Time to Reset?
The very best companies we know are going through a reset right now.
It’s been almost a year since the depth charge went into our economy and blew up most of what we ‘hoped’ our business outlook would be … maybe forever. We’ve heard all the reasons why, seen unprecedented amounts of government intervention and heard about the indicators that show things will turn around later this year or early in 2010. The question is, what does all of this mean to you?
We’ve talked to hundreds of local service providers who are working with you in and around your business right now. They’re letting us in on a secret that most don’t have the nerve to share with you. For more than half of you, they question the long-term viability of your business.
Unless you reset.
Reset means you have to start all over again as if today was day one. No matter how big you are or how many institutions you have in place. When Andy Grove and Gordon Moore were building Intel they had the courage to shift from a successful memory chip business to microprocessors. The catalyst came from a simple question Grove asked Moore … “if we were starting our business over today, what would you do?”
What would you do with your business? Here’s some telltale signs that you need to reset:
- Are your sales cycles longer … and more unpredictable?
- Do you feel like your back in survival mode?
- Have you suffered some key losses with employees and customers?
- Are you afraid to look at your financials … and is your accountant showing more signs of stress than usual?
- Has your marketing stopped making an impact and made your wonder even more if you should just cut it off completely?
Do you need to reset?
If you answered yes to two or more of these questions, your business is showing the tell-tale signs of being out of alignment with the current realities of the market. You really only have three options – you can fret over it, wish for the old days again or take stock and reset your business. Resetting may sound like the hardest but it’s the only one that will align you to value. Here’s a quick checklist on how you can reset quickly:
- Discover financial reality. What are really making and spending on a month to month basis. Align your P&L to make money now.
- Assess the relevance of each of your products and service. Do they meet current customer needs and are there enough compelling reasons for prospects to buy in a market where cash is tight?
- Run your company at a comfortable velocity, one you are sure you have the ability to execute, not one you hope to be able to execute.
- Develop a plan for contingencies that will prepare you for scenarios where the economy gets better, stays flat or worsens.
- Pick out your best areas of focus to rally your company around.
- Launch back into the market with vigor.
How to reset
It’s a scary proposition, we know. We’ve done it ourselves several times before and are doing it right now with PerformanceEdge. But, the alternative is not pretty. The bridge you are on is headed nowhere and your time (and those of others in your company) is far too valuable to waste on strategies that are becoming increasingly irrelevant.
Take stock in where you at. It may be time for your reset.
Enjoy the journey,
Ken and Phil
