GCU HCA470 Full Course: Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 1 Discussion

DQ1 You are the vice president at a new biotechnology company and your initial drug product is showing promise and it is likely it will go to market in about a year and a half. One of your board members, who has a vast background and over 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry is showing impatience with your apparent lack of planning for the next phase of the company. She is questioning if you have the ability to lead the company to a higher level. You sense that she would like to replace you and assume control of the project and company initiatives.

Discuss strategies for addressing the board member about the issue and as you move forward. When formulating strategies, keep in mind that organizational culture is key to success and addressing barriers head on is the only way to move forward. In replies to peers, discuss whether you think the suggested strategies will be effective, justify your response, and provide additional ideas for addressing the situation.

DQ2 Imagine you are the founder of a start-up business focusing on telemedicine. You currently have two people working with you. You like to plan ahead, so you have decided on the kind of culture you wish to develop.

Describe the culture you want to create and discuss steps you can take now and over the next six months to create such a culture. In replies to peers, share additional steps that could be taken to develop the desired culture.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 2 Discussion

DQ1 Research and post the mission and vision statements of two hospitals near you where you could receive care. Compare the mission and vision for each organization and share the image/impression each creates in your mind. Imagine you have been offered a position by each hospital and indicate which organization you would select and why based upon the mission and vision statements. In replies to peers, indicate which organization most appealed to you and explain why.

DQ2 Imagine you are the corporate “turn-around” specialist who has been hired to save a 400-bed hospital in a large metropolitan area. It faces competition from two well-managed teaching hospitals, has experienced declining occupancy rates, and has been losing money for six years. Common sense and good business thinking says that the hospital should be closed. Political consideration will not allow that to happen. Suggest three steps the hospital could take to ensure its survival for the next five years and justify your selections. In replies to peers, provide additional steps that have not already been discussed and explain how you think these will help the hospital survive.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 3 Discussion

DQ1 Review the lists of health-related resources and competencies found in Chapter 2 of the textbook. Provide three examples of how the resources and competencies could be leveraged to create a competitive advantage. In replies to peers, explain why you agree or disagree with the examples provided.

DQ2 You are the physician-owner of a group practice of five-physicians; the other four doctors are employees of the practice. You have decided to become more aggressive about growing the organization by distinguishing the quality of the care it provides from that of other physician practices.

You have several questions to answer:

How will you define the quality that you want to promote?

How will you measure the quality that the group offers in comparison with competing practices?

Exactly what data will you use?

Assuming that you see some value in improving the level of quality, at what points in the practice’s operations will you address the issue? (Hint: Think in terms of the practice value chain.) Suggest some examples of changes you might want to make and explain how you will know when your practice’s quality is distinctive enough to give you an advantage over your competitors. Discuss how you will promote that distinction to your patients and prospective patients. In replies to peers, discuss whether you agree with the strategy assessment provided and justify your response.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 4 Discussion

DQ1 Once an organization has a good understanding of its external environment, describe how it goes about interpreting the possible effects on its operations and strategies. Describe guidelines that can be used for recognizing specific threats and opportunities that deserve attention. In replies to peers, discuss additional strategies that have not already been provided.

DQ2 Imagine that you are the head of strategic planning for a 150-bed general hospital located in a medium-sized city with a diverse population representing a cross-section of U.S. society. Consider the most prominent variables that define a population and compile a list of the segments into which the hospital’s overall market could be defined. From the list, identify segments in which patients might want something unique in their hospital services. Post the list of segment and potential patient wants for each segment. In replies to peers, discuss whether you agree or disagree with the assessment and justify your response.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 5 Discussion

DQ1 The textbook lists but does not explain three popular methods for determining the financial attractiveness of a strategic project: break-even analysis, net present value (NPV), and internal rate of return (IRR). Conduct research to locate a clear description of each method. In your own words, write a 1-2 sentence description for each method. Discuss whether you believe these methods could be used to analyze a strategic proposal and compare it to other proposals and justify your opinion. In replies to peers, support or refute the ideas presented.

DQ2 Identify three health insurance companies active in your area and research the credit rating trends for each company using credit rating firms such as Standard & Poor’s, Fitch Rating, and Moody’s Investors Service. Discuss the trends among the firms by addressing the following:

Are the ratings for each company similar across the rating firms? Explain why or why not.

Identify specific trends regarding rating ups and downs for each company and discuss potential links to rating changes based upon revenue, profits, etc.

In replies to peers, discuss additional trends you noticed or comment on what you noticed in the trends that you found surprising or out of the ordinary.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 6 Discussion

DQ1 Imagine you are a corporate executive tasked with making portfolio decisions. Discuss whether you would consult with stakeholders, the head of the current SBUs in the portfolio, or with both when making decisions. Justify your ideas with specific reasons, facts, and examples. In replies to peers, discuss whether you agree or disagree with the ideas presented and explain why.

DQ2 A hospital located in the downtown area of a large city has decided to open satellite outpatient clinics in suburbs of the city, one within a year from now and another two years later. Describe the roles that the hospitals’ functional areas will have to play in establishing those clinics. In replies to peers, support or refute the ideas presented and suggest additional areas that have not already been identified.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 7 Discussion

DQ1 Imagine that you are a top executive in a biotechnology firm that has grown rapidly on the basis of its first drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The company has decided to proceed down two new drug development paths while continuing adaptive research on the first drug. It seems appropriate to reorganize in order to accommodate these new strategic initiatives. Discuss the changes you would recommend in organizational structure and explain exactly how you would go about moving from the current structure to the new one. In replies to peers, discuss whether you agree with the strategy presented or not and explain why.

DQ2 Imagine you are the marketing manager of a medical device company that has plans to implement a strategy to shift from a competitive, individualistic sales culture to one based on collaboration and team work. Identify the people you would select to serve on the change team to oversee this shift and justify the selection of each. In replies to peers, identify additional individuals that could be considered for the change team and explain their significance.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 8 Discussion

DQ1 Under what conditions would it make sense to cancel or reverse the implementation of a strategy for which there has already been substantial investment such as hiring and training staff, purchasing equipment, constructing facilities, negotiating contracts, launching marketing campaigns, etc.? Discuss how you would decide whether to simply redirect in a slightly different strategic direction or cancel. Provide real-world examples to illustrate your ideas. In replies to peers, present additional factors to be considered as well as other ideas about how to proceed when making such a decision.

DQ2 Describe how an organization should react to the news that the strategy it is monitoring is being implemented more rapidly than planned and is showing more positive results than anticipated. Provide a real-world example to illustrate and justify your ideas.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 1 Assignment

Organizational Culture and Structure in Strategic Planning

The purpose of this assignment is to identify aspects of organizational design and culture as they relate to market segments and impact strategic planning.

Throughout the course, you will develop a business plan for a strategic initiative you select. Choose an existing health care organization that you can use as the basis for your analysis and business plan. When selecting the organization, ensure that it meets the following criteria:

Organization may be for profit, non-profit, or community based.

Information about the organization, including financial data, should be publicly available to ensure you can complete the required organizational analysis.

Once you have selected the organization, conduct research to learn about the organization. Consider potential barriers with organizational stakeholders, the organizational design and culture, and how these impact change initiatives.

Part 1: Organizational Chart

Review Chapter 19 in the textbook, paying special attention to Figure 19.6 “Multi-National Pharmaceutical Company.” Using Figure 19.6 as a model, evaluate the organization you have selected. Create an organizational chart by market segment. This can be used to evaluate business processes in relation to the internal value chain and to communicate to organizational stakeholders the way that culture affects strategic planning.

Part 2: Business Memo

Imagine you have been asked to communicate your findings about the organization to stakeholders. In a 500-750 word business memo to stakeholders, address the following.

Describe the organizational culture.

Discuss the implications of the culture on strategic planning.

Explain the difference between operating activities and strategic initiatives.

Communicate where the value is in the organization based upon the structure.

Identify areas of opportunity and explain where process changes would be seen or come from.

Identify potential barriers to strategic planning and explain actions that could be taken to overcome the barriers.

Submit the organizational chart and business memo to the LMS.

While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 2 Assignment

Benchmark – Mission, Vision, and Values Analysis

The purpose of this assignment is to analyze the importance of vision, mission, and values in strategic planning.

Conduct additional research about the health care organization you selected in Topic 1. Identify the organization’s mission, vision, and values. Refer back to textbook Chapter 6 to review the characteristics of good mission and vision statements so you can use these criteria in the analysis of the selected company.

Write a 1,000-1,250 word paper that analyzes the mission, vision, and value statements for the healthcare organization you have selected. The paper should address the following:

Explain the importance of strategic direction and the purpose of the mission and vision statements in the strategic planning process.

State the mission and vision of the selected organization.

Utilize the criteria found in Chapter 6 to evaluate the mission and vision of the selected organization. Include discussion of whether the mission and vision statements contain the characteristics of good mission and vision statements and justify your position.

Summarize the organization’s values and describe how they align to key tenets of the Christian worldview perspective. Include discussion about how adherence to these values can affect strategic planning and initiatives.

Identify the major organizational resources needed to accomplish the mission and vision and uphold the company values.

Identify strategies that can be employed to effectively manage resources to fulfill the organization’s mission and vision.

Describe the substance of an organization’s strategic objectives and the contributions they make to the strategic planning process.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

This benchmark assignment assesses the following programmatic competencies:

BS Health Care Administration

1. Identify the major organizational resources needed to accomplish strategic health care initiatives.

1. Determine the impact that an organization’s vision and mission have on effectively managing resources.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 3 Assignment

CLC – Internal Audit and External Analysis of a Health Care Organization

This is a Collaborative Learning Community (CLC) assignment.

The purpose of this assignment is to conduct an internal audit of organizational strengths and weaknesses and an external analysis of opportunities and threats as part of the strategic planning process.

Review the “Learning Exercise” located at the end of Chapter 2 in the textbook. Using a health care organization that no one in the group is researching as the focus for the assignment, you will collaborate to complete a multi-part analysis of the organization’s strategic assets. The findings will be presented in a 20-25 slide PowerPoint presentation. Keep the size of graphic files condensed and minimize special effects to ensure the file size does not exceed the 10 MB maximum for file submission to the LMS. Speaker notes should be included for each slide to provide talking points and relevant supporting details for the presentation of slide content.

Part 1: Internal Audit of a Health Care Organization

Research the organization and prepare a topical outline that addresses the following elements:

Organization Description: Identify the mission, vision, location, size, scope of services, etc.

Financial Performance and Condition: Describe historical financial performance and current financial condition. Include specific data that illustrates profits and losses, etc.

Major Resources and Competencies: Identify tangible and intangible assets that are unique to the organization or give it competitive advantage and explain how each can be a strength or weakness for the organization.

Internal Value Chain: Create a diagram similar to the examples provided in the textbook. Explain how each identified activity adds value to the customer and the organization.

Part 2: External Analysis of a Health Care Organization

Conduct an external environmental analysis using general, publicly available resources. When researching, identify 2-3 specific examples for each category. Add to the topic outline by addressing the following elements:

Political/Government: Explain election results and current political mood along with the effects of government spending, policies on health care research, government regulation and enforcement of health care industry laws, and the government’s role in addressing critical societal challenges and how this affects the organization.

Legal:  Discuss systems (laws or statuTes, regulations, administrative rulings, and court decisions) and explain how events and decisions in these areas can affect regulation, risk, reimbursement, new projects, taxes, and competitive advantage for the organization.

Professional/Industry: Describe the effect of positions and initiatives of professional and industry trade associations on the organization.

Economic: Identify the current economic status at the regional, national, and global level and describe the effect on the organization.

Demographics: Includes gender, age, income levels, ethnicity, race, education, family size, and composition, geographic place of residence, employment status, birth rates, and life expectancies.

Sociocultural: Describe characteristics of important people in an organization’s external environment (i.e. traditions, lifestyles, values, attitudes, beliefs, opinions, tastes, political views, and behavioral patterns, etc.). Consider people such as immediate and prospective customers, customer influencers, end users, suppliers, shareholders, government regulators, medical, general public, and other stakeholders. Include discussion about how external sociocultural factors affect services provided by the organization.

Technology: Explain how the organization is using new technology.

Part 3: Market Segments

Compile a list of segments that could be defined within the organization’s overall market.

Determine the most likely bases for differentiated product or service offerings.

Part 4: Five Force Analysis

Conduct a five force analysis of the organization.

Refer to the resource, “Creating Effective PowerPoint Presentations,” located in the Student Success Center, for additional guidance on completing this assignment in the appropriate style.

While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 4 Assignment

Business Plan Part 1: SWOT Analysis and Business Plan Proposal

The purpose of this assignment is to conduct an external assessment to determine an appropriate strategic goal for an organization.

A SWOT analysis is part of strategy formulation that leads to goal setting and then progresses to the development of a business plan. Using the organization selected in Topic 1, complete the “SWOT Analysis Template.” Note that the results of the SWOT analysis should be used to develop the “Strategic Goal(s)” section of template. Strategic goals will be the focus of your proposed business plan. Each section of the SWOT analysis should contain a minimum of four bullet points, each supported with a credible source. The SWOT analysis bullet points should contain clear statements that make sense to those who are unfamiliar with the selected organization.

While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 5 Assignment

Business Plan Part 2: Financial Analysis and Budget

The purpose of this assignment is to complete a financial analysis to develop a proposed budget for a selected strategic initiative.

Understanding the role of financial management in strategic planning is essential in formulating a business plan for a strategic initiative. Financial analysis involves considering the factors that directly affect the initiative such as staffing, space, equipment, training and education, etc. Once this information is known, a budget can be proposed for the strategic initiative and included as part of the business plan.

For this assignment, complete a financial analysis of your selected organization by reviewing current company financial data such as income statements, budgets, net revenue, profit/loss statements, etc. Use that information and research about key budget items such as average salaries, cost of benefits, space and equipment costs, etc. to formulate a proposed budget for your strategic initiative.

In a 250-500 words, address the following in the form of an executive summary:

Briefly describe the proposed strategic initiative including the proposed changes and expected outcomes based upon the results of the SWOT analysis.

Provide a simple budget for the strategic initiative. Include all relevant budget categories such as staffing (including salaries and benefits), space, equipment, training and education, and any other expenses related to the initiative. Create a table to efficiently present the key budget information.

Provide a financial data overview that summarizes what financial data you examined and a description of specific factors that informed each financial statement (net revenue, profit/loss, balance sheet, etc.).

Include at least one of the financial statements available from the selected organization (income statement, budgets, net revenue, profit/loss statements, etc.) as a figure or an appendix.

While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 6 Assignment

Benchmark – Business Plan Part 3: Strategy

The purpose of this assignment is to conduct market analysis to set goals and formulate action and communication plans for the proposed initiative.

Before you begin the written assignment, make sure you have conducted research relevant to the strategic initiative business plan. Include market analysis that can be used to formulate goals and outcomes, project structure, and stakeholder identification, needs, and communication.

In a 1,250-1,500 word business plan that is clear and concise and utilizes business language and style, address the following using bullet points, narratives, and relevant visuals.

History or rationale for the proposed strategic initiative, including industry trend data and other relevant research.

Market analysis (internal and external) summary and explanation for how this analysis supports the proposed initiative. Include discussion regarding competition.

Measurable project goals and outcomes and their relationship to the strategic focus of the organization.

Description of the project structure including alliances, contractual relationships, etc. and explanation of how each supports the proposed initiative.

Prioritized list of project stakeholders and an analysis of the effect of diverse stakeholder cultures, values, beliefs, and experiences that need to be considered in the proposed initiative.

Table that summarizes the communication plan describing how information will be disseminated to stakeholders including the communication strategies to be used and justification for each, the types of communication channels to be used, and how the communication plan supports what you hope to achieve with the strategic initiative. Articulate the specific leadership skills you will use to facilitate collaboration and communication between stakeholders.

While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

This benchmark assignment assesses the following programmatic competencies:

BS Health Care Administration

4.3:

Analyze the impact of diverse cultures, values, beliefs, and experiences among cross-functional stakeholders.

4.5:

Evaluate leadership skills used in the facilitation of collaborative decision making among internal and external stakeholders.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 7 Assignment

Business Plan Part 4: Implementation Schedule

The purpose of this assignment is to create an implementation plan for a strategic initiative.

A key part of every business plan is developing an implementation schedule that identifies all of the critical actions necessary for successful plan execution.

Create a timeline or chart that illustrates the implementation schedule for critical action steps necessary for successful execution of the strategic initiative.

The schedule should include the following:

Critical action steps necessary for implementation of the plan.

Identify the resources and competencies.

Describe how the resources and competencies are matched to the strategic initiative.

Identify how the action plan aligns to the organization’s strategic initiatives.

While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

 

HCA470 Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care

Week 8 Assignment

Business Plan Part 5: Revision and Final Business Plan

The purpose of this assignment is to build a comprehensive business plan for a strategic initiative.

Throughout Topics 4-7 various components of the business plan for your strategic initiative were created. Review the feedback you received from your instructor on the Business Plan Parts 1-4 assignments. Make necessary revisions to each part of the business plan and put each revised part of the plan together to create the final business plan for the proposed strategic initiative. Evidence of revision based upon instructor feedback will be assessed. Additionally, you will add a new section to the plan regarding strategic evaluation.

In a 1,500-2,000 word business plan that is clear and concise and utilizes business language and style, address the following using bullet points, narratives, and relevant visuals.

The final plan should include the following components:

SWOT Analysis

Financial Analysis and Budget

Strategy

Implementation Schedule

Strategic Evaluation: Discuss specific tools to be used to monitor the implementation success of the initiative and explain why ongoing strategic evaluation and the willingness and ability to adjust strategy is necessary for successful implementation of the initiative.

While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.

GCU HCA470 Full Course: Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care.GCU HCA470 Full Course: Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care.GCU HCA470 Full Course: Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care.GCU HCA470 Full Course: Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care.GCU HCA470 Full Course: Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care.GCU HCA470 Full Course: Strategic Planning and Implementation in Health Care