20190902183748capstone_project....1.docxRunning head: CAPSTONE PROJECT: IMPLEMENTING A STRATEGIC PLAN 1
CAPSTONE PROJECT: IMPLEMENTING A STRATEGIC PLAN 6
Capstone Project: Implementing a Strategic Project
Name
Institution
Capstone Project: Implementing a Strategic Plan
Introduction
The administrator of the health facility should work towards the elevation and evolution of the company towards growth in the company. The administrator should work towards the administration of adaptive strategies to enable the organization to achieve the stipulated goals and objectives. Being the administrator of the company, it is necessary to take into consideration the fact that organizational success comes with its fair share of downfalls which will create the need to analyze the internal and external factors that were discovered previously to determine those that could impede success. The health facility will decipher the kind of marketing that will be targeted by the developed strategies. It will also choose between the point-of-service, pre-service, and after-service activities that are most effective for the company. The administration will provide proposals that the organization can utilize to support its culture and structure. With the company's mission and vision in place, the plan will display how well it aligns with the organization’s core values. This strategic plan will help the health facility to determine the effectiveness of the strategies that have been put in place to facilitate its success.
Analytical Tool to Determine the Adaptive Strategy for the Organization
Adaptive strategy refers to plans that are developed by a firm or organization to determine how the organization will respond to various changes in the industry. According to Robert & Duncan (2007), an adaptive strategy may entail the adaptation of emerging technologies such as social media to achieve the aspired goal such as promotions and awareness. One of the adaptive strategies that should be adopted is positional training of the staff at least twice every year. Training will help to ensure that the teams in the organization are knowledgeable and well-skilled when undertaking their tasks. This will ensure that patients in the facility are provided with high-quality care. The facility will implement diagnostic and skill testing, along with patient surveys to achieve organizational goals with ease. Training, coupled with diagnostic testing will enable the health facility to enhance productivity since the employees will understand their roles and the best use to use the provided tools.
External and Internal Factors that could be a Barrier to Success
The health care industry always encounters obstacles and barriers that tend to affect its growth potential. During the environmental analysis, several internal and external factors were realized which pose as a barrier to the organization’s ability to achieve its success from the set strategies. According to Baillie & Matiti (2013), internal and external factors are significant forces which can affect the organization's potential if they are not executed appropriately. Benchmarking is one factor with the potential to change the facility. When done appropriately, benchmarking is likely to propagate the company to success and facilitate the improvement of the services provided to patients. However, this could also act as a barrier to the facility's success, especially if the institution is required to adopt traits from other facilities that could affect its culture. As a result, it is imperative to approach it with caution. Although comparing the facility's success to other peers in the industry is of essence, it can be a cause of demotivation if done inappropriately (Robert & Duncan (2007). If the institution must benchmark, then the management should only use trustworthy data from genuine and authentic facilities. This is important considering some institutions can forge data and present false reports to stay ahead of its competitors. Benchmarking with data from such an institution could result in unnecessary pressures, most of which are based on inaccurate data. This could be demotivating to the employees and harmful to the company. The management should carry out detailed market research and ensure that the data used will promote growth and success rather than act as an impediment to growth.
Several internal factors were realized during the environmental analysis among them being human resources and poor communication. Having the right human resources is essential for success in that employees play a significant role in organizational activities. Without the right talent, it would be difficult for the facility to meet the needs of its customers effectively. The management should ensure that only qualified candidates are recruited and trained to equip them with the necessary skills to facilitate the achievement of organizational goals. However, although recruiting the right candidates is essential, poor communication and consequent disputes can hinder efficiency and productivity in the institution. Poor communication promotes incompetence and makes it challenging to achieve organizational objectives. According to Robert & Duncan (2007), an inefficient human resource team and weak lines of communication can prevent the health facility from achieving success as a result of the proposed strategies. The management should provide the recruits with training sessions to facilitate comprehension and promote understanding of pertinent issues across the board. The training should occur regularly to promote employee competence and productivity, which will make it easy to achieve organizational goals and objectives.
The segment of the Market that is Targeted by the Strategies
The proposed strategies aim at targeting significant healthcare institutions such as insurance companies among other healthcare facilities that believe in our mission and vision of quality healthcare. The strategy should target potential patients and current consumers to ensure that their needs are attended to as required. All the formulated strategies should target all patients and consumers because they are the reason the facility is thriving. It is our responsibility as the best healthcare facility to provide quality healthcare to facilitate the anticipated patient outcomes and client referrals. This will not only serve the institution a good purpose but will also help it to remain competitive in the industry. Achieving customer needs will strengthen company morale and make it easy to achieve the organization's mission and vision.
Pre-Service, After-Service, and Point-of-Service
Healthcare facilities often operate using pre-service, after service, and point-service value chains. According to Scott-Findlay & Golden-Biddle (2005), pre-service refers to those services that create value to a client before the provision of the actual services. For instance, determining the best prices for services provides is an example of a pre-service. Pre-service is never dedicated towards offering service to patients but is more about marketing, promotion, branding and logistics among other services that aim at promoting the image and brand of the healthcare facility to the consumers. It entails plans and activities that enable the healthcare facility to determine the services that will be provided to consumers.
After-service refers to activities that are often provided after all essential services are provided. It is often the final point of contact that the customer or patient gets with the facility. It is the last point before the next appointment for any additional services which are often set to meet the customer’s satisfaction. The additional services often include clinicals among other medical follow ups such as billing and back office strategies that make the company to appear as caring and one that prioritizes the needs of the consumer.
This healthcare facility should provide after-service activities based on its target customers. This choice is the best in that it will show patients that the facility is dedicated to the provision of quality healthcare. It will also make them feel cared for from the moment they check-in until the time they are discharged. Besides, this will act as an effective marketing strategy for the customers, which will increase traffic and exposure of the facility to the public. Unlike other activities, after-sale service is not only profitable but will promote quality services to the consumers, which will give them a reason to provide more client referrals.
Supporting the Facility’s Strategic Direction within its Culture and Structure
Research shows that structure and culture often play a significant role in the healthcare industry. An organization should implement strategies that support its direction in the achievement of the set vision and mission. An organization can support its strategic direction within its structure and culture to achieve its mission and vision through diversity and communication. When it comes to an organization's culture, diversity plays a significant role in supporting the facility's direction within the culture. The management should create an environment where communication is positively demonstrated and properly executed. It is essential in that it ties with the facility's structure.
According to Scott-Findlay & Golden-Biddle (2005), proper communication is determined by the facility's structure, which can help to define the levels and roles of every division. It can be difficult for an organization to achieve its goals towards growth and success without establishing active lines of communication. In order to promote efficiency in communication, the facility should ensure the lines originate from the management through the facility's nurse, among other subordinates in the facility. Without a smooth flow of information, the facility can encounter problems to attain its goal of quality care.
Communication with the facility's structure and culture can support its strategic direction and drive towards success. The creation of efficient communication lines is one manner in which an organization can enhance its strategic direction. However, the promotion of diversity and cultural competence begins with the effort to understand the traditions and beliefs of various diverse populations. The promotion of diversity is an aspect that many organizations tend to ignore. Health facilities should understand that diversity is more than gender, race, demographics and regions.
Strategic Resources Helping an Organization Achieve its Strategic Goals
There are various factors and resources that enable a company to achieve its strategic goals. An organization can achieve its strategic goals through resources such as finance, IT, facilities, and human resources. However, it can be difficult for a healthcare facility to attain the stipulated goals and objectives if these resources are not well managed and used to advantage of the society.
The finance strategy resource is essential in the achievement of the facility's strategic goals in that it facilitates the execution of crucial tasks. The ability to generate and manage the facility's finances is essential, especially when it comes to audits and financial reviews. For instance, a stable financial team can assist in the allocation of resources and efficient implementation to facilitate the execution of activities that are considered of importance both to the company and the patients. Financial issues can cause legal issues that can make it difficult for the facility to achieve its goals and objectives.
Human resources play an essential role in the success of a health facility. Qualified and motivated employees play an active role in the efficient management of organizational resources which can facilitate the achievement of its mission and vision. A strong team of human resources can help to facilitate smooth flow of functions in areas that deal with payroll, recruitment, and trainings among others (Kelly, 2007). A facility with a stable team of human resources stands out in terms of its customer service towards its applicants and employees. For instance, it is common to see patients make referrals to a facility where they received exceptional treatment and service as opposed to one where the services are unfriendly. The facility in question should ensure that the human resource team are trained and educated on the best way to enhance the use and management of the organization’s resources.
The IT strategic resource is of significance when it comes to the functionality and efficiency of a health facility. Technology makes it possible for an organization to stay updated, to save costs, and remain updated. Advancement in technology has made it possible for organizations to enhance service delivery and to improve various components of management. While technology can enhance service delivery, an obsolete system can cause the organization to suffer from a breach of data, system failure, loss of essential information, and frequent shutdowns that can cause the company significant losses. For instance, a health facility that has adopted health information systems can benefit from efficient record keeping, enhanced service delivery, and the management of resources. According to Ansoff et al., (2018), the facility’s administration should ensure frequent update of the IT department to ensure that all systems are upto date and working as required.
It is difficult for any facility to achieve its strategic goals without making good use of these strategic resources. IT, finances, facilities, and human resources are connected in such a manner that promotes the growth of an organization. Without any of these facilities, it would be difficult for the organization to maintain its productivity and competitive advantage in the industry. Human resources, IT, and technology should be interconnected when recruiting and training to facilitate the provision of top-quality care.
Alignment of the Strategic Plans with the Organization’s Mission and Vision
In order to understand whether or not the implemented strategic plans align with the health facility’s mission and vision, one should first seek to understand the mission and vision of an organization. This is because the organization’s mission and vision highlight the essentials of a particular facility and what it aims at achieving in the long run. The health facility’s mission is to manage its resources to ensure that patients are welcome and provided with quality care. The vision is to uphold the facility’s respect and integrity while promoting sustainability. Both the mission and vision are geared towards the provision of quality care and ensuring that the needs of patients are met satisfactorily. The provision of patient surveys is an effective way of alignment the plans to the mission and vision in that it will provide the confirmation that the implemented plans are effective or ineffective. While the company is also committed to generating more revenue and attracting additional customers, it is crucial to ensure that the standards of patients are being met (Ansoff et al., 2018). The desire to provide quality care can be achieved through enhanced communication, decreased waiting time, and frequent training of the staff. Other than patient surveys, employee reviews are an effective manner of tracking the efficiency of the plans. Employee reviews are pertinent in that they will determine the employee's level of satisfaction from the moment they are hired and their role in growing the facility. In addition, carrying out departmental check-ins will help to ensure that the organization is functional in all aspects of its operations.
References
Ansoff, H. I., Kipley, D., Lewis, A. O., Helm-Stevens, R., & Ansoff, R. (2018). Implanting strategic management. Springer.
Baillie, L., & Matiti, M. (2013). Dignity, equality, and diversity: an exploration of how discriminatory behavior of healthcare workers affects patient dignity — diversity & Equality in Health & Care, 10(1).
Kelly, D. L. (2007). Applying quality management in healthcare: A systems approach. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.
Robert, B., & Duncan, W. J. (2007). Strategic management of health care organization.
Scott-Findlay, S., & Golden-Biddle, K. (2005). Understanding how organizational culture shapes research use. JONA: The Journal of Nursing Administration, 35(7), 359-365.
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