Mapping an Industry Ecosystem for a Healthcare NGO to help uncover hidden Challenges and Opportunities

Ideasutra worked closely with an NGO operating in the Healthcare space to identify hidden challenges and opportunities in a newly proposed diversification plan. We used design research and visual frameworks to identify challenges and opportunities and communicate our findings.

Opportunities shift when vantage points change

Business ecosystems sometimes tend to exhibit differing characteristics when observed from micro, meso and macro views. What may have seemed like a viable business opportunity when operating at a micro level may seem very different when seen from a macro view. The addition of variables such as new players, altered power dynamic or new lines of communication add complexity, making known ways of working inadequate.

Our client, an NGO working in the healthcare space, whose beneficiaries are workers in garment factories, brought us onboard to help them understand why a model that had worked for over a decade, was seen to falter when an attempt was made to diversify within the very same industry, featuring the same players.

Our team mapped out the individual and sometimes overlapping needs through a series of stakeholder interviews, site observations and shadowing.

Collecting data through Design Research to map Opportunities and Challenges

We worked closely with the client management team, over a 2-month period, to first collect data and map out areas in which value was being generated and the engagement touchpoints that had critical challenges.

We collected data through secondary research on the industry, and also conducted stakeholder interviews across the organization, starting at the field level and working our way to the management layer. This allowed us to identify potential gaps in areas such as goal setting, operational processes and internal communication.

Outcomes of the Program

The garment industry faces intense competition, operates on thin margins with expectations of fast turnaround times, and this reflects on their labor policies. Gaining a foothold in an industry like this, and being able to convince key industry leaders of the value of enhanced healthcare for workers requires a strong overview of market economics, buyer-supplier relationships and subsequent choices in hiring practices. The client team were able to gain a better understanding of the dynamic of the industry, and also the need for a multi-layered approach to partnership building.

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