Competitive Strategy

Analyzing Market Forces in Health Care

Topics: Planning, Strategy Skills, Skill Development, Workforce

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  • Competitive StrategyCompetitive Strategy


    Mike Wagner discusses the workshop Competitive Strategy, which prepares leaders to develop strategic responses to the marketplace in which they operate.

Workshop Overview

As external pressures on health care organizations mount, leaders must be fully enfranchised in the design and execution of the institution’s long term strategy. Hospitals and health systems must craft strategic responses to market forces and maintain a disciplined approach to adhering to organizational focus. Correct assessment of current capacity, projections of future market conditions, and rational decision-making within the organization are critical components of successful strategy. This module provides a solid background in strategic business imperatives to inform individual participation in building competitive advantage. Participants will learn to complete and critique commonly used analytic techniques for competitive landscape assessment.

Learning objectives for participants

  • Identify the most relevant market segment and industry for a competitor assessment
  • Understand the drivers of business performance and profitability in a competitive industry
  • Evaluate the threats and opportunities in the current market
  • Project likely future changes in the competitive market
  • Formulate effective strategy, balancing risks and rewards, to mitigate or exploit future market changes

Course content and teaching methodology

This course incorporates classroom presentation, case studies, and individual and group exercises. The following topics are among those included in this course:

Assessing sources of enduring advantage

  • Understanding the benefit of strategic positioning given scarce resources and increased risk of competition within healthcare
  • Balancing response to external forces with attention to internal priorities
  • Interpreting clinical, financial, and operational data in context

Identifying right approach: Analytic tools

  • Testing the strengths of analytic techniques, focusing on Porter’s Five Forces
  • Identifying the relevant unit of analysis
  • Diagnosing the economic and operational drivers of competitive forces in the market

Targeting the effort: Strategy formulation

  • Ensuring alignment with enterprise strategy and assessing risk of new entrants in clinical care markets
  • Moving beyond market reaction to industry forecasting