Introduction-Critical Evaluation Of Selected Vignettes
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Vignette 1
Restricted movements during the covid-19 pandemic were not welcomed by the segment of public with medical conditions who were in the middle of treatment. People suffering from dementia or were in an ongoing treatment of physiotherapy lost hope to reconnect with their service provider and were scared of the unknown. To reach vulnerable and not well-equipped patients, KRY was established to provide remote medical consulting to everyone around Europe and since inception it has reached and served 200 people to become the largest digital health provider company (Bergwall, 2021). The triumphant story of KRY is an example of innovation driven sustainability.
Critical Analysis
KRY’s business model is based on incremental Innovation as both the digitalization and healthcare market existed at the time of its formation.(Bergwall, 2021).
Roger’s Diffusion of Innovation Theory
This theory was propounded by Roger Smith in 1962 to explain how the technology is adopted and at what rate, in an articulated model. In 2015, when the idea of KRY hospital was executed in the business, the data flow was already 45 times in 2014 in comparison to 1980. This was the highest peak at that time (Bughin, Lund, and Manyika, 2015.). However, most of the global flow concentrated on video calls, social media data and e-commerce activities. Simultaneously, global flow of services was also on a rise. Medical services through digital means was not yet a tapped market but not exploited with the opportunities that were floating in the surrounding. During 2014, the idea was in the ‘knowledge stage’ of the model because the founder saw digitalization as an opportunity in the healthcare sector. The persuasion stage was when the founder assessed the model of remote healthcare services and the pros outweighed the cons. In 2015, the decision stage was witnessed when the KRY was established. During the following years, the implementation stage was witnessed when the services were accessible by the public. The confirmation stage was the covid-19 pandemic when the clients surpassed the level of 3 million user base in the UK.
Source- Statista
From the Technology Adoption Lifecycle, Johannes Schildt was an innovator and he was ready to face failure and was driven by the opportunity rather than risks. The company commenced in 2015 and recorded 100% growth on YoY basis since then. It is still estimated that there is immense scope for expansion in the international market and developing new products using the state of the art technology (Segers, 2021).
Entrepreneurial theory
Opportunity based entrepreneurial theory
This theory is based on three core elements that are social values, alertness of the entrepreneur, and prior knowledge. Determining opportunity is done through ascertaining needs of the market and available resources. Johannes Schildt analyzed exponential growth in digitalization of different tasks and services. His foremost focus was on providing a platform for interaction through video calls. When the business model was discussed with investors, it was estimated that the start-up would accelerate because of its quality services and security framework (Davies, Roderick, and Huxtable-Thomas, 2019). Johannes Schildt was motivated by his aesthetic needs and esteem needs. He was successful in recognizing the opportunity due to Covid-19 pandemic which provided the perfect environment to expand the business. The company was founded in 2015 when digitalization was still not used to the extent it is used now. Post pandemic, digital operations have witnessed multifold growth in all industries (Bergwall, 2021). The company was founded because people needed a more accessible medium to contact their healthcare service provider, whether doctors, nurses, or psychologists. The early opportunity recognition helped the company to see a spurt during and post pandemic period. The major problem faced by the public is the cyberattacks as their credentials are hacked and used against them. The data with these sprouting businesses are not safe as there are new malwares and hacking techniques that makes these data accessible. The company needs to safeguard the data within their database and use it wisely(Davies, Roderick, and Huxtable-Thomas, 2019). Opportunity lies with curating a concrete system that safeguards the interest of clients and promotes preventive measures in case of fraudulent activities.
Systems model of creativity
The system's model of creativity helps in determining the elements of the environment that drive innovation and also evaluate the success based on the value it provides in the market. For SMEs and start-ups that are purely based on ideas, this model can help to channelize their idea to curate value to offer in the market. It helps to acknowledge the talent skills and abilities of human resources and how the present information can be transmitted to curate value (Creely, Henriksen, and Henderson, 2021). In 2015, many industries were using SAP and developing specific softwares to perform a task or two. For example, blockchain, advanced algorithms, codifications of drugs and like. People were skeptical about the use of such advancements in the healthcare industry but they readily accepted KRY as it has witnessed growth in clients since its inception (Bakhuizen, 2021).
Entrepreneurial mindset development
Decisiveness- Johannes Schildt understood that to develop a business model that integrates forces of the state of the art technology and healthcare industry, he must collect authentic and reliable data to study trends and how the integration would work. An entrepreneur needs to understand that pioneering is prone to greater risks than copying an existing business model. One of the drawbacks that decisiveness might have for the entrepreneur is that it consumes time and there is a possibility that someone might make the first move. It also includes higher cost and possibilities of failures. One set of data might work in one model and might not be suitable for another model. Moreover, data is not easily available for innovative ideas and services (Segers, 2021).
Alertness- Entrepreneurs need to be alert and observant. It is not a practice but part of the behaviour. When a person ceases his ability to think beyond what he sees and is surrounded by, he cannot think about the wonders that are yet to be unfolded in future. Nobody ever knew that 0 and 1 can be put into various combinations that will drive the data flow across networks and create algorithms that perform unfathomable tasks. Johannes Schildt showcased his alertness by responding to the evolving demand of remotely accessing healthcare services (Córdoba-Pachón, 2018).
Conclusions
The report discusses the inception of KRY hospital and what factors led to its success. The global data flow was at its peak in 2014 and since then it has been on a rise. KRY was established to remotely connect patients and covid-19 gave it a way as the user base saw a rampant surge during this period and since it is growing at a decent CAGR. The major issue is cybersecurity and encroaching in one’s privacy as credentials are saved by the business for facilitating flow of services.
Recommendations
The issue of cyberattacks is not new but needs a concrete solution. The company needs to plan a strategy that promotes knowledge about such ill-activities and what the user base needs to know regarding these issues. For example- not sharing OTP and other passwords over phone calls and having a captcha to ensure human activity from the user’s side. The other thing is to collaborate with local healthcare centers to ensure that people with difficulty in operating their digital account get help.
Vignette 2
Introduction
The worst hit industries included fashion and tourism as people understood that environment uncertainties are an invincible part of nature restoration that causes disruption in regular operations. People became mindful in making purchases and traveling was restricted by the government’s orders. Forever 21 was not oblivious of the wrath of nature and was nearly on the verge of bankruptcy. Something has to be done to save the sinking ship and accelerate sales without incurring further losses (Liu, 2020). The company might be late in addressing the environmental change but it changed its outlook and believed that the tables could be turned and it is all set to make a refreshing comeback .
Critical Analysis
The downfall in the face of digitalization- The fault in the stars of the company was its traditional approach to expand brick and mortar (physical) stores rather than embracing e-commerce channel wholeheartedly. The company could have brought in innovation and creativity to leverage its brand recognition and goodwill to accelerate online sales but instead of bringing the new means at the core of the business model, it merely served as a part of the business model (Liu, 2020). The online sales accounted for 16% of the overall sales in 2018-19, when the company announced its bankruptcy.
However, it is late but it still has potential to compete with Zara and H&M.
It has lagged behind in advertising to Generation Z who are the future of the fashion industry customer base and for its revival, the company ought not to ignore being visible to this segment (Vulaj, 2019).
Call for sustainability
The company is in the position from where it can either soar or sink and to evaluate how it can include innovation in its business model to make it an invincible aspect of the model and not merely a part, CPS and Design thinking will be critically evaluated.
CPS (Critical problem solving)
CPS learner’s model has five stages that are based on changing the perspective about the problem and broadening the mindset. Dindar, Järvelä, and Järvenoja, (2020) support the model as it is solution-oriented and focuses on analysing alternatives present before employees rather than stressing about the problem. It provides a system where the problem is clarified initially and then ideas are explored to develop a concrete and working plan so that it can be executed. It uses convergent and divergent theories but also suggests to use them separately and wisely so that potential of the idea is exploited to benefit the company (Dindar, Järvelä, and Järvenoja, 2020). Here, the company was required to access data on the trend and CAGR of ecommerce sales before increasing its physical stores units.The CAGR of luxury fashion sales in online mode is 32%. One of the most apt aspects of this model is that it ceases the judgement of ideas as the model is curated on the belief that shutting down an idea during inception limits the flow of creativity during the brainstorming process. It does not however eliminate the need for selecting the best ideas during the convergent stage for further processing. Dindar, Järvelä, and Järvenoja, (2020) state that the only drawback that might be insignificant in comparison to its advantages is that it might be unrealistic if employees are not trained to channelize their ideas and well-equipped to think out of the box. For example, to exploit the technological tools and systems, we expect the person to have at least basic knowledge about that tool and some experience regarding the new way of doing a thing. But if the majority of the employees do not have specialized skill or experience in the technical field, the company might never find the most optimum solution (Vulaj, 2019). There is a possibility to have a flow of ideas that do not streamline with the objective of solving the problem. But this situation is quite rare as companies are actively recruiting best candidates and training them to become valuable assets that can cope with environmental threats and grab opportunities at the earliest (Liu and Cheng, 2018) .
Design thinking
Design thinking, unlike CPS model, focuses on human needs at its core and not the problem itself. Design thinking includes human demand because the model is based on the idea that the value is to be served to humans and they are the decision-making entity, to whether to accept the curated value through services and goods, or not to accept it. It has three elements that work together to evaluate an idea, desirability, feasibility, and viability. Liu and Cheng, (2018) state that Design thinking is more realistic and provides a concrete objective so that creative thinking is facilitated in a more channelized way to make the whole process leaner. `The model includes consideration for sustainability, future demand as per the value deemed by customers and feasibility of the model or process. The sustainability of the creative thinking was not addressed in this example and hence the market rejected it after a few years. Pande and Bharathi, (2020) state that design thinking is an investigation rather than a process which implies that it focuses more on the unknown factor in the creative thinking rather than the known factor. This model is based on curating a problem that might arise in future or people are currently facing. Design thinking includes various factors that can act as drivers of new problems and how the company can solve it (Pande and Bharathi, 2020).
F21 needs to research its customer base and their preferences. This includes the channel they use the most, the designs that they are purchasing and the perceived price of a commodity. If it has diminishing brand value, it needs to consider whether to provide discounts, lower its MRP, introduce a new range of apparel or strengthen its public relations. Design thinking will aid the company to think from the buyer's perspective.
? Conclusions
In this report, the downfall of the fashion brand, F21 was discussed briefly and the case was critically evaluated in the context of innovation techniques that can accelerate the flow of ideas and creativity in the business model. CPS learner’s model is a solution oriented model that aims at broadening the mindset and asking questions that paves way to a more working idea. However, design thinking accounts for a more humanistic approach by including human demands and feasibility of the idea rather than creating a pool of ideas and then eliminating ideas one by one. It has a direct approach from formulating a question and drawing inspiration that will be directed to the objective.
Recommendations
F21 needs to increase online presence with some applications. For example, setting up an online store needs the company to have its own security system, advertisements, SEO management, custom application that does not utilize much data of the consumer and all other minute details (Liu, 2020).
It will be more beneficial for the company to consider design thinking to channelize creativity of employees towards human demand. THis will enable the company to make the innovation flow leaner and incur less wastage while being on track (Vulaj, 2019).
References
Bergwall, P., 2021. Exploring Paths of Justice in the Digital Healthcare: A Socio-Legal Study of Swedish Online Doctors (Vol. 51). Lund University.
Bughin, J., Lund, S. and Manyika, J., 2015. Harnessing the power of shifting global flows. McKinsey Quarterly, 7(1), pp.1-13.
Bakhuizen, E., 2021. Audible Healthcare Online: Towards Online Digital Healthcare Services Accessible for Users of Screen Readers.
Segers, S., 2021. Disruptive innovation in healthcare and value change in medical ethics: the place of ‘trust’in changing patient-doctor relationships. In Changing Values, Changing Technologies.
Davies, G.H., Roderick, S. and Huxtable-Thomas, L., 2019. Social commerce Open Innovation in healthcare management: an exploration from a novel technology transfer approach. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 27(4), pp.356-367.
Córdoba-Pachón, J.R., 2018. Managing creativity: a systems thinking journey. Routledge.
Creely, E., Henriksen, D. and Henderson, M., 2021. Three modes of creativity. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 55(2), pp.306-318.
Liu, P., 2020. Through the game model and Forever21 supply chain analysis. Academic Journal of Business & Management, 2(7).
Vulaj, E., 2019. Will Fast Fashion Go out of Style Soon? How Couture Designers, Celebrities, and Luxury Brands Fighting Back May Change the Future Legal Landscape for Mass Affordable Retailers. Santa Clara High Tech. LJ, 36, p.65.
Dindar, M., Järvelä, S. and Järvenoja, H., 2020. Interplay of metacognitive experiences and performance in collaborative problem solving. Computers & Education, 154, p.103922.
Liu, C.W. and Cheng, J.S., 2018. Exploring driving forces of innovation in the MSEs: the case of the sustainable B&B tourism industry. Sustainability, 10(11), p.3983.
Pande, M. and Bharathi, S.V., 2020. Theoretical foundations of design thinking–A constructivism learning approach to design thinking. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 36, p.100637.
