get it for pennies on the dollar. Part of spending wisely is
picking the right time and place, and a recession can be the
right time.
▪ People. This is the time to train—and cross-train—and
educate, so that your people are better than their people
when the crisis is over. Better in competitive situations and
better at building a winning team. It’s the time to recruit, to
get some winners on the string while they’re uncertain
about their futures and their current employers are treating
them like dirt. When the pressure is off, you’ll have “A” players in your lineup, and the competition will be scrambling
to rope in some of the leftovers.
▪ Customers. Spend time—not necessarily dollars—
educating your customers and helping them solve their operating problems. This isn’t about making sales calls; it’s about
building stronger relationships for the long haul.
BOTTOM LINE(S)
It should be clear by now that when the rally strikes, those
who haven’t prepared are really going to be struggling,
because they won’t be ready. Not ready with infrastructure,
not ready with people, and not ready with customer relationships. They will have found a way to do poorly in bad
times and to do equally poorly in good times.
That’s not to say companies shouldn’t be prudent during
difficult times—or at any time. But if all the management
energy goes into destructive activities and none into build-
ing for the future, the cause is in jeopardy. We strongly urge
that two-thirds of management attention be devoted to
preparing for the future, and one-third to day-to-day busi-
ness realities. And that balance needs to be struck at the
very outset of tough times, not plugged in as an after-
thought when a bright new business day is dawning.
Art van Bodegraven, practice leader at S4 Consulting, may be reached at (614) 336-
0346 or avan@columbus.rr.com. You can read his blog at http://blogs.dcvelocity.com/
the_art_of_art/. Kenneth B. Ackerman, president of The Ackerman Company, can be
reached at (614) 488-3165 or ken@warehousing-forum.com.
