Case Study Description of Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence
In 2012, eHealth Centers (eHCs) digitally delivered affordable medical care and diagnostic support for patients in villages and remote areas of India where none was otherwise available. The solution was initially conceived and developed as a mandate from Hewlett Packard India's corporate social responsibility team under the leadership of the chief technology officer. The eHCs design incorporated a self-contained diagnostic centre in a container, operated by a staff of paramedics. Doctors located in urban health hubs provided consulting care through video conferencing, and patients could experience the feeling of being in a doctor's office in real-time. These eHCs slowly turned out to be a business opportunity for Hewlett Packard India. By early 2016, there were 55 centres in operation. The challenge before the company was to scale up exponentially. Kajari Mukherjee is affiliated with Indian Institute of Management Indore.
Authors :: Kajari Mukherjee, Michael Rouse, Bhuvaneashwar Subramanian
Swot Analysis of "Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence" written by Kajari Mukherjee, Michael Rouse, Bhuvaneashwar Subramanian includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Ehcs Packard facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Technology and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
there is backlash against globalization, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Ehcs Packard, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Ehcs Packard 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Ehcs Packard
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Ehcs Packard
Strengths Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Ehcs Packard in Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Ehcs Packard digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Ehcs Packard has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Organizational Resilience of Ehcs Packard
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Ehcs Packard does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Ehcs Packard in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Innovation driven organization
– Ehcs Packard is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Ehcs Packard 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 Ehcs Packard in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Ehcs Packard is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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.
High brand equity
– Ehcs Packard has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Ehcs Packard to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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.
Training and development
– Ehcs Packard has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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
– Ehcs Packard 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 Kajari Mukherjee, Michael Rouse, Bhuvaneashwar Subramanian 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Ehcs Packard in the sector have low bargaining power. Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Ehcs Packard to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Ehcs Packard 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Ehcs Packard supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Ehcs Packard vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Lack of clear differentiation of Ehcs Packard products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Ehcs Packard needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Ehcs Packard 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Ehcs Packard is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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
Ehcs Packard 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Ehcs Packard, firm in the HBR case study Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Kajari Mukherjee, Michael Rouse, Bhuvaneashwar Subramanian suggests that, Ehcs Packard 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Ehcs Packard 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. Ehcs Packard 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Ehcs Packard 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Ehcs Packard 's lucrative customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Ehcs Packard is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Ehcs Packard needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Ehcs Packard to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence | 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence are -
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 Ehcs Packard to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Ehcs Packard 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, Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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 Ehcs Packard in the consumer business. Now Ehcs Packard can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Buying journey improvements
– Ehcs Packard can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Ehcs Packard 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Ehcs Packard can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Ehcs Packard has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Ehcs Packard to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence case study. Ehcs Packard can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Ehcs Packard 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.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Leadership & Managing People industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Ehcs Packard 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. Ehcs Packard 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Ehcs Packard can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Ehcs Packard operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Ehcs Packard 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 Leadership & Managing People segment.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Ehcs Packard is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Ehcs Packard can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence are -
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 Ehcs Packard in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. Ehcs Packard 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Ehcs Packard has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Ehcs Packard needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Leadership & Managing People 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.
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. Ehcs Packard needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Ehcs Packard 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.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence, Ehcs Packard may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Ehcs Packard in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The Leadership & Managing People 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Ehcs Packard can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Ehcs Packard
– 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 Ehcs Packard.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Ehcs Packard 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
– Ehcs Packard 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 Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Hewlett Packard eHealth Center: Healthcare Access Through Technology Convergence 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 Ehcs Packard needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.