were choosing other hospitals and nursing homes over KNMH. Decreasing revenues and inefficient operations led to operational losses. After the next generation of the Gandhi-Nehru family joined the governing board, there was some rethinking at the top about the way forward for the hospital. They decided that the time had come to manage the hospital professionally in order to be able to serve patients in a more efficient and effective manner. It was in this setting that Dr. Madhu Chandra, a pathologist and PhD, who had served at a corporate hospital (Yashoda Hospitals, Hyderabad), was appointed Chief Executive Officer of KNMH. Her goal was to streamline hospital operations and put it back on a growth trajectory.
Swot Analysis of "Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward?" written by Naga Lakshmi Damaraju, Prafulla Rawal, Bavneet Singh, Himanshu Jain includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Hospital Nehru facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Organizational structure and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? casestudy better are - – geopolitical disruptions, there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward?
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Hospital Nehru, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Hospital Nehru 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Hospital Nehru
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 Hospital Nehru
Strengths Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Hospital Nehru in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? Harvard Business Review case study are -
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Hospital Nehru in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Hospital Nehru 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Hospital Nehru 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Hospital Nehru digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Hospital Nehru 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Hospital Nehru is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Diverse revenue streams
– Hospital Nehru is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Hospital Nehru has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Hospital Nehru 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.
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Hospital Nehru 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 Hospital Nehru in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Learning organization
- Hospital Nehru 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 Hospital Nehru is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Hospital Nehru is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Training and development
– Hospital Nehru has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
Analytics focus
– Hospital Nehru 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 Naga Lakshmi Damaraju, Prafulla Rawal, Bavneet Singh, Himanshu Jain 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.
Weaknesses Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? are -
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Hospital Nehru, firm in the HBR case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Naga Lakshmi Damaraju, Prafulla Rawal, Bavneet Singh, Himanshu Jain suggests that, Hospital Nehru 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Hospital Nehru 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward?, in the dynamic environment Hospital Nehru has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Hospital Nehru has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Hospital Nehru is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Hospital Nehru needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Hospital Nehru to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Hospital Nehru is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Hospital Nehru 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Hospital Nehru is planning to shift buying processes online.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward?, is just above the industry average. Hospital Nehru 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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 Hospital Nehru has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High dependence on existing supply chain
– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Hospital Nehru supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward?, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Hospital Nehru vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? | 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Hospital Nehru is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Hospital Nehru has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– Hospital Nehru 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Hospital Nehru 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Strategy & Execution industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Hospital Nehru can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Hospital Nehru has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Hospital Nehru to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? case study. Hospital Nehru can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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 Hospital Nehru in the consumer business. Now Hospital Nehru can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Hospital Nehru to increase its market reach. Hospital Nehru 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Hospital Nehru can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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.
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 Hospital Nehru 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Hospital Nehru 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 Hospital Nehru to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Hospital Nehru can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Hospital Nehru can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Hospital Nehru operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Threats Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? are -
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Hospital Nehru 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Hospital Nehru can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? .
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Hospital Nehru is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Hospital Nehru has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Hospital Nehru 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.
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. Hospital Nehru 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Hospital Nehru 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.
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 Hospital Nehru in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward?, Hospital Nehru may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Strategy & Execution .
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 Hospital Nehru business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Hospital Nehru 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.
Environmental challenges
– Hospital Nehru 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. Hospital Nehru can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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 Kamla Nehru Memorial Hospital: Which Way Forward? 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 Hospital Nehru needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
