3.4 Customer focus and e-health
Market analysis
At the end of 2019 the HARTMANN GROUP launched the department Global Digital Business. This evaluates digitization initiatives arising at the local level against market and customer demands, and examines the possibilities for standardization or a global rollout. The Area manages four digital hubs: The hub in Hamburg, Germany focuses on hygiene; in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, the focus is on business models for care homes; the hub in Barcelona, Spain, primarily addresses hospitals and pharmacies with its solutions; and the Stuttgart, Germany hub develops digital solutions for the care sector.
HARTMANN relies on a wide-ranging, international competence network to meet current market demands optimally. The Company works closely with its medical and healthcare partners to best understand their product-feature and application requirements. Furthermore, HARTMANN maintains close contact with leading research and healthcare institutions in developing and testing innovative solutions. HARTMANN regularly utilizes satisfaction analyses and customer surveys to identify its business partners’ and customers’ requirements. The Company also conducts market research and analyzes the reasons for complaints and grievances. In the field of e-health, market acceptance tests for product launches or changes are also carried out. Combining the results of these with feedback from its sales team consistently enables HARTMANN to adapt quickly and in a targeted way to customer requests.
Digital business models and e-business channels The ongoing digitization of healthcare systems promises significant improvements with regard to upcoming cost and performance challenges; it is also changing and strengthening the role of patients, who are actively influencing the market through their demand for online health information offers and the private financing of health services. HARTMANN recognized these trends early on and focused on new digital business models and strengthening its e-business channels. For instance, HARTMANN is developing digital business models for the Infection Prevention area (e.g. M: IP® – Mission: Infection Prevention, see page 18) as well as for hospitals’ and care homes’ procurement management.
HARTMANN simplifies healthcare – digitally too.
HARTMANN GROUP 2021 Sustainability Report Company Profile | Sustainabiltiy Management | Products | Environment | Employees | Society | Annexes
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