As each day ticks by we all wonder when will this economic downturn end and what will that end look like? It makes little difference whether you are sitting in the heartland of the US or the jungles of Borneo, everyone is wondering. Maybe those outside of the West (North America and Europe) are at a decisive advantage because they live in regions that understand and have endured hardship. But even for them the question of getting work, operating in a global economy and establishing credibility remains a continual challenge.
The question before outsourcers, big and small, is whether they are teetering on the edge of failure or are their behavioral characteristics simply their nervous/edgy nature? Without over generalizing and falling prey to my own criticisms about fuzzy statistics many outsourcing companies are frail as it relates to business viability. Sure they can perform a service and deliver a result, but underlying to their operation is often a machine that is quite rudimentary and is on track for collapse.
Top on the list of lacking attributes involve capitalization, product line diversity, market isolation, sales channel development and solid business leadership. When taken compositely the company you have a receipt that is more apt to be a question about “when” and not about whether it “will” or not. Sometimes it’s pride, but usually it’s a matter of knowledge about seeing the need to consider alternative plans and possibly business consolidations.
Where do you get this knowledge and how can it be applied safely? It all starts with education and understanding the foundation principals of operating a business. Education alone is only a starting point and years of experience, with real life situational study, is critical in order to direct a business into a position of success and stability. Even then, as we have learned from present conditions, are we pressed to the limits in terms of keeping our boats afloat.
One thing that all of this hard work and dedication provides us with is the ability to cope with depression, remain innovative and continue to work… even when it’s without pay. While people talk about small business being the base for recovery I really feel that these aspects are not being given credible respect and consideration. It simply isn’t about head count or revenue generation it’s also about strength building.
So are we edgy or are we on the edge. I guess this is for each of us and our constituents to decide. I know I have my opinion on these matters!
Until next time feel free to contribute your thoughts or send an email to me at jdurant@Int-IOM.org
