How to survive and prosper from economic uncertainty

How to survive and prosper from economic uncertainty: using well-proven tools, techniques … and a safe pair of hands.

From Robert J Toogood, Senior Partner – Chaordic Solutions

We are constantly bombarded with negative messages about the daunting challenges ahead of us; messages that seem to continuously refer to terms like recession, revenue, growth, innovation, confidence, complexity, and chaos … to name but a few!

The purpose of this brief article is to start exploring these terms within the context of what we can positively influence within our business environment.

Yes, European leaders have previously warned of a difficult year ahead, as many economists predict recession in 2012 … so the BBC reports.  They go on to say that growth in Europe has stalled as the debt crisis has forced governments to slash spending.  The leaders’ New Year messages came as leading economists polled by the BBC said they expected a return to recession in Europe in the first half of 2012.

However, it doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom.

Whilst the inevitable chaos caused by recession has a tendency to push organisations into retreat, this is not always the case.  Did you know that iconic companies like:

Disney, CNN, MTV, Hyatt, Burger King, FedEx, Microsoft, Apple, Gillette, AT&T, Texas Instruments, 20^th Century Fox, IBM, Merck, Hersheys, IHOP, Eli Lilly, Coors, Bristol-Meyers, Sun, Amgen, The Jim Henderson Company, LexiNexis, Autodesk, Adobe, Symantec, Electronic Arts, Fortune, GE, and Hewlett-Packard

were all founded during periods of economic recession?

One definition of chaos suggests that it is the uncertainty sparked by uncharted territory, economic recession, and bubbles of opportunity.  We seem to phase in and out of this chaotic state … a state of randomness and disorder.  The ebb and flow happens in an almost natural way, almost mimicking what occurs in the natural world.  This system of natural governance that blends the characteristics of chaos and order is known as the chaordic state.

The good news is that we can use the significant power of these chaordic forces to help with generating revenue and growth, so important for our future economic survival.

One such way could be to embark upon a business transformation programme, another might be to merge with or acquire another company.  All of these require change … something that we all now have to accept is a permanent feature of the world in which we all live.

So what is business transformation – well, it’s all about aligning people, process and technology to achieve some previously agreed significant change.  These three areas also feature as being important when considering an integrated approach to the associated areas of governance, risk and compliance within an organisation.

Real-life experience emphasises the importance of making sure your desired significant change is relevant and appropriate ie is your business strategy “fit-for-purpose” and correctly aligned with what is going on in at the operational level?  It could be that in order to achieve your strategic objectives you need to merge with and/or acquire another company … or it could be that organic growth is what is needed.

The conclusions from a joint Cap-Gemini Consulting/Economist Intelligence Unit report on business transformation highlighted a few years ago that the ability to manage change effectively is a great competitive advantage.  It goes on to make the point that external crises such as what we are experiencing at present help to drive change in organisation and provide a “burning platform” for change, but emphasises the importance of the people-related challenges.

Several years ago, an earlier white paper from our own consultancy promoted the benefits of using a ten-step approach for generating prosperity from the deteriorating economic conditions at that time.  It is encouraging to see that recently, the Kepner-Tregoe consultancy has been recommending a similar approach in their paper about coping with uncertainty in the business environment.  The key message from both approaches is the importance of developing a clear business strategy and then maintaining strategic directions and integrity when times get tough.

But the final piece of good news is that help is available to do this; by using well-proven tools and techniques … and a safe pair of hands, you can not only survive but more importantly, prosper from the continuing economic uncertainty.

References:

BBC News Business (2011), Recession “to return to Europe, say economists. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16361047

Economist Intelligence Unit/Capgemini Consulting (2007), Trends in Business Transformation – Survey of European Executives. http://www.capgemini.com/m/en/tl/Trends_in_Business_Transformation.pdf

Kepner-Tregoe (2011), Navigating your organisation through stormy seas. http://www.kepner-tregoe.com/pdfs/Strategic-Response/SR0511-Navigating-Stormy-Seas.pdf

Related Services from Chaordic Solutions:

Business Transformation Support
Portfolio Management and Strategy Implementation Support
Change Management Support
Mergers & Acquisitions Support
Programme and Project Management Support