The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc.
Through its uniquely proactive approach to medical malpractice risk management, the Risk Management Foundation has decreased claims-and premiums-for the Harvard hospitals it insures. The RMF is the captive medico-legal insurer of the Harvard medical institutions and affiliated physicians. Over the last two decades, through a combination of active legal defense and medical error prevention, The RMF has successfully controlled the medico-legal costs of physicians practicing at the Harvard teaching hospitals; consequently, its insured physicians pay notably lower premiums than similar specialists outside the Harvard system. The RMF's success has been due, in large part, to the close working relationships it has cultivated with the insured physicians and hospitals. However, as the hospitals expand their networks into Boston's suburbs, new, less tightly affiliated doctors whose medico-legal risk is higher than those practicing at the hospitals are coming under RMF's umbrella. This case describes The RMF's approach to risk management and the challenges its managers face in accommodating these new physicians.
Authors :: Richard Bohmer, Stephen P. Bradley, Natalie Kindred
Swot Analysis of "The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc." written by Richard Bohmer, Stephen P. Bradley, Natalie Kindred includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Medico Rmf's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Change management, Influence, Knowledge management, Product development, Strategy and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, technology disruption, increasing commodity prices,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc.
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Medico Rmf's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Medico Rmf's 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Medico Rmf's
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 Medico Rmf's
Strengths The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Medico Rmf's in The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Medico Rmf's 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
– Medico Rmf's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Medico Rmf's 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 Medico Rmf's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Medico Rmf's has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Medico Rmf's 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Medico Rmf's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Medico Rmf's in the sector have low bargaining power. The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Medico Rmf's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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.
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Medico Rmf's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Medico Rmf's 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Medico Rmf's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Medico Rmf's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Medico Rmf's 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 Richard Bohmer, Stephen P. Bradley, Natalie Kindred 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.
Training and development
– Medico Rmf's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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.
Weaknesses The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. are -
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 Medico Rmf's supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc., it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Medico Rmf's vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc., in the dynamic environment Medico Rmf's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Medico Rmf's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Medico Rmf's 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Medico Rmf's is planning to shift buying processes online.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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 Medico Rmf's 's lucrative customers.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Medico Rmf's 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 - The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Medico Rmf's 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. Medico Rmf's 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Medico Rmf's is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Medico Rmf's, firm in the HBR case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc., 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Medico Rmf's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Medico Rmf's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Medico Rmf's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. | 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Medico Rmf's to increase its market reach. Medico Rmf's 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.
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 Medico Rmf's in the consumer business. Now Medico Rmf's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Medico Rmf's 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, The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc., to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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 Medico Rmf's 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Medico Rmf's 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Medico Rmf's 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.
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. Medico Rmf's can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Medico Rmf's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Medico Rmf's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Developing new processes and practices
– Medico Rmf's can develop new processes and procedures in Technology & Operations 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Medico Rmf's in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Technology & Operations segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Medico Rmf's 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Medico Rmf's 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. Medico Rmf's 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. Medico Rmf's 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.
Threats The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. are -
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Medico Rmf's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Medico Rmf's 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Medico Rmf's 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Medico Rmf's 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Technology & Operations field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Medico Rmf's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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.
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. Medico Rmf's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Medico Rmf's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc., Medico Rmf's 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 .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Medico Rmf's 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.
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 Medico Rmf's in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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.
Increasing wage structure of Medico Rmf's
– 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 Medico Rmf's.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Medico Rmf's 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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 The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, Inc. 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 Medico Rmf's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.