If you are in business, it’s inevitable that challenging situations will arise from time to time, and you will find yourself forced to make difficult decisions.
While everyone is learning the new syllabus of how we live during these times of COVID-19 and beyond, here is what I think will pan out and how I believe we should prepare for the future.
Every industry will change to a new normal in times to come. The industry you operate in does not matter as much as what you do in it to be the best and ensure continuity. It is a much better idea to take a stance and prepare a new roadmap. Here are some things I feel will become the new normal:
- Switch to Digital life — from work meetings to, online financial transactions to e-commerce, online education degrees to virtual marriages — these will be mainstream.
- Tracking the expenses against the revenue status- It is of utmost importance for business to conduct a proper assessment of their fixed and variable expenses as well as the actual revenues. This strategy can be implemented even when the pandemic effect settles.
- Checking the feasibility of the business model – Considering the market is changing every week (and for the worse), it is imperative to reconsider the business model and reassess where your business stands as per your assumptions concerning the revenue and cost.
- Reconfigure the business Strategy for some quarters (Qtr 1, Qtr 2, 3 or 4) – reduce the variable expenses, renegotiate fixed expenses (rent, salaries, equipment lease payments, etc.), and focus only on the crucial essentials for survival.
Business needs to strategize the revision in sales revenue goals and have to keep the communication transparent as much as possible with their investors and employees.
- People and Capabilities: It is very important how business manages its employees as execution will be decentralised – it will be mostly work from home— delegation with accountability will ensure success.
Make sure your people reskill fast, are ready and recommit to your company. A detailed planning activity is required where you need to identify which employees really need to come to work and others can continue from home.
- Consider Whether You’ll Need Funding to Recover: It’s likely that you may need some working capital to jump-start your business operations. However, we might witness a dip in VC funding in the short run. Investors will be more vigilant and may take longer than usual to make funding decisions after following stringent diligence procedures. But there is nothing to worry about because if we look at the previous economic downfalls, we can notice the market eventually bounce back after the end of an epidemic crisis. There are other several options to consider.
Conclusion:
The spirit of innovation will lead to recovery across the world. It will be a new world, but a prosperous, healthy & happy one to look forward to. Some experiences will not be under your control, but it doesn’t matter. In business you must make difficult decisions. But the good news is, you can learn to make better decisions that result in more positive outcomes.
Author:
CA Vidushi Jhunjhunwala
Published Date: 27 July 2020