Popular crisis management rake

Recently, I have become extremely interested in crisis management and this is partly to blame for the process of preparing the case for Marvel , which I published some time ago. As for me, the recovery of a company in crisis is much more complicated than managing a stable business.

And today I would like to write that recovery is not always successful. Later we will read about companies that were able to overcome all difficulties in books and articles, and some may even make films, but we will not even remember those who failed. In some ways, this is unacceptable, since failure experience is much more important than successful experience.

Anything can turn out to be the reasons for the failure, but more often than not, erroneous management actions turn out to be completely worthy people who are unemployed. And as I see it, they happen when management makes one of the errors listed below.

Slow loading

The anti-crisis manager does not have the right to begin his activities, as well as the ordinary manager. To start with careful meetings, familiarization, visiting dozens of places, leisurely discussing the situation with a large number of employees, reading old reports or creating target groups, death is like that.

Typically, managers of this kind are hired in the most unsightly situations, when everything that could be done without extraordinary measures has already been done or is too late to take. In such situations, every hour, day or week can significantly worsen the current situation. A newly hired manager should take up duties immediately.

Neglect of decisive and immediate action

Many of the measures that need to be taken are obvious. If a dead horse is lying in the middle of the lawn, there is no need to hire a dead horse consultant to analyze how and why she was there. Illiquid divisions of the company are most often also visible to the naked eye. Therefore, employees are probably aware of obvious problems and are simply waiting for someone who could give the order, and this is the direct task of the crisis manager.

It would be a good idea to set some initial recommendations for obvious decisions at various levels of the organization, the implementation of which must be started without delay. At the same time, managers of a lower level of responsibility should not have a wide freedom of action for their implementation. The simpler, the faster, the faster, the greater the likelihood of a successful exit from the crisis. In resuscitation there is a term - the "golden hour", which clearly illustrates the need for such quick and decisive action.

“Golden Hour” is a term used in intensive care to determine the period of time (taken as close in duration to 1 hour) after injury, which allows you to most effectively provide first aid.

Procrastination at primary contractions

It is better to cut 20% of staff once than four times to 5%. With gradual reductions, the morale of employees will be to hell. After the initial five percent reduction, employees will forget about work, constantly worrying about whether they will be next. Some experienced executives even say that it is better to make a large reduction immediately, and if necessary to make further recovery.

A portion reduction can reduce the negative emotional burden on the manager, but this reduction in psychological stress should not be an end in itself. Moving too slowly, the company is likely to lose some of the most proactive employees that it would prefer to have as part of its team.

If the general manager cannot identify hard-to-replace employees, the following may help. The management of the divisions makes up the top 10-20 most urgent tasks regarding those, as well as compiles a complete list of employees in their departments. After that, reconciliation of the lists is carried out, the result of which will be a list of employees necessary to perform priority anti-crisis tasks.

These lists can help identify people whose dismissal will affect the company’s activities less disastrously, as well as capable of performing a number of tasks. Although this technique is not without drawbacks, it can provide solid support for making the following decisions and identifying the most important operational elements.

The income statement has absolutely nothing to do with the cash flow statement

Ignoring this fact is fatal. A crisis manager is damn lucky if the company has enough cash. Income is income, and cash is cash. The cache rules. Cash is the blood of the company, and management must keep a tight hand on the pulse to feel when the flow of funds is weakening incompatible with life. Expenses that are not directly related to the functioning of the company must be ruthlessly cut out.

Cost reduction has another side multiplier effect. Opponents of the necessary cuts are certainly not worthy of being in the team and daring cuts will help in determining those.

Although the opportunities depend on the nature of the business, a crisis manager must show by personal example that working overtime is necessary. Defeat from such dedication will have the most beneficial effect on personnel. Employee inspiration will add a bit of a chance to increase firm survival.

Concealment of truth and bad news

Many people want to get the bad news as early as possible in order to be able to maneuver. Most workers are no different. It is advisable that your employees learn the bitter truth from you, and not from the morning news. If something happened suddenly, then take the trouble to bring it to the team before everyone else and with as many details as possible.

In times of crisis, managers should be more concerned with employees who are stubbornly trying to reverse the situation than shareholders and investors who care only about returning their investments. Of course, this is true only in cases where management is interested in stabilizing the position of the company, otherwise the company will be pulled apart and all interested parties will lose.

Opacity of communication of all stakeholders

Employees, freelancers, wholesalers, customers, trade unions, suppliers, bankers, shareholders, industry and mass media - all must know what is happening and what can happen. Clarity and accuracy of communications where money is spinning is probably the most important component of a successful recovery.

The anti-crisis manager must work tirelessly for the sake of business, deciding what else can be done immediately and what can wait. But paradoxically, the restoration of any company is achieved by the hard work of ordinary employees, many of whom are frightened by the possible loss of earnings and a familiar lifestyle. In any case, the manager engaged in the restoration of the company should be especially careful to avoid the mistakes of managers who brought the company to such a deplorable state, and this can only be achieved by avoiding typical mistakes. I round off on this, and "long live Caesar, those who go to death will greet you!"