Getting Lean in a Slow Down

Before I start talking business, most importantly we need to be concerned about our friends, family and loved ones and take care of our health and safety. Yet, as stewards of our businesses and the people signing paychecks every week, it is critical that we all take the action necessary to secure our businesses and the paychecks of the people that work for us. Sitting around waiting for the government to do something is not a strategy.

Last year I wrote “The Lean Managers Playbook” and heard from CEOs and operational leaders around the world about the simple no-non-sense ideas the book contained. Many expressed their frustration that revamping processes and “playing defense” (looking for areas to reduce costs and improve efficiency) were tactics they agreed with, but in the midst of a booming economy those things had to wait. At that point, revenue, sales and new customers were all that mattered. Slowing down the train in order to fix it and make it even better was out of the question.

Well, welcome to 2020! Where for no financial reason the economy is slowing, and I can hear the sound of chattering teeth and sweat droplets hitting the floor all around the country.

In the book, the main characters proposed a 5, 10, 20 Plan to their Board of Directors. If there was an unforeseen circumstance that negatively affected the company, they could cut 5% by Friday, 10% by month-end, 20% by the end of the quarter. Again, everyone I heard from agreed that it was a great idea in theory, but it takes too much time away from selling.

Now, time is on our side - no travel, no events and executives sitting around in offices and staring at screens. We can choose to panic or make a plan.

Fortunately for the businesses I am involved with, we have already executed on our 5% plan. In lieu of going any further, we have decided that now is the perfect time to revisit process, systems, policy, and marketing. After going through our 5% last week, we have shifted our focus towards resetting areas of the business that were underperforming. We are moving resources toward relocating our supply chain out of affected areas, we are producing new content, we have shifted people into other departments, and we are rolling out a pilot program to small businesses in the food and grocery delivery space. Will the 10% or 20% come out of the drawer? Who knows, but for the immediate future, we are focused on strategy, efficiency and preparing for the other side of this mess. Our teams are concerned about health and safety, but they also are focused on making sure our businesses survive and flourish.

We all know that work can be a release - it allows us to feel normal and in control. My businesses are focused on giving our people that purpose in a time of uncertainty.

How about you? What was the strategy you had in your back pocket for this moment? How have you refocused your team toward addressing this new reality and market?

If you are like many that I am hearing from this past week, you didn’t have a plan and in lieu of one, worry and fear are setting in.

Instead of panic, let’s get a plan.

The new realities of the next few weeks and months are …

1.    People aren’t traveling, they will not be at restaurants, bars, theaters, airports.

2.    There are no sports on TV so many people will be looking for content to consume. Entertainment is a serious commodity right now and education will follow suit very quickly. People will get tired of binge-watching TV and movies and will be online more than ever looking for something to consume.

3.    Short haul delivery is the new gold rush. Everyone hunkered down and small businesses (and large alike) have a once in a lifetime opportunity to bring their products and services right to the door of the American consumer.

4.    People need ideas and will be searching for them and many will want to see how others are weathering this crisis. If you can write, write. If you have a face for radio do a podcast, and focus your attention on helping others if you can. Maybe its advice about how you and your family are spending their time, or it could be sage advice you have about your business or industry.

When it comes to your business, you might have to make some hard decisions. If you don’t have a 5, 10, 20 plan it is likely too late to do one now.

Planning for a crisis in the midst of a crisis never gets you optimal results. But there are ways to start planning and reacting now. Here are a few simple steps you can take that will allow you and your team a feeling of control and will benefit your business both in the short and long term. 

1.    Take a hard look at your business. What areas are being affected? How do these changes in the market affect your strategy and tactics? Business is like chess, you have to make moves in relation to what your opponent/the market does. The market is moving quickly - are you moving at the same speed or are you paralyzed in fear?

Making moves in your business can be stressful, especially when there are so many unknowns. But there are always moves you can make that will be helpful: rethinking your strategy and tactics, reworking your processes, developing your people, analyzing your products and services and making sure they are all profitable and necessary. None of these are bad moves. Good leaders do not freeze up in the face of crisis, they move. Better to hit an imperfect shot than hit no shot at all.

2.    Ask yourself, are there products you sell that could become in higher demand? One of my companies is shifting from promoting its core product to focusing on a delivery product we had in development that could help small businesses during quarantine. We also are focused on a few modifications to our products that might find a place in a market where people want more distance in their outdoor activities.

Maybe you have an asset you will not be using that could be used by a business that is overwhelmed by this crisis. We have delivery vans at my business, and if things slow down and we aren’t doing local deliveries, I will be finding a way to turn them into delivery for other businesses and at least cover my costs.

3.    How do you currently deliver your products? Is there a different approach you could take? In the wake of theaters being shut down, Universal Studios is allowing live streaming of new movies in theaters for a small fee. Brilliant strategy and much needed when people are nesting at home. It also will generate a lot of cash for Universal to help them weather the crisis.

4.    One tool I teach in my workshops is called "The Book Report". I assign books to employees and ask them to do a presentation back to our staff about what they learned. If we are struggling with keeping accurate inventory I might assign a few of my staff to go out and research best practices then present them back to the team. If a salesperson is not great at closing, I might ask them to read a book or watch a few videos about closing techniques then have them present to the rest of the sales team what they learned. I might ask my delivery drivers to take an online course in safe driving and report back to the other drivers the top take away.

Taking your weak points and making them strengths is a great strategy. Improving skills and making your people better communicators while sharing this knowledge with the rest of the team is a solid investment, one that you now have time for. If your team is working from home, set up regular lunch and learns where everyone gets on a video conference and shares lunch while one of your team members present. Take turns doing these book reports and pretty soon your whole team will be experts in all the aspects of your business. 

5.    This is an excellent time to develop your people. Create training content, share stories and advice with them, coach, mentor - all the stuff you said you wanted to do but previously didn’t have the time to do. Every manager should be doing one-on-ones and focusing on developing people. Once this all passes you will be better and stronger for it.

In a crisis, people want to think about better times. In a week or two, you might find it is the best time ever to talk business with your clients, competitors, and vendors. Boredom will set in and many will be looking for things to occupy their time. Setting up meetings with hard to reach executives, industry friends and vendors to talk about the current situation and dream about how you can work together in better times is a good way to solidify your relationships and keep your mind sharp so we can all rebuild after this mess.