Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s Chief of Staff, caught a bit of grief earlier this year when he made the statement, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that is an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.” Of course, the reaction to that statement varies according to your political leanings. One thing we can all agree on is that we are facing an economic crisis. When it comes to your business, what are you doing about it?
Thinking about this question brought to mind an interview I read earlier this year in Fortune. It was a question and answer session in a profile section on Jim Collins, author of Built to Last and Good to Great. The title of the article was, “How Great Companies Turn Crisis Into Opportunity.” It got me to thinking about how The Worthwhile Company is fairing during this time of economic upheaval.
During the time when I was reading that article, the year was fresh and the forecast for the general economy was dire. I’ll admit a little fear as I tried to see past the chaos forming in the future. Now, as I once again consider the primary points of his advice, I’m more confident than ever that The Worthwhile Company has what it takes to avoid wasting a perfectly good crisis.
“Number 1, in times of great duress, tumult, and uncertainty, you have to have moorings.”
For us, these moorings come in the form of our core values and our history of turning those values into actions. There are certain things that do not change regardless of the environment around you. Our ethics, views of finances, and the treatment of our employees are all part of our company DNA. They have proven to be a trustworthy foundation over the past decade and continue unchanged during these trying times.
Living out these values — in good times and in bad — gives a level of comfort and confidence to our clients as well as our company family. Our employees know that the owners will take the hit before they do. Our clients have a history of knowing we deal honorably and consistently with them. It is this trust that gives us all confidence to work together during the hard times. We’re all rewarded as we all rise together.
“If you go back in history, a few companies used difficult times to bolster their legions of talent.”
The Worthwhile Company works to provide great service for our clients. It is one of the primary ways we increase your Internet worth. Great service requires great people – and a few of them! This leads to that primary expense called payroll.
It is easy to think that you can help sock away some cash for a rainy day by cutting back on that portion of your expense budget. However, Collin’s point was that during these hard times, it is important to at least hold on to what you’ve got – and if you can, grab the talent that others have let go.
We entered the year declaring a hiring freeze. I’m glad we didn’t stick to that! Now as we near the end of the year and some of the haze of that uncertain future has cleared, I’m thankful we were not that shortsighted. True, our payroll may be a bit larger in relation to the revenue generated, but that investment is already beginning to pay off and will increase exponentially when our economy begins to normalize.
“What can we do not just to survive but to turn this into a defining point in [our] history?”
When considering the hard times that have fallen on many small companies, the fact that we are still here and growing is in itself a defining point in our history as a company. There is a confidence you gain when being pressed and you rise above it not only to survive but to expand more during that time of stress than you did during any other annual period before.
We’re chomping at the bit! We’ve invested in our place, our people, and focused in on our purpose. We’ve used these times to discipline ourselves to excel even in a down economy. If the recovery takes time, we’re ready. If it comes soon, we’re already there to meet the needs of the market.
The fears of February begin to fade into memory in the opportunities of October. The Worthwhile Company team has shown it has the character to succeed in the turbulence. The lessons we have learned as we have disciplined ourselves to successfully meet the challenges of a down economy will prepare us for an incredible finish to 2009. I’m looking forward to it… and a new year in 2010.
