Operations Strategy for Evolving Customer Profiles

Abstract

ResMed is a respiratory medical device manufacturer based on San Diego, CA. Founded in 1989, the company was a pioneer in the field of sleep apnea therapy using positiveairway-pressure machines for patients to use at home. ResMed has seen remarkable growth and success across their existing customer base - historically made up of medical equipment suppliers who buy products in bulk, distribute them to patients, and interface with the patient during the therapy setup process. Recently, ResMed has entered sales channels outside of its conventional B2B, medical supplier-focused roots that move them a step closer to the end customer. These channels involve shipping products directly to customers on behalf of medical suppliers and retailers, and taking more responsibility for the therapy start and setup experience. Sales growth in these new channels places a fresh set of demands on ResMed teams across product, operations, sales and beyond. ResMed’s operations strategy needs to adapt to this increased focus on customer facing sales – this will require changes to people, systems and processes. This piece of research examines how ResMed can achieve success in the medical device world when selling directly to consumers and in-store retailers, assesses ResMed’s current stage of development across functional areas that will contribute to this success, and then propose methods to close gaps going forward.

ResMed’s two guiding goals are to ensure that customers can start therapy in a timely manner, and that patients adhere to their treatment regimen to maximize therapeutic benefits. The functional areas that most contribute to these goals are fulfilment and distribution operations; supply chain and manufacturing; and product design for setup. Underpinning success across all of these is a requirement for efficient internal communications to deliver results for the patient. Given these new customer profiles, a restricted global supply landscape and prevailing demand uncertainty throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, ResMed stands to benefit from being more agile in making operational changes that affect their guiding goals.