Case Study Description of Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy
A pharmacist/entrepreneur was investigating the feasibility of opening a GuardMedics Pharmacy franchise in a large urban centre. She spoke to several friends and confidants currently in the industry in an attempt to collect enough data to project cash flows and financial statements for the venture.
Swot Analysis of "Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy" written by Elizabeth M.A. Grasby, Karim Mashnuk includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Guardmedics Pharmacy facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, there is backlash against globalization, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Guardmedics Pharmacy, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Guardmedics Pharmacy
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Guardmedics Pharmacy
Strengths Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Guardmedics Pharmacy in Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Guardmedics Pharmacy has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Guardmedics Pharmacy has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Innovation driven organization
– Guardmedics Pharmacy is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Guardmedics Pharmacy is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Organizational Resilience of Guardmedics Pharmacy
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Guardmedics Pharmacy in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Strong track record of project management
– Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 brand equity
– Guardmedics Pharmacy has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Guardmedics Pharmacy to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Guardmedics Pharmacy in the sector have low bargaining power. Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Guardmedics Pharmacy to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– Guardmedics Pharmacy is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy are -
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Elizabeth M.A. Grasby, Karim Mashnuk suggests that, Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Guardmedics Pharmacy products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Guardmedics Pharmacy needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy, is just above the industry average. Guardmedics Pharmacy needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Guardmedics Pharmacy is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Guardmedics Pharmacy needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Guardmedics Pharmacy to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
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 Guardmedics Pharmacy supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Guardmedics Pharmacy vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Guardmedics Pharmacy is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Finance & Accounting 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy, in the dynamic environment Guardmedics Pharmacy has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Guardmedics Pharmacy has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy | 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy are -
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Guardmedics Pharmacy can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Guardmedics Pharmacy in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Guardmedics Pharmacy can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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 Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Guardmedics Pharmacy to increase its market reach. Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Guardmedics Pharmacy is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Guardmedics Pharmacy can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Guardmedics Pharmacy can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Guardmedics Pharmacy to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Guardmedics Pharmacy can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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 Guardmedics Pharmacy in the consumer business. Now Guardmedics Pharmacy can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Threats Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Guardmedics Pharmacy in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Guardmedics Pharmacy 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy .
Regulatory challenges
– Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy, Guardmedics Pharmacy may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
Environmental challenges
– Guardmedics Pharmacy 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. Guardmedics Pharmacy can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Guardmedics Pharmacy with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Guardmedics Pharmacy needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Guardmedics Pharmacy can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Guardmedics Pharmacy business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Guardmedics Pharmacy has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Guardmedics Pharmacy needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Farmacy Inc.: Harbourfront Guardmedics Pharmacy 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 Guardmedics Pharmacy needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.