Not every crisis can be predicted, if anything corona has made clear to us. Nevertheless, rising energy prices and high raw material costs, for instance, were on the way. Entrepreneurs who can and dare respond to this quickly, catch some of the problems. An example from my practice: a large manufacturer of office furniture decided to invest heavily before prices shot up. And is now able to keep its customers happy by delivering from stock at current prices. He dared to take the calculated risk. You can think of examples in any industry. I'm not saying you can prevent everything, but following developments and daring to take advantage of them does make a difference.
Another 'benefit' of crises is that things often kick into gear. Think of new working, hybrid working. With the corona crisis, we all got used to online working at an unprecedented rate. Of course, it's not desirable to meet only digitally, but it has made things more efficient and, in many cases, easier to work with. Companies that embrace those changes and design the business accordingly have not only become more agile, they also benefit from their smarter organisation and reduce accommodation costs. Apart from that: they also meet the desire of a large part of the working population. An important factor in this tight labour market.
The lake online meet, has definitely also caused a shift in marketing and sales methods. Whereas before, sales people were constantly on the road, online has only become more relevant in this day and age. Companies that stick to the 'old-fashioned' way of thinking and conducting sales businesses end up losing the battle of generating leads online. A crisis gives you time to roll out new forms. Work to in places of work at your organisation, that is!
Any business that forces itself to look differently and discover new markets and methods will still be hit by crises. But the pain will be less harsh and, in the most positive scenario, it will also bring a lot of news and good.
Elton Backx is founder and owner of The Lords Of Work where he is Official LinkedIn Ambassador (so he knows everything you need to know about LinkedIn) AND business coach.
