Environmental characteristics are an important factor in the success of a health startup
Professor Tarren Kana, a professor at Harvard Business School, has conducted extensive research on the differences and success factors of businesses in developed and developing countries. He considers the specific characteristics of each society as an important factor in the success or failure of businesses and calls attention to these characteristics "contextual intelligence " (Contextual Intelligence) . In fact, what he emphasizes is that different environmental constraints affect the implementation of an idea in different societies, which must be taken into account .
Iran Health Business Environment and How It Affects the Success of a Health Startup
To determine the characteristics of each community that affects its businesses, different dimensions must be considered. On the other hand, the environmental factors affecting the success of a health startup can be different for each startup, depending on its technology, customers or field of activity. Here are some specific features of our country that health startups or people who want to start a health startup should pay attention to :
Iranian health system
Familiarity with the structure of the health system is necessary to properly identify the needs of society, gaps in the provision of health services, design an income model appropriate to the payment system and even select the appropriate customer group .
For example, most of the health services in our country are provided in health centers, health centers and second and third level hospitals. The level of service in these centers is different and each has its own strengths and weaknesses .
Health rules and regulations
The speed with which technology permeates and applies to businesses goes beyond the ability of policymakers to adapt. Therefore, it is not surprising that many health innovations have not yet been legislated .
This poses many challenges for a startup. In the absence of a clear law and the lack of a clear trustee, any institution may claim responsibility and make activities difficult. Or, after a while, the rules may be set in such a way that the activities of some startups - after a long period of activity - are suddenly considered illegal .
Of course, this is one side of the coin and can be viewed from another angle. The lack of a legal mechanism is an opportunity for entrepreneurs to test and even grow their business with customers before they have to spend a lot of time and money on legal channels .
However, the policymaker can not be expected to determine and implement the necessary regulations in the face of disruption. But if startups identify the needs well and take action to address them and can create real value, when the legislature realizes this area and tries to organize it, it can not ignore the activities of startups .
Sometimes, as in recent months with the Corona outbreak, it may be possible for startups to flourish. In such a situation, the existence of startups that provide the right service, makes the policymaker feel the need for innovation and sees the need for regulation .
Social and cultural conditions
Culture is one of the most powerful components in the change of any society. People's long-held beliefs, regardless of their roots, influence their behavior and their acceptance of innovation. Therefore, what is accepted in one country may be resisted in another and take a long time to be accepted .
A significant portion of Iranians have access to the Internet, and this is often a sign of the influence of technology. But Internet access and how to use it are two completely different issues. Although many people use smartphones, it is not possible to say for sure that all of them are aware of the existence of health applications, trust them and accept them as a suitable alternative to traditional methods .
On the other hand, the part of society that does not have access to digital solutions happens to be the group that has the most unmet needs. The focus on digital innovation should not lead to the group being ignored, but should creatively seek a way for technology to meet the deepest needs .
Economic conditions
Most entrepreneurs pay more attention to economic conditions than other factors. Because the continuity and success of any business depends on the customers and the financial situation of the customers is important for any business .
The strategy of some founders in the face of unfavorable economic conditions is to shrink the group of customers. Whenever they feel that their financial strength is such that they may find it unnecessary to use their product or service, their target customers consider the higher economic deciles. But paying attention to economic conditions does not only mean redefining the customer group .
In times of recession and difficult economic conditions, good thinking and innovation combined can turn into a business that creates very high value. Of course, this requires concern and motivation for health social entrepreneurship. An example of this entrepreneurship is Mehraneh Hospital. Mehraneh Hospital is a center for the treatment of cancer patients, which finances most of its expenses with the help of charities. Nevertheless, it has the best equipment and the highest quality of service .
Providing infrastructure
According to Professor Kana's studies, one of the most important differences between developed and developing countries is the availability of infrastructure. Providing some infrastructure that is obvious and pre-existing in developed countries is difficult and costly in developing societies. However, in any society, there are alternatives to infrastructure according to the circumstances. Therefore, the founders must consider the existing solutions in designing their business model .
Why is tissue intelligence important for the success of a health startup?
Although the limitations and uncertainties of starting a business in emerging markets are greater than in developed countries, this should not be a disappointment. In fact, all advanced societies have gone through this period at the same time, and entrepreneurs have an important role to play in passing this stage .
Many of the existing undesirable features and conditions will be eliminated over time, either by value-creating innovators or by policymakers and officials. But you can not wait until then and do nothing. Instead, we should use tissue intelligence to evaluate the environmental conditions of our startup and select and implement appropriate strategies based on it. This way we can reduce the risks to our startup .
Strengthen tissue intelligence
What was said in this article are just some of the features of Iran's health business environment that affect the success of a health startup. In order to start a business in any field, it is necessary to study and consider in particular the trends, rules and all the factors affecting it .
Be prepared for change .
Conditions such as the lack of clear rules and regulations are not permanent and the responsible institutions realize their necessity and prioritize them, or the speed of penetration of health technologies increases so much that policymakers are forced to react and legislate to control it .
In either case, be prepared for change. So as we build our startup based on the status quo, we need to look to the future and be able to make the necessary changes with agility when the time comes .
Get inspired by innovations .
Viewing and reviewing health startups in other parts of the world is very suitable for getting acquainted with the opportunities and scope of vision. But one should not overlook the environment in which the business is run .
When we choose a startup idea, the criterion is the successful implementation of that idea in other parts of the world, we subconsciously forget the role of the environment and it may occur to us that we can succeed by implementing the business model of that startup. While the business model of that startup, after a lot of trial and error, is probably matched with that community and is specific to that environment. That's why I say it's better to be inspired by innovations and shape the business idea ourselves according to our circumstances .
Fill the gaps ourselves .
Professor Kana offers two strategies for entrepreneurship in emerging markets. First, entrepreneurs accept the challenges as they are and act on them. The points we discussed above were about this solution .
But his second strategy is for entrepreneurs themselves to take action to remove existing barriers and gaps. Instead of blaming the government for solving the problems, they should take the initiative and use their creative minds to solve them .