Paper details:
Please respond to these question separately and please add the references under each response discussion

Market Entry Strategies
Discussion 1 response
L R
Marketing for service organizations differs in that it will require the strategy and implementation of 3 phases of the service rendered, including pre-service, point of service, and after service phases of marketing. The pre-service phase of requires organizational focus on developing the service to be a needed and “product” that is accessible and sought after by the targeted community. The HCO service aspect s of pricing and brand for and organization are also developed during the pre-service phase to assist in marketing strategy (Swayne, Duncan, & Ginter, 2009).
The point of service phase of HCO service marketing is the aspect that entails developing high quality, and value loaded “products” to the targeted market. It specifically delineates the quality of the clinical services from the operational/process perspectives and is the core of the HCO product delivery, for example, how well was a surgery performed, or How competent was the nursing care? Or was the facility using state-of-the art equipment? These are the aspects that measure the quality of care. The aftercare of service is also important as this phase of marketing will entail the follow processes that help define the quality of service and access to continued care. The component s addressed include the follow up clinical care to measure healing and following of the prescribed care and treatment plan, as well as the use of surveys to measure the quality of care from the patients perspective and correct billing and customer care (Swayne, Duncan, & Ginter, 2009).
A CEO of a hospital might start with targeting a specific population with a specialized type servicing that can only be provided at their facility, or best provided at their facility. For example a region with a concentrated population of Jewish families will have specific health care needs that accommodate their religious ideologies and customs surrounding the Sabbath, and exercising other tenets of their faith. A hospital that has specialized training, staff, and education to assist and facilitate their needs is likely to gain them as clientele when there is a choice of providers.
Market Entry Strategies
Discussion response 2
SP Date: February 15, 2012 11:31 PM
How does the marketing of a service organization differ from the marketing of a physical product? What recommendations would you give to the CEO of a local hospital that is attempting to differentiate itself from others in the area?
Marketing of a service organization differ from the marketing of a physical product because a service is intangible and quality of the organizations service may be hard to compare versus comparing a physical product. A service is built on how well a particular person delivers on a service. Marketing a service is like marketing relationship and value, Also the physical appearance of the company’s building and employees will play a major role in how the organization is perceived, as image has a large impact on customer choice and customers will pay for something that look of value.
Product marketing focuses on product, pricing, place, and promotion. Product marketing deals with marketing the product to prospects, customers, and others. The people you are trying to make your product appeal to is the general public, your consumer market. There is a target audience that is selected depending on what studies show who the item will appeal to. It is also important to keep in mind that you can return a product but you cannot return a service that you are not happy with.

Recommendations I would give to a CEO of a local hospital that is attempting to differentiate itself from others in the area is to put good genuine energy into a good strong customer service approach and be unique and creative, but simple, sending a message that says how much the organization strives to make a difference in the lives of others. My thought is that if you have a good hook, people will bite (listen). This may spark more of an interest for consumers because inquiring minds want to know.
Discussion 3 response
C R
Vertical Integration
Describe vertical integration in terms of patient flow in your health care organization. Evaluate the integration as it relates to forward and backward integration strategies.
Vertical integration strategy is a decision to grow along the channel of distribution of the core operations. Thus, a health care organization may grow toward suppliers or toward patients. When an organization grows along the channel of distribution toward its suppliers (upstream) it is called backward vertical integration. When an organization grows toward the consumer or patient (downstream) it is called forward vertical integration (Swayne, Duncan, & Ginter, 2008, p. 206).
One-way that vertical integration has helped Cincinnati Children’s Hospital is to help ensure the patients are safe and taken care of. One way this has been completed is by making sure that their records are safe. By transferring their paper records to the electronic forms has helped keep vital records and other information safe. “As the submission filed by the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center attests, the greatest risk management issue many EMR – EHR projects faced was the prospect that clinicians might not buy into organizations’ commitment to clinical IT. As it developed, those clinical areas of Cincinnati Children’s in which physician buy in was strongest were where EMR – HER implementation ultimately proved most beneficial. Much of that came down to the pre-implementation planning, which in one sense began as early as 1995 with the appointment of a CIO and the establishment of a budget for new capital infrastructure. By the time of the EMR – EHR go live in the first quarter of 2002, the process of preparing the institution had been largely employee driven” (The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, 2006, p. 3).
Recent major trends in health care systems have been, first, to provide all elements of the care continuum from health insurance, outpatient and inpatient services to long-term health maintenance, and second, to develop system-wide integration of administration, clinical care, information technology, and financing. Those have not only tried to integrate multiple organizations through partnerships, but have also integrated internal functions—a step that is encouraged as an integrated healthcare delivery system tries to show its unique values as an advantage over competitors (Wan, MA, & Lin, 2001, p. 1).
This all works because of one simple proceed. To help maintain the safety of patients they have been able to increase other areas of patient volume as well. Being able to strategically place were programs go and who manages them; helps employees feel like they belong or have a sense of belonging.
Market Entry Strategies
Discussion 4 Response
L R
Quickest models of entry into market include licensing, alliances, venture capital, joint ventures and acquisitions as they typically only require financial commitment and an opportunity to create fast entry into a market with moderate to minimal risk. Use of the Venture capital investment strategy is recently popular means of expansion strategy selected by corporations as it allows the business to “test drive” a market for potential success without the full commitment of business building. Essentially, business investors are given an opportunity use their funding to trial ideas and technologies, if well strategized; the benefits can well outweigh the cost, (Swayne, Duncan, & Ginter, 2009).
Slower entry strategies include those that focus on internal adjustments or changes such internal venture, and internal development. These strategies are slower moving as they require much more control over the product and the internal structure of the organization to be successful. This method can also be problematic in that creating internal change and a proverbial shift indirection can prove to be a formidable task (Swayne, Duncan, & Ginter, 2009).
The Marrocco article provides detailed example of the benefits and obscured risks of venture capital in the health care arena. There is an emphasis on the imperative task of researching the value and usefulness of the technology or product an organization is attempting to introduce to a market. The writer challenges investors to a knowledge of the target group that goes beyond language learning, but reaches understanding the needs of culture, namely, their status, perspectives, practices and ideologies towards healthcare. For example, new technologies for birth control are useless to a Russian population facing perilously low population figures. Neither would a country be intrigued by gadgetry and simplified medical procedures, if their normal health care expenditures are a fraction of what the United States spends. There is an incalculable benefit to knowing one’s demographic.
Discussion response 5 Strategy or Structure
W P
According to Kim and Mauborgne (2009) value and profit propositions set out the context of a strategy which indicates what a company offers to buyers and how it will benefit from that offering. Strategy is the development and alignment of three propositions to reconstruct or exploit the environment in which the organization operates. An organization chooses to differentiate itself from the competition for a premium price or to pursue low costs. The organization aligns its value chain, organizational culture, marketing and human resource strategies in the process (Swayne, Duncan & Ginter, 2008). Financial targets are developed and budget allocations occur on the basis of these strategies. For strategic management to be successful, everyone must be encouraged to think strategically. The CEO can develop a strategy, but for it to be successful with common ownership, key participants should work together to develop a strategy. The entire leadership team is responsible for strategy development and its management (Swayne, Duncan & Ginter, 2008).
After a strategy has been developed and initiated, momentum must be maintained. Internal and external environmental evaluations should be ongoing to remain current about the organization’s competitive strengths and weaknesses. At NCH, sustained competitive advantage is primary to survival. For example, re-evaluation of the supply chain, and ambulatory diagnostic services are at the forefront as new opportunities, thereby requiring strategy to occur before structure. Choosing the correct strategic approach for each department or business unit is a challenge for leadership.
Organizational structure is intertwined in three components: the administrative structure or organizational chart; the distribution of authority and responsibility; and the organizational system of measurement; and evaluation of performance. The use of a balances scorecard is essential in tracking performance to ensure that one area of performance is not unintentionally excelling at the expense of another. When different levels of an organization are telling different stories about the environment, unbundling or disaggregating the indicators can be a useful strategy to evaluate the appropriateness of performance measures (Kelly, 2007). Balanced scorecards are used at NCH to evaluate individual business units in relation to the organizational goals. Accountability and responsibility is evident by management assignment on the organizational chart. Monthly meeting to evaluate status are held to ensure that structure and strategy are congruent.
In conclusion, structure dictates how objectives and policies will be established and how resources will be allocated. The structural condition in which the organization operates, its resources and capabilities and its strategic mindset determines the correct approach for an organization (Kim & Mauborgne, 2009). Strategy determines structure that leads to performance consequences. Separate business units in an organization face different structural conditions with a different strategic approach.
Discussion 6 Strategy or Structure
D T
The learner was asked to evaluate whether strategy or structure comes first in my health care organization.
I believe strategy comes first because, there has to be an analysis of the situation ending with results for problem solving. Following the planning phase; then comes structure (outcomes). This is the implementation phase where everyone is introduced to the change and expected to adhere and practice it. The management / leadership team is responsible for introducing structure and the expectations on how to get from point A to point B. (the new direction the health care organization is going and how we are going to get there).
Associates and physicians will need to have buy in as well; everyone has to be on one accord when following the organization s’ expectations. This is what builds the structure (a way of doing things) throughout the organization and establishing beliefs in the mission, vision and values of the HCO. If leadership is not supportive of the structure of the HCO and cannot convey it than associates and physicians cannot be held accountable to implement what has not gained the total support of the leadership and management team.
Effective strategy implementation requires the same determination and effort that is devoted to situational analysis and strategy formulation. Everyone in the organization has to be a partner in implementation (Swayne, Duncan & Ginter, 2009).

The post Title: et Entry Strategies/Vertical Integration/Organizational structure appeared first on essay-paper.