Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management
This case considers the process of organizational transformation undertaken by Partners Healthcare System (PHS) since the 1990s as their hospital and affiliated ambulatory medical practices have adopted both EMR and CPOE systems. Encompassing a strategic investment in information technologies, wide-spread process change, and the pervasive use of institutional clinical decision support and knowledge management systems, this story has been 15 years in the making, culminating in 2009 with the network-wide use of EMR and CPOE by all PHS doctors. These developments in turn opened the door to the redefinition of services delivery and to the replacement of established therapies through the leveraging of the knowledge residing in 4.6 million now-digitized PHS patient records. As such, the PHS experience serves as a window into how one organization strove to address the daunting challenges of 21st century health care services information management, as a template for success in the implementation of large-scale information systems among research-based hospitals across the United States, and more broadly as a learning platform for industry executives in their efforts to transform health care delivery through data and knowledge management.
Swot Analysis of "Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management" written by Richard M. Kesner includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Phs Cpoe facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, IT and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, geopolitical disruptions, wage bills are increasing, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
there is backlash against globalization, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Phs Cpoe, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Phs Cpoe 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Phs Cpoe
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Technology & Operations field.
4. Making a Technology & Operations topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Phs Cpoe
Strengths Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Phs Cpoe in Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Phs Cpoe is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Phs Cpoe is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Phs Cpoe in the sector have low bargaining power. Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Phs Cpoe to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Phs Cpoe 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management - 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
- Phs Cpoe 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 Phs Cpoe is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Phs Cpoe is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Phs Cpoe in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Phs Cpoe to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Phs Cpoe to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field
– Phs Cpoe 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 Phs Cpoe in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Phs Cpoe is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Phs Cpoe are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.
Weaknesses Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management are -
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Phs Cpoe is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Phs Cpoe 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Phs Cpoe has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Phs Cpoe even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Phs Cpoe needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Technology & Operations 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Phs Cpoe, firm in the HBR case study Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Phs Cpoe is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Phs Cpoe needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Phs Cpoe to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Need for greater diversity
– Phs Cpoe 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Phs Cpoe products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Phs Cpoe needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
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 Phs Cpoe supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Phs Cpoe vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Phs Cpoe 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.
Opportunities Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management | 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Phs Cpoe 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, Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Phs Cpoe 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Phs Cpoe 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Phs Cpoe to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Phs Cpoe 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Phs Cpoe can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Technology & Operations industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Phs Cpoe 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. Phs Cpoe 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Technology & Operations industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Phs Cpoe can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Phs Cpoe 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 Phs Cpoe to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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 Phs Cpoe 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Phs Cpoe is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Phs Cpoe to increase its market reach. Phs Cpoe 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Phs Cpoe can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Technology & Operations segment.
Loyalty marketing
– Phs Cpoe 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.
Threats Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management are -
Environmental challenges
– Phs Cpoe 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. Phs Cpoe can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
Increasing wage structure of Phs Cpoe
– 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 Phs Cpoe.
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. Phs Cpoe 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Phs Cpoe in the Technology & Operations industry. The Technology & Operations 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.
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. Phs Cpoe needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management, Phs Cpoe may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Technology & Operations .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Phs Cpoe has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Phs Cpoe needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Technology & Operations 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Phs Cpoe 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Phs Cpoe 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Phs Cpoe 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.
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 Phs Cpoe business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Phs Cpoe.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Phs Cpoe is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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 Partners Healthcare System (PHS): Transforming Health Care Services Delivery Through Information Management 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 Phs Cpoe needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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