The Best Management Technique

Being honest.

Being able to tell someone they're going to fail if they keep up what they're doing.

Getting them to face the reality of who they are, what they're doing and what the consequences will be.

Having the guts to pass along bad news. Early. And swiftly.

Having the credibility and the compassion to do it thoughtfully. Articulately. And with impact.

Having the confidence that passing along the truth is a selfless act aimed at helping not hurting.

Failing to be honest is a failure to manage. It wrecks careers. It sabotages results.

Honest feedback is a gift. Providing it isn't easy. Knowing how isn't ordinary. Doing it takes courage.

Setting someone on the right track is worth it.

Hunkering Down and Competing

There's lot's of soul searching going on right now as businesses hunker down to make it through the downturn. Most CEO's seem to be coming to grips with the notion that a turn-around isn't imminent and more, stronger action is likely necessary in order survive/thrive.

If survival is the priority then cash flow and cost containment are imperatives.

Cash flow starts with getting receivables in fast and payables out carefully. For many that surely seems like a no-brainer. However, experience suggests many CEO's would be well-advised to sit down with their CFO's and make sure everyone is on the same page - that there is a daily effort to collect - and a clear, formal strategy around who, what and how fast to pay.

Cost containment starts with strategy. What are the operating priorities in the downturn (marketing? sales? people?) and how will those priorities be protected? From there, managers can identify spending that isn't currently consistent with the operating priorities and cuts can be made.

My observation on cost containment is that it's seldom done well. Frequently, strategy is lacking and some cuts hurt more than they help. Cuts that could be made but aren't hurt the most. Obvious misses send the wrong message on priorities. Finding and implementing process efficiency gains can sometimes have big upfront costs. Careful analysis is required if this is the case to understand the financial benefits and cash flow implications.

Lots has been written about the extended downside of laying off people to save money. I get it. To a point. Lay-offs aren't free and it would seem the cultural, expertise and overall disruptions to the business could be both significant and lingering.

In actual fact, I've seen few companies suffer extensively from downsizing. Creating fat and straying into luxuries is wide-spread in good times. Being forced to refocus on core priorities, businesses, people and customers isn't necessarily a bad thing. Laying off the wrong people and cutting into muscle is a mistake so knee-jerking into a lay-off strategy is dangerous. But a thoughtful, proactive and strategic approach is a good thing for lots of businesses.

Lots of companies are struggling to maintain sales momentum through this downturn. Decision and spending paralysis is widespread right now. With fierce competition for every deal, CEO's are getting a great opportunity to understand the true competitiveness of their organizations. How's your organization batting on competitive deals? .100? .250? .500? When this is over, will your organization have lost or gained market share?

I worry that many organizations will see an upturn in the economy before they fix the lessons from this downturn. High tides float all boats and survival for many will feel like success. Short term it is. But CEO's who merely hang on risk jeopardizing their businesses longer term. Question: what have you learned about your organization's ability to compete in this downturn and what do you need to do about it? Changes that increase success now will have significantly more impact when things turn. Is your organization just hanging on or are you taking advantage of the current situation to implement good long term changes?

Check out this YouTube video for more thoughts on managing through a downturn and succeeding long term.

The Inward Focused Business....

...is reactive. Fights amongst itself. Meets too much. Hires the wrong people. Has too much gossip. Makes bad decisions. Makes no decisions. Forgets why it's in business. Loses confidence. Gets bad results.

The outward focused business knows who its customers are. Understands what its customers are looking for. Exceeds its customer's expectations.

The outward focused business knows how to sell.

The outward focused business has confidence.

The outward focused business is proactive.

The outward focused business gets results.

The outward focused business is a better place to work.

Going from being an inward focused business to an outward focused business isn't difficult.

It's a mindset shift. Starting at the top.

"Business is simple....

....it's people who make business complicated" is the tagline I attach to my email signature. Through it, I'm attempting to draw attention to this blog, and more importantly to one of the fundamental truths I observe every day doing this job.

How simple is business?

Provide a product or service that people want.
Do it well enough that it can be sold for a decent margin.
Market the hell out of it.

That's business.


Don't have a product or service that people want? Why buy?
Don't do it well enough to make a decent margin. Good bye .
Don't bother marketing the hell out of it. Drive by.

It's not that complicated.


So what's stopping so many businesses from achieving the success they desire?

People.

People who don't know strategy. People who can't execute strategy. People who can't focus. People who can't see the big picture. People who have all the answers. People who are afraid of the answers. People who can't follow. People who can't lead. People in the wrong roles. People in the wrong business. People who hate coming to work. People who hate going home. People.....

It's complicated.

Success in business is all about the people. The skills, the leadership, the mentorship, the accountability, the tough decision making, the communication, the motivation, the pulling together of huge diversity to achieve a common goal.

It's not so simple. But it can be simplified.

How do you know you have a product or service that people want? Do some research. Never lose sight of your competition.

How do you do it well enough to make a decent margin? Through leadership and hiring - never compromise on knowledge and skills.

And marketing the hell out of it? By being where your customers are in a way that your competition isn't.

There are two keys to success on the people side - talent and clarity.

From there, the rest is simple.