SLP 2 

DeMario J. Stackhouse

Trident University International

26 May 2019

Market Analysis

As noted in the earlier discussion, BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will be located at Tampa Bay in Florida due to the current and future high demand for long-term care services in this state. Besides, the market for long-term care in this area is growing. It is not saturated since most health care organizations have not fully exploited this particular area. The demand is also increasing because of the presence of a high number of older adults and understaffing of nurses which raises the need for long-term care services. The currently available facilities like Woodbridge Care Center and Palm Terrace Assisted Living Facility & Adult Day Care are unable to meet the increasing demand in Tampa Bay and Florida State as a whole. Although some health care organizations that were initially not offering long-term care are now considering providing this service, the demand is still not adequately met.

Therefore, since the market is growing, BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will integrate new approaches into the market as well as embrace the latest technology to differentiate from new competitors and become a significant market shareholder. Typically, the facility will adopt a differentiation marketing approach by distinguishing its services from rivals in the market (Kassem & Succar, 2017). It will offer high-quality, speedy, and accurate services that align with client demand. To achieve this, BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will hire highly trained nurses and professionals who will ensure that customers receive services that meet or surpass their expectations. Going forward, the facility will also ensure that its services are accessible by opening other branches that are close to clients. It will also offer options for clients to either receive the services within the facility or in their homes. This approach will give the hospital an edge in the market because clients would enjoy receiving services at their comfort zones which might be less costly (Coulter et al., 2015). Additionally, BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will also incorporate the latest technologies like efficient diagnostic equipment, EMR, and Big Data techniques that will ensure clients receive high-quality long-term care services. For instance, Big Data techniques will allow the facility to predict clients at risk of developing other diseases in the future, thus take appropriate early response.

Besides, the challenges of the marketplace that BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will be entering include underserved population and understaffing. Moreover, to deal with the underserved population, the facility will provide long-term care in both the hospital and patients’ homes. It also aims to develop other branches in the future that will ensure that the high demand is met adequately (Kanagal, 2015). Besides, to address the understaffing issue, the facility will start a nursing training center in the coming years to ensure an adequate supply of nurses. It will also put in place appropriate motivational mechanisms to prevent current nurses from shifting to other professions. Finally, both the local and national markets are showing positive signs of since aging is an issue that affects the entire U.S. As such, both markets are expected to record significant growth in the future.

Environmental Analysis

Since BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will not be operating in a vacuum, there are specific environmental factors that it will have to consider to achieve the desired success in Tampa Bay, Florida. Knowing these environmental elements will enhance effective strategic decision-making processes (Karna et al., 2016). The unemployment rate in Florida as of March 2019 was about 3.5% which is relatively low meaning that clients have enough income to pay for the health care services. The low unemployment rate will enhance the profitability of the facility. The interest rate is about 6.57% which is favorable for the organization’s operations because it will be able to get loans at reasonable interest for expansion.

Regarding the political environment, Florida State is among the states in the United States that has a stable political status that will guarantee a favorable environment for the operations of BestCare Long-Term Care Facility. The state has implemented various health policies that will enhance the functioning of the facility without any political challenges. Besides, the facility will have to comply with specific regulations to ensure efficient and effective operations in Florida (Karna et al., 2016). For instance, it will have to comply with the environmental protection laws, taxation laws, and equal employment opportunity laws. Adhering to the established rules will prevent the organization from confronting with the authorities that might result in huge entities and fines. Also, failing to observe these regulations might impact the reputation of the facility negatively which may, in turn, discourage consumers, thus reducing profitability and market share. As such, it will be crucial for BestCare Long-Term Care Facility to comply with all the necessary laws in Florida to ensure success.

Nevertheless, the cultural environmental aspects will also impact the operations of BestCare Long-Term Care Facility. Florida is mostly dominated by English speakers; therefore, marketing the services of the enterprise will be easy since it will not be required to prepare adverts in different languages. A large percentage of consumers will understand English adverts. Also, the largest religion is Christianity; thus, the facility will only employ marketing approaches that will not contradict with the beliefs of the Christians. For instance, many Christians do not support the use of nude photos in advertisements. However, since there are also other non-Christian religions in the market, the enterprise will also have to consider the beliefs and norms of these small groups in the marketing processes to maximize profitability.

Consumer Analysis

BestCare Long-Term Care Facility targets older adults above the age of 65 years. The organization decided to focus on this market segment because most individuals over this particular age tend to suffer from various chronic illnesses that require long-term care. Research indicates that the American population is aging faster which means that the demand for long-term care will increase as well. Besides, to adequately meet the needs of consumers better than competitors, BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will ensure that it offers high-quality and accessible services both at the facility and homes of patients. It will also ensure that it has enough nurses that meet the number of clients. Lastly, the organization will integrate latest technologies in diagnosing and treatment to make sure that clients receive better care as well as enable the facility to gain a competitive edge in the market (Kassem & Succar, 2017).

Besides, BestCare Long-Term Care Facility will employ a demographic segmentation by concentrating on consumers with 65 years and above because this is the age bracket that experiences the high need for long-term care, thus will be able to ensure a good return on investment. In other words, the organization will receive reasonable profits from this segment. Finally, in its selling approach, the facility will focus on the service by making sure that they are of high-quality and meets consumer needs.

References

Coulter, A., Entwistle, V. A., Eccles, A., Ryan, S., Shepperd, S., & Perera, R. (2015). Personalised care planning for adults with chronic or long‐term health conditions. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (3).

Kanagal, N. B. (2015). Innovation and product innovation in marketing strategy. Journal of Management and marketing research, 18, 1-25.

Karna, A., Richter, A., & Riesenkampff, E. (2016). Revisiting the role of the environment in the capabilities–financial performance relationship: A meta‐analysis. Strategic Management Journal, 37(6), 1154-1173.

Kassem, M., & Succar, B. (2017). Macro BIM adoption: Comparative market analysis. Automation in Construction, 81, 286-299.

Running head: INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) 1

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) 6

Internet of Things (IoT)

My name

Institution

Course

Instructor

Date

Advancement in Web Technology

Immense progress has been made in technological fields related to web. The web has seen an evolution from Web 1.0 to web 5.0. Web 1.0 was called the web of information and web 5.0 is called the web of Decentralized smart communicator. WWW is a system of interlinked hypertext document accessed via the internet (Jacobs & Walsh, 2004). The web browser has enabled easy viewing of web pages that contain text, images and other forms of multimedia. web browsers enable an individual to easily navigate multimedia with the use of hyperlinks. World Wide Web was implemented to enhance effective communication in the whole world.

Web 1.0

Implementation of web 1.0 lasted from 1989 to 2005. It was defined as a web of information connection. According to Tim Berners-Lee, “the web as read-only Web”. Web 1.0 provided very little interaction where consumers could exchange information together and it was not easy to interact with the website (Jacobs & Walsh, 2004). The web played a very passive role, Web 1.0 was the first generation of WWW which was basically defined as an information space in which the items of interest referred to as resources are identified by global identifier called as Uniform Resources Identifiers (URLs)‘‘ First generation web was era static pages and content delivery purpose only (Jacobs & Walsh, 2004).. In another world, the early web allowed us to search for information and read it. User contribution to content was very limited with Web 1.0.

Web 1.0 was characterized by reading only content; Web 1.0 would establish an online presence so that information would be available to anyone at any time. Web 1.0 had static web pages and it used basic Hypertext Mark-Up Language. Web 1.0 had several limitations and that is why there was a need for an upgrade to Web 2.0 (Jacobs & Walsh, 2004). The limitations of the web were the content of the web could only be understood by humans. it lacked machine compatible content (Venkatesh et al., 2016). The Webmaster was the one in charge of updating web content and also managing it. With the knowledge scientists had they saw a need for making changes to web 1.0 and it leads to 2.0.

Web 2.0

Web 2.0 is the second generation of the web. According to Dale Dougherty (2004), Web 2.0 is a read-write web. the concept was born when O‘Reilly and Media live International was in a brainstorming conference session. The advancement of web 1.0 to web 2.0 allowed the assembling and easy management of large crowds with common interests in social scenarios. According to Tim O‘Reilly “Web 2.0 is the business revolution in the computer industry caused by the move to the internet as platform, and an attempt to understand the rules for success on that new platform”. More applications that could harness the network effects got better whenever there were more participants.

Web 2.0 has greatly changed the internet; web 2.0 forged its own path n the internet world. Since the inception of web 2.0, there has been a change in how individuals use the internet. it has led to an era of the more collaborative web. Web 2.0 brought change to web developers and web companies (Jacobs & Walsh, 2004). Most of our societies function on change and so does the internet. Web 2.0 became part of the daily lives of many individuals, people started living the internet. Web 2.0 was not static web but a social web. it merged individuals with the internet. Web 2.0 increased the usage of people on the internet. Web 2.0 is not only a social web but it also aims at becoming more responsive and interactive. As technology evolved people needed a version that was easier to use and that is why there was the birth of web 3.0.

Web 3.0

The modern evolutionary topics are coming after web 2.0 is web 3.0. It was John Mark, who first coined the Web in 2006. Most individuals commonly refer to web 3.0 as Executable web. The main idea behind Web 3.0 is to ensure a more effective discovery and use across various applications. Data management was greatly improved and also internet accessibility improved with the inception of Web 3.0 (Jacobs & Walsh, 2004). Web 3.0 also, ensures creativity and innovation. Web 3.0 ensured greater levels of customer satisfaction more than 2.0 ever offered. Web 3.0 also enabled its users to easily organize collaboration on the social web.

Web 4.0

Web 4.0 was considered by many individuals as the most Ultra-Intelligent Electronic Agent. Interaction between humans and machines in symbiosis was motive behind the symbiotic web. It is as powerful as the human brain. Progress in the development of telecommunication, advancement on nanotechnology in the world and controlled interfaces are using web 4.0. It became easy for machines to read and understand the contents of the Web, and was able to execute commands faster and with their superior quality and high levels of performance, they would load websites faster (Jacobs & Walsh, 2004). r. Web 4.0 will be read-write concurrency web. Web 4.0 being able to read concurrency ensures that there is distribution in governance and transparency in global governance. Concurrency ensures political and social collaboration within communities.

Web 5.0

Web 5.0 is still an underground idea in progress and there is no exact definition of how it would be. Web 5.0 can be considered as Symbiotic web, decentralized it is not possible to have a Personal Server (PS) for any personal data or information stored on the net (Galeazzi et al., 2016). Individuals try to get interconnected via Smart Communicator (SC), like Smartphones, Tablets or Personal Robots is represented as its own avatar inside the SC which will be able to surf alone in the 3D Virtual world of the Symbiotic (Galeazzi et al., 2016). The Symbiotic servers will be able to use a part of "memory and calculation power" of each interconnected SC, in order to calculate the billions and billions needed data to build the 3D world and to feed it's Artificial Intelligence surf alone.

Internet of Things (IoT)

Internet of things (IoT) is spreading so fast. Many individuals are employing their use in organizations. Technology has enabled network connectivity to everyday objects and devices that previously were not internet-enabled (Atzori, Antonio & Morabito, 2010). Consumer IoT has attracted a lot of attention due to the fact that large companies are using the internet to monitor their assets and maximize their resources for effective manufacturing. The Internet of Things market is growing at an exponential rate (Atzori, Antonio & Morabito, 2010). But the huge number of devices and subscribers accessing the network will have consequences for operators. Operators will need to prioritize traffic.

IoT has been a great transformative in the lives of many individuals. IoT has enabled the use of smart cars and, smart homes (Murthy & Kumar, 2015). Smart cars are very intelligent they provide alerts to individuals and even stop automatically when one comes closer to another vehicle and even cars do self-parking (Atzori, Antonio & Morabito, 2010). IoT goes beyond smart cars and smart homes; there has been the employment of IoT health care services. IoT is used in health care to give emergency notifications of a patient; mostly IoT is used in pacemakers (Murthy & Kumar, 2015). The use of IoT in health care has lead to many lives being saved due to early detection of birth defects.

The use of IoT does not stop at health care services; it is being employed in agriculture and manufacturing sector. Before the use of IoT in agriculture, agricultural practices were very unprofitable, but IoT has to lead to innovation of farming techniques (Atzori, Antonio & Morabito, 2010). Data relating to environmental conditions can easily be collected through the help of IoT, wireless sensors have been integrated with mobile applications through cloud platforms. the growth in the number of connected devices to the internet is what has contributed to the growth of data explosion (Murthy & Kumar, 2015). The IoT is here to benefit the daily lives of individuals, but there are threats too associated with advancement in IoT. There is the threat of cyber attacks and the lack of better ways of protecting the privacy of individuals.

References

Atzori, L., Antonio Iera, A., & Morabito, G. (2010). The Internet of things: A survey. Computer Networks, 54(2). 787–2,805 

Galeazzi, F., Callieri, M., Dellepiane, M., Charno, M., Richards, J., & Scopigno, R. (2016). Web-based visualization for 3D data in archaeology: the ADS 3D viewer. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 9, 1-11.

Jacobs, I., & Walsh, N. (eds). (2004). The architecture of the World Wide Web, Volume One. Retrieved from http://www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-webarch-20041215/ 

Murthy, D. N., & Kumar, B. V. (2015). Internet of things (IoT): is IoT a disruptive technology or a disruptive business model?. Indian Journal of Marketing, 45(8), 18-27.

Venkatesh, V., Rabah, J., Fusaro, M., Couture, A., Varela, W., & Alexander, K. (2016). Factors impacting university instructors’ and students’ perceptions of course effectiveness and technology integration in the age of web 2.0. McGill Journal of Education/Revue des sciences de l'éducation de McGill, 51(1), 533-561.

Running head: MARKETING PLAN FOR KINGSHIRE MANOR 1

MARKETING PLAN FOR KINGSHIRE MANOR 4

Marketing Plan For Kingshire Manor

DeMario J. Stackhouse

Trident University International

3 May 2019

Organizational Name/Type

The organization selected is the Kingshire Manor Assisted Living, which provides assisted living services to the senior citizens living in Rockville, Maryland. The organization also provides specialized health care services to their residents for various situations. The average monthly cost of residing in the facility is $4220 ("Kingshire Manor Assisted Living | Rockville, MD", 2019).

Historical Background

Kingshire Manor Assisted Living was founded in the year 2000. Currently, the maximum number of residents allowed is 160. The founders of the organization had a mission to provide “above and beyond” care by fostering an environment where residents felt as if they belonged. ("Kingshire Manor Assisted Living | Rockville, MD", 2019). Consequently, due to the facility only being able to house 160 residents, and the demand for Nursing home services exceeding the capacity, tremendous opportunities present for the facility to expand either the facility or add additional facilities. Furthermore, since the facility provides long term care while making minimal profit, increased revenue and profit could be the best benefit for the facility, due to potential expansion.

Geographical Location/Makeup

Kingshire Manor Assisted Living is located at 9701 Medical Center Drive in Rockville, Maryland. Based on the US demographics, the population of Rockville is estimated to be about 66,000 residents. Males account for almost 47% of the population females account for almost 53%. The total median household income in the area is $101,000 while the median age has been documented to be 39 years. 49% of the population are of the Caucasian race. Additionally, minorities make up the rest, Hispanics account for 15.3%, Asians account for 21% of the population with blacks accounting for 9% of the population. Other populations such as Native Americans and mixed races account for 4.6% of the total population.

Kingshire Manor Assisted Living | Rockville, MD. (2019). Retrieved from https://seniorcarehomes.com/assisted-living-facilities/maryland/rockville/kingshire-manor-assisted-living/

Matthews, M., Peters, C., & Lawson, S. (2017). An Exploratory Investigation of Hospice Marketing: How are Palliative Care Providers Marketing their Services? Health Marketing Quarterly, 34(1), 48-61.

Rockville, MD. (2019). Retrieved from https://datausa.io/profile/geo/rockville-md/#intro

SLP 3: SWOT Analysis

DeMario J. Stackhouse

Trident University International

9 June 2019

SWOT Analysis of BestCare Long-Term Care Facility

SWOT Diagram

Strengths

High service quality

BestCare Long-Term Care Facility is an organization that believes in providing its clients with high-quality services by ensuring that they receive proper long-term care. As such, the enterprise intends to extend this value to Florida. It has professional physicians and nurses that would make sure that customers receive high-quality services (Kassem & Succar, 2017). It has also established quality management and assurance frameworks that will ensure that the service provided is up to the set global standards.

Cost-effectiveness

The organization uses a differentiation approach which will enable it to check on its costs in the provision of long-term care services. In other words, the enterprise will minimize its overall costs while maximizing customer satisfaction through high-quality services. Besides, to continue enjoying this particular strength, the facility will have to keep integrating strategies such as lean concepts to minimize expenses and maximize value to clients (Baker, 2014).

Sufficient staff

Unlike other long-term care facilities in Florida, BestCare has an adequate number of nurses that will make sure the needs of consumers are adequately addressed. Moreover, the facility will have to make an agreement with a nursing college or institution so that to avoid experiencing shortages or nursing professionals. Ensuring proper motivation will also encourage existing nurses from quitting or shifting to other facilities.

Innovativeness

The facility embraces innovation in its operations to ensure that clients receive better care, and the organization can also meet its objectives efficiently. It has an active research and development team that usually come up with new ideas and concepts to enable the facility to serve its customers appropriately. Besides, the enterprise will have to continue supporting the research team to maintain or improve its innovativeness in the future.

Strong leadership

At the senior level, the facility has experienced leaders who ensure that the organization sails in the right direction at all times. The effective administration enhances the stability of the enterprise, thus a guarantee that it would be able to succeed in the dynamic business environment. Besides, the facility will need to have a proper leadership successive plan to ensure continuous stability at the top level and the organization as a whole (Kassem & Succar, 2017).

Weaknesses

Inefficient operations management

Despite having effective leadership, BestCare Long-term Care Facility has an ineffective operations management framework to achieve its goals effectively. It does not have a current operations management department to guide its activities which is likely to pose significant challenges in the new market. The hospital will need to introduce the operations management department to increase its efficiency and effectiveness

Logistical problems

The facility will engage in providing services to some clients from their homes which means that nurses and physicians will have to move from one place to another. However, the organization does not have an effective logistical network already established in Florida. Having an active system through collaborating with the locals can be an appropriate solution to this weakness.

Inexperience in promotion

The facility has limited experience in marketing and advertising of a new service in the market, and rivals are likely to take advantage of this weakness. The enterprise will have to work with marketing agencies in Florida to market its service to increase market acceptance.

Inexperienced management

Compared to market rivals, BestCare has inexperienced leaders with little information about consumers and other dynamics of the market. As such, the facility can consider hiring two or three experienced managers who would facilitate its success in Florida.

Opportunities

Innovativeness

The facility’s focus on consistent innovation is likely to increase the chances of success of BestCare Long-Term Care Facility. The enterprise would likely to come up with new ideas and concepts that would increase its competitiveness in the industry (Kanagal, 2015).

Technology advancements

The development of technology such as EMR and Big Data will likely to give the facility significant opportunities for success. The organization will integrate the latest technologies which will enhance its operations and overall growth.

Growing market

The number of older adults is increasing in Florida and the U.S. as a whole, thus providing sufficient demand for the service of BestCare.

Threats

Competition

BestCare is likely to face market rivalry from both the existing and emerging enterprises that will reduce its profitability and market share. The organization will have to integrate active promotional campaigns to try to beat the competition.

Changing government regulations

The state is also likely to implement health policies in the future that might impact the operations of BestCare Long-Term Care Facility adversely. The hospital has to prepare adequately for such changes in policies.

References

Baker, M. J. (2014). Marketing strategy and management. Macmillan International Higher Education.

Kanagal, N. B. (2015). Innovation and product innovation in marketing strategy. Journal of Management and marketing research, 18, 1-25.

Kassem, M., & Succar, B. (2017). Macro BIM adoption: Comparative market analysis. Automation in Construction, 81, 286-299.