Strategic Management Case Study, UTM, Malaysia Heartsong LLC is a designer and manufacturer of replacement heart valves based in Peoria, Illinois. While a relatively small company
University | Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) |
Subject | Strategic management |
Heartsong LLC is a designer and manufacturer of replacement heart valves based in Peoria, Illinois. While a relatively small company in the medical devices field, it has established a worldwide reputation as the provider of choice for high-quality, leading-edge artificial heart valves. Most of its products are sold to large regional hospital systems and research hospitals. Specialty heart centers are another emerging, but the fast-growing, market for its valves.
While Heartsong would like to grow quickly, its growth is constrained by the need to finance larger production runs and then carry this additional inventory. For products like those of Heartsong, vendors typically do not collect payment until the unit is actually used in surgery. Moreover, heart valves are usually required on short notice which means that they must be either onsite or inventoried at a nearby location.
If nearby, then transport of the unit to a hospital or heart center occurs within a matter of hours, and sometimes minutes. For this reason, accelerated growth would require Heartsong to finance the increased production of its heart valves, along with carrying increased levels of inventory that are in fact sitting on their customers’ shelves. In fact, the inventory-carrying cost is its single largest cost outside of research and development.
While profitable growth is necessary if Heartsong is to continue extending its competitive advantage through increasingly greater investments in basic heart valve R&D, it is not clear that the company can internally support all these increased financial commitments. Doc Watson, the CEO of Heartsong, is considering an outside contractor, EdFex, to handle the inventorying, warehousing, and delivery of its valves. EdFex has secure, high-tech warehouses in most major population centers around the country, and can ensure delivery of a product to these markets from its warehouses in less than one hour.
Questions
- Identify the value-chain activities that appear to underlie Heartsong’s competitive advantage.
- Why might an outsourcing arrangement with EdFex be attractive to Heartsong?
- What are the implications of an EdFex outsourcing arrangement for the capabilities underlying Heartsong’s competitive advantage?
cta_question_
Get Help By Expert
Looking for the best thesis writer in Malaysia? Look no further than Assignmenthelper.my! Our team of highly experienced and qualified thesis writers are here to help you craft the perfect thesis for your academic needs. With our affordable rates and timely delivery, you can trust us to deliver top-notch assignment writing services in Malaysia. Contact us today to get started!
Recent Solved Questions
- NBNS3224: Obstetric and Gynaecology Assignment, OUM, Malaysia Madam M, aged 28 years, is a primigravida of 12 weeks gestation. She was admitted to the ward because of threatened
- BBM104: Principles of Marketing Case Study, UT, Malaysia Once a major tourist attraction, the zoo appears to be back on its feet after the pandemic but is still in need of a revamp
- Physics Assignment, UTM, Malaysia Encourage the recognition of Physics principles taught in class in the everyday world
- BLC201: Introduction To Logistics And Supply Chain Management Assignment, WOU, Malaysia Intermodals are the use of two or more carriers of different modes in the thorough movement of a shipment
- BUSN11079: Discuss the importance of decision-making and the application of decision analysis: Analytical Thinking & Decision Making Assignment, UWS, Malaysia
- PGBM01: Relying only on accounting figures from Income Statement and Balance: Financial Management and Control Assignment, UOS, Malaysia
- Financial Management Assignment, MMU, Malaysia The Malaysian bond market will remain one of the world’s most advanced project financing markets in the world
- Identify a conflict on the theme of change that is explored in the novel and argue: Malaysian Popular Literature and Culture Assignment, UNM, Malaysia
- BCS302/03: Corporate Governance Assignment WOU Malaysia Companies Act 2016 makes it illegal for any loan to be made by a company, or by any of its subsidiary companies
- BMK307: Jesse Parker sells for Mid-East Metals. He has been callingvon Richmond Distributors for close to two years: Personal Selling and Salesmanship Assignment, Malaysia