Emi and Ct Scanner Business

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On the business process level, there are concerns regarding the manufacturing process of the CT scanner. To produce the scanner used in the clinical trials, most of the components had to be purchased from subcontractors before being integrated into a functioning system. This process is inherently different from what EMI is used to, meaning that in order to produce the scanner especially on a larger scale and more productive manner, there is a need for EMI to develop a separate manufacturing process just for the production of the scanner. While it may not be as difficult to develop a new process as compared to aligning the strategies of its managers with the overall company strategy, it would still take quite some time for a new process to be implemented. Also, moving to a new manufacturing process will be costly as well due to the capital required to build and maintain a sound infrastructure.

On a similar note, as pointed out by some senior managers, EMI lacks the required knowledge to move into this new industry. This challenge can be viewed from 2 separate perspectives, the first being lack of knowledge in medical products and the second being unfamiliarity with the targeted North American market. Without any expertise or even sufficient knowledge in the industry, not only will EMI not be able to tap into potential competitive advantages, EMI will also face some difficulties in making informed decisions relating to those areas. While EMI could address this issue without going through too much structural changes or development by entering a joint venture with other companies with the know-how or relevant networks, it is not an entirely risk-free solution as there is always a risk of not seeing eye-to-eye with the partner firm regarding both short and long term strategies. A more serious implication could be the partner leaking vital information to third parties or even becoming EMI’s competitor in this new industry. Another short term solution would be to outsource or contract external subject matter experts, though this may prove costly in the long run.

In summary, it would seem that EMI faces a number of potentially serious organisational problems. While there are possible remedies or courses of action available to EMI, some solutions appear to be just temporary ‘quick fixes’ and are either not feasible or costly to be implemented over a long periods of time. As such, it would be reasonable to conclude that unless EMI is willing and able to invest in long term solutions, some of the organisational problems discussed above could threaten EMI’s potential competitive advantage and profitability going forward.