Our businesses are each faced with unique challenges as the economic impact of the coronavirus begins to unravel onto the global economy. You may be itemizing the ways that uncertainty has already impacted your business, or you may be preparing for potential issues to come.
Our search professionals speak with industry experts, business executives, and thought leaders every day as they seek out career-minded individuals. While the reigning sentiment across our markets is not overly positive, it is encouraging to note that many leaders within their segments are not seeing the adversity at hand as inherently negative, but rather an opportunity to strengthen core elements of their businesses.
Here are some general strategies that can help to strengthen your business during times of adversity.
1. Business Development
Find opportunities to reach prospects that would normally be unreachable.
Recent restrictions put on gatherings of any kind have changed the reality for the white-collar American worker. Those who are typically found within an office space are being encouraged to remain within the safety of their homes. This means that executives, salespeople, middle managers, engineers, and many other functional roles are sitting at home readily available at their desks, much more likely to take a sales call.
2. Talent Acquisition
Utilize economic uncertainty to obtain talented workers that would not usually be on the job market.
The first round of layoffs has hit the United States. Talented workers who are usually gainfully employed are either on the job market due to unforeseen layoffs or are at least open to a conversation about a new role as they think about how uncertainty might impact them within their current jobs.
3. Uncover Opportunity
Watch global markets closely to uncover areas of opportunity.
The current coronavirus is said to have originated in a ‘wet market’ in Wuhan, China. As the Chinese government looks to impose new sanctions upon these meat markets (there are over 1,000 wet markets in Shanghai alone), a unique opportunity is presented to businesses within the flexible packaging industry. Generally, meat is butchered live within these markets, but given the health-risks, pre-packaged products will likely replace these practices.
4. Account Retention
Implement continuous service improvements and account retention best practices to keep current and potential clients.
Investing in client retention is always more cost-effective than client acquisition. Ensure that your current clients are continuously happy by implementing measures such as quarterly Net Promoter Score surveys, or having an internal employee focus on implementing Customer Experience (CX) best practices.