Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine
PIavix, one of the world's best selling drugs in 2010, appears to have a limited future. Its patent was due to expire soon and recently new data had been discovered which indicated that a small subset of the population would be at risk for stroke, heart attack or even death if they took PIavix. As a result the FDA had added a black box warning-the agency's most severe--to Plavix's label in 2010. In addition, it had been discovered that the common combination of Plavix and Prilosec, an over-the-counter drug, could adversely affect patients. Finally, Plavix faced new competition from two new drugs with different mechanisms of action. This case reviews the recent history of Plavix in greater detail to encourage a discussion of the following questions: How might the current manufacturers of Plavix handle these emerging threats to their leading blockbuster? How might Plavix's potential competitors utilize Plavix's mixed history to their advantage? How should genotyping be integrated into the clinical care of patients in the light of emerging knowledge?
Authors :: Richard G. Hamermesh, Mara G. Aspinall, Rachel Gordon
Swot Analysis of "Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine" written by Richard G. Hamermesh, Mara G. Aspinall, Rachel Gordon includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Plavix Plavix's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Marketing and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing commodity prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, wage bills are increasing, increasing transportation and logistics costs, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
increasing energy prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Plavix Plavix's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Plavix Plavix'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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Plavix Plavix's
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field.
4. Making a Innovation & Entrepreneurship topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Plavix Plavix's
Strengths Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Plavix Plavix's in Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Plavix Plavix's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Plavix Plavix'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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Plavix Plavix's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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.
Organizational Resilience of Plavix Plavix's
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Plavix Plavix's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Analytics focus
– Plavix Plavix'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 G. Hamermesh, Mara G. Aspinall, Rachel Gordon 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.
High brand equity
– Plavix Plavix's has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Plavix Plavix's to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Plavix Plavix's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Plavix Plavix's 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Plavix Plavix'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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Plavix Plavix'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.
Ability to lead change in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field
– Plavix Plavix's 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 Plavix Plavix's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though Plavix Plavix'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 - Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 Plavix Plavix's supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Plavix Plavix's vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Plavix Plavix's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Plavix Plavix's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Plavix Plavix's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Plavix Plavix'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. Plavix Plavix'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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Plavix Plavix's products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Plavix Plavix's needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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 Plavix Plavix's 's lucrative customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine, it seems that the employees of Plavix Plavix's don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Plavix Plavix's, firm in the HBR case study Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Richard G. Hamermesh, Mara G. Aspinall, Rachel Gordon suggests that, Plavix Plavix's 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Plavix Plavix's 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Plavix Plavix's has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Opportunities Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine | 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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Plavix Plavix's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Plavix Plavix's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Plavix Plavix'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. Plavix Plavix'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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Plavix Plavix's 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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Plavix Plavix's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Plavix Plavix'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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Developing new processes and practices
– Plavix Plavix's can develop new processes and procedures in Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Plavix Plavix'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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Plavix Plavix's can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Plavix Plavix's to increase its market reach. Plavix Plavix'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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Plavix Plavix's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Plavix Plavix's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine case study. Plavix Plavix's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Plavix Plavix's can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
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 Plavix Plavix's in the consumer business. Now Plavix Plavix's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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 Plavix Plavix'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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Plavix Plavix'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, Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Plavix Plavix's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
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 Plavix Plavix's in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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. Plavix Plavix's 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 Plavix Plavix's in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Environmental challenges
– Plavix Plavix's 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. Plavix Plavix's can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine, Plavix Plavix'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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship .
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 Plavix Plavix's 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 Plavix Plavix's.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Plavix Plavix's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Plavix Plavix'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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Plavix Plavix'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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Plavix Plavix's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Plavix Plavix's needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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 Plavix: Drugs in the Age of Personalized Medicine 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 Plavix Plavix's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
