E-business strategies assignment 1   Table of Contents Introduction 3 PESTLE analysis 3 5 Forces Analysis 6 Core Competencies 7 Strategy Recommendation 7 Conclusion 8 References 9   Introduction The e-business strategy of a firm is important for the smooth functioning of the business over the internet. The strategy would involve both the long term as well as short term strategy of the firm which involves skillful planning. This report would analyze the strategy of America Well: Telemedicine Technology Solutions, which provides different telemedicine’s services for the health plans, health systems, physicians, employers and others (Well 2017). This report would analyze the different strategic options of the organization by using several tools such as PESTLE, 5 Forces and Core Competencies. PESTLE analysis It is important to understand the various political, economic, social, technological, legal and environment factors for understanding the current strategic position of the e-firm. Political The US healthcare expenses are expected to increase by $4.3 trillion by the year 2018 (Bhaskar and Vo 2014). This implies that approximately 17.6% of the GDP would be done towards the healthcare expenditures. The healthcare industry is a matter of intense reform in the circles of public policy. Fig: National healthcare and hospital spending in USA Source: (Barr 2016) Economic The inflation as well as the increase in the interest rates in the USA has great impact on the functioning of the health care industry (Barr 2016). There are increased instances of the job loss due to the inconsistencies of salaries in the medical industry. This has impacted the economic growth of the country. The national spending of US on healthcare is considered as the highest in the world (Barr 2016). Social The social factors affecting the US healthcare industry includes the aging population, decreased levels of fertility, changes in the eating habits, gender preferences and others. More number of people is affected by the chronic diseases such as heart conditions and diabetes (Davenport 2013). This can be attributed to the different lifestyle choices like lack of exercise and consumption of fast foods. There is an increase in the per capita income of the average households. Fig: Per Capita Income and Hospital Margins in USA Source: (Barr 2016) Technological The healthcare sector is able to afford high end technological interventions in their day to day business process, which makes them more profitable (Davenport 2013). There is more intervention of Electronic Health Record (EHR), clinical decision support systems, patient information system and others. Environment There is the generation of carbon emissions during the different telemedicine appointments (Davenport 2013). The healthcare industry needs to focus on the regulatory measures regarding the healthcare waste management, pollution, poisonous emissions and others. Legal There are number of legal factors such as labor laws, company laws, remuneration laws and others that needs to be emphasized on by the healthcare institutions (Davenport 2013). 5 Forces Analysis It is important to focus on the important findings of the healthcare industry in US. Industry Competitors The industry competitors in US healthcare industry is large especially after the occurrence of PPACA (Choi Lai and Lai 2016). This is true across all hospitals in USA. Threat of Substitute The healthcare industry faces the threat of medical tourism, which implies that the same treatments would be available at a foreign location (such as Thailand, Indonesia, India and others) at considerable low charges (Buff and Terrell 2014). Threat of new entrants The healthcare industry in USA is more capital intensive and hence there is moderate barrier of entry in this sector (Jonas and Roth 2017). There is high cost of the medical equipments and other surgical equipments that are associated with the healthcare industry. Bargaining power of suppliers The medical professionals have high bargaining power since the American Medical Association has fixed provision for adding clinicians in their medical fraternity (Buff and Terrell 2014). Bargaining power of buyers In US healthcare industry, there is less involvement of the patients as there is less transparency in the charges of the medical services (Buff and Terrell 2014). This is due to the fact that there is involvement of the insurance companies who act as the intermediaries. Core Competencies The core competencies of the firm basically fulfill three criteria such as providing potential access to various markets, contribution to customer benefits and unique services provided to customers. American Well aims to deliver additional value to their customers by the creation of “Online Care” (Well 2017). The company aims to incorporate technology in the delivery of traditional healthcare so that it can be accessible from homes or workplace. The organization has tangible as well as intangible assets which help them to leverage the strategic capabilities (Well 2017). The introduction of latest technology features in the e-health portal such as remote health monitoring and online chat with doctors would enable America Well to penetrate the masses in a short time period. It is also important for the organization to recruit health IT specialists who would be efficient in handling the e-health portal. It is also important to capture different market opportunities by spreading its presence among the hospitals, clinics and hospitals. America Well knows the tactics of having transparent communication with the patients so that they are eager to opt for the services of the company. Strategy Recommendation America Well should focus on the E-business growth strategy by eliminating the risk of getting stagnant over a period of time. It should try to expand its customer base and create options for the “affiliate marketing programs” for spreading the e-health options among the masses (Strauss 2016). This is a low cost method of creating powerful sales force. It is also important to engage in E-Business Advertising in order to increase the visibility of the business entity (Strauss 2016). The company should engage in the increased use of “pay per click” advertising. This would increase the sales of the company as well as increase the popularity of the company. Conclusion It is important to implement innovative e-business strategies for America Well. This report covers the strategic alignment of America Well, which provides variety of telemedicine services. The PESTLE analysis of the company is being done along with the 5 forces analysis. The core competencies of the firm (Online Care) have been elaborated in detail. A strategy recommendation has been done, which is based on e-business growth and e-business advertising. This report would broaden the understanding of the strategic approach of the different E-business firms.   References Barr, D.A., 2016. Introduction to US Health Policy: the organization, financing, and delivery of health care in America. JHU Press. Bhaskar, R. and Vo, A., 2014. Health Care Reform Requires IT Solutions to Influence Consumer Perception at a Health Care Payer. Buff, M.J. and Terrell, T.D., 2014. The Role of Third-Party Payers in Medical Cost Increases. Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons, 19(2). Choi, A.L., Lai, D.A. and Lai, T.L., 2016. Health Analytics, Economics and Medicine toward a 21st Century Health Care System. Health, 8(05), p.428. Davenport, T.H., 2013. Thinking for a living: how to get better performances and results from knowledge workers. Harvard Business Press. Jonas, J.M. and Roth, A., 2017. Stakeholder integration in service innovation-an exploratory case study in the healthcare industry. International Journal of Technology Management, 73(1-3), pp.91-113. Strauss, J., 2016. E-marketing. Routledge. Well, A. (2017). American Well: Telemedicine Technology Solutions. [online] American Well. Available at: http://www.americanwell.com [Accessed 24 Mar. 2017].