Scenario:
During the last board meeting of Selfless Health, Sam Snide, the chair of the board finance committee, challenged the need for a marketing department. According to Sam, the flagship academic medical center has a strong enough reputation to attract patients. He further stated that advertising by members of a profession is unseemly.
The system CEO has asked you to prepare a memo to the board outlining what role (beyond advertising) strategic marketing plays in a health system's operations. Include considerations such aspects as corporate culture, population health, brand identity, service recognition, marketplace competition, technologies, other external marketplace factors, stakeholders impact, marketplace threats/opportunities, internal weaknesses/strengths, and/or organizational structure like the mission, vision, and values. Support your observations throughout your response with relevant citations and references.