Strategic Answers Consulting Group

We Answer the Strategic Questions that make a significant difference between Status Quo and Serious Growth for Tomorrow's Winners & Losers.

If you need to responsibly determine any of the following, StratCenter has Solutions:

• IDN/GPO Contract Potential
• Corporate Compliance & Growth
• Current Utilization of Product
• Incremental Growth Opportunities
• Territory-Level Sales Potentials

Suppliers' true total cost of NOT having responsible directional measurements & guidance in these areas is unknowable, but substantial. Without data, it’s just a guess. That's a MAJOR problem...guessing is not a strategy, and probably NOT what the competition is doing.

Case Study #1: Highest Growth Potential by Market

As part of its 3 year strategic planning process, a large distributor needed to identify the geographical markets with its highest growth potential by major product category, e.g., cardiology, surgery, etc. StratCenter integrated the distributor's sales numbers with GHX marketshare data and StratCenter's own clinical demand metrics. It applied sophisticated statistical analysis and forecasting to derive responsible directional guidance by geography, territory, and account. Direct links to OSCAR augmented the reporting to provide the spectrum of analysis from 30,000 foot level to feet-on-the-street insight and tools.

Case Study #2: True Cost of Incremental GPO Contract Sales

A laboratory products manufacturer asked StratCenter to quantify existing market-share within the various GPOs to understand the true incremental opportunity of signing a sole- or multi-source contract. They wanted to understand the incremental sales cost per dollar revenue. StratCenter delivered an easy to use tool that quantified sales potentials and existing marketshares, and provided directional guidance for the most likely customers & opportunities. Because of this tool, they allowed one GPO contract to expire, and redeployed its sales resources towards another's best members based on sales potential.

Case Study #3: IDN Contract Compliance

A med/surg supplier offered incremental discounts/rebates in its corporate contracts if a customer achieved certain "high" compliances levels, i.e., majority of product spend. They contacted StratCenter because they had no objective basis for that compliance measurement other than the customers' "perceptions." Because the customer received economic benefits with higher compliance, they had an incentive to "perceive high." This exposed the supplier to paying significant fees -- without reasonable confidence -- that the sales gained truly reflect the bulk of that clients product spend. With better visibility into the customer's realistic potential, the supplier could identify where incentive payments were out of line, and also where opportunities were being overlooked.

Answers to Strategic Questions = 200-1,500% ROI.

You are Expert in your market. We are expert in using data to find these Strategic Answers. When you combine these areas of expertise, you find the Answers in your area that make the meaningful difference between status quo and serious growth. 

These answers lead to serious growth because they directly impact the sales & marketing initiatives throughout your company. For example:

• How much revenue growth would you realize by identifying, targeting, and prioritizing the "A" & "B" members at GPO contracts?
• How much productivity would you gain if each territory had its A/B/C targets quantified?
• What controls would you establish with a territory-level sales "checks-and-balances"?

We've helped companies from Fortune 100 to small firms find answers to these Strategic Questions, and StratCenter can help you too.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: We already have an IT department that it second to none. How can you help?

A: We help because it's not about the data, it's about the business insight and direction that StratCenter provides. In fact, StratCenter probably helps firms with excellent IT departments most. Here's why: Your IT folks are expert in your market, using your data and whatever other retrospective data they have. StratCenter has a different expertise in applying Business Intelligence: we are expert in using prospective data to answer strategic business questions. When you combine these areas of expertise, you find the Answers for your market that make the meaningful difference between status quo and serious growth.

Finding TRUE, Competitive "Answers" requires more "Art" than Science.
From that perspective, StratCenter is a master artist. It is our passion.

More specifically, StratCenter has two (2) distinct advantages that can help you quantify these answers better than you can do it by yourself:

• We have more market and forecasted data. We have full access to our massive OSCAR data repository (plus other databases that aren't made publicly available), we can use any of our 1,000+ sources of current and forecasted information. Any of these can be combined with yours for enormous power.
   
• We have more experience coming up with Business Intelligence "Answers" for the healthcare supply chain - The StratCenter team that works with you have come up with 100s of data-driven healthcare sales & marketing solutions over decades of time. Along the way, we've learned most of the tips, tricks, and traps that can only come by solving many types of problems for many types of firms. You enjoy the benefits of combining our areas of expertise.
  
   

 Q: What other strategic questions has/can StratCenter provided answers?

• Are my existing GPO/IDN contracts over- or under-performing? Given market trends, which should OVER-perform in the next three (3) years?
• Which other accounts look like my best customers?
• Before we sign this GPO/IDN contract, how much business would we expect to earn even without it? How many members are already covered by other corporate contracts?
• What's our optimal sales resource deployment? Nationwide? by Territory? How about in 3 years?
• What information am I missing that I don't even know I'm missing?
• What is my realistic sales potential by IDN, GPO, or Territory? How about in 3 years?
• Which GPO & IDN contracts should provide maximum return? Are my sales costs actually reduced by having these contracts?
• What's my marketshare by Territory? What SHOULD my marketshare be in that Territory? How will that change?
• What accounts are my A/B/C targets? Nationwide targets? By Corporate Account? By Territory? How will that change?
• What are the right sales resources/tools by Territory? How will that change?
• What will demand look like in three (3) years? Nationally? By Corporate Account? By Territory? How will that change?
• What corporate steps should we take now to move our "A" accounts closer to true Partnerships in order to avoid losing them to competitors?