Risks in recession/recovery – react or respond?

Risks in recession/recovery – react or respond: benefits from proactive considered choice instead of being driven by events.

Extract from Dr David Hillson:

Depending on where you live, you may be facing recession, post-recession austerity measures or recovery. One thing is certain – uncertainty! Times have changed, and the world is faced with a range of emerging risks which most of us have not seen before. As a result, we cannot continue with business-as-usual strategies. In these turbulent times, we need different objectives. Many organisations are now seeking to:

Survive and thrive. The first goal is still to be here when stability returns, but not to be so weakened that we are unable to move forward. This means taking the tough decisions to ensure survival without losing core capabilities or competences.

Position for recovery. The global recession has affected everyone including our competitors. The successful businesses will be the ones best positioned to take advantage of the recovery when it comes. Use quiet times to build efficiency and prepare for growth.

Enhance competitiveness. It is more important than ever to focus on the discriminators that set us apart from the crowd. We need to know what makes us special, so that we can tell potential customers, suppliers and stakeholders.

The ISO31000:2009 standard defines risk as “effect of uncertainty on objectives.” The combination of different sources of uncertainty and different objectives inevitably produces a new set of risks for businesses, projects and people. The old risk paradigm has changed and we need to act differently. “More of the same” will not work.

Managers and leaders at all levels must ask “What should we do about the current risk challenge?” Our answers will determine whether we are still around when things change. But we should make a proactive considered choice rather than simply to be driven by events. It is better to respond than to react. We need to consciously adopt an appropriate attitude in response to the new risk situation we face. But what is “appropriate”?

More … http://www.risk-doctor.com/docs/71%20React%20or%20respond.pdf