Media Spotlight: The Worst-Case Scenario By David Borgenicht and Mark Joyner
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The best-selling Worst-Case Scenario series of books has in recent years been expanded to cover everything from sex and dating to weddings and travel, so it’s hardly surprising that the brand has set its sights on the world of business.
With 2009 one of the most stressful years for the majority of businesses in the West, with the exception of debt collectors and bailiffs, tricky decisions have had to be made to ensure that a vast swathe of firms survive.
And irrespective of its stocking filler and novelty book dimensions, Worst Case Scenario: Business Survival Guide covers serious topics. The authors have recruited a bevy of industry experts to provide their council on everything from hiring and firing to balancing the books.
And with the UK mortgage market one of the hardest hit financially there’s much food for thought.
Some of the subjects covered, such as how to get cash fast and how to perform emergency surgery on your overhead, inevitably drift into common sense.
Unsurprisingly, getting a complete handle on expenses and trying to reduce your major overheads are the main piece of advice.
Maintaining the profitability of the company also falls into that category, and with our over-exposed banks taking a tough line with the businesses they supply credit to, the book’s recommendation to renegotiate with creditors is sadly more a case of wishful thinking than a practical solution.
But with many mortgage firms only having experienced the good times after a decade of record lending, the chapter on HR emergencies definitely has some sage advice, in particular the section on how to implement and survive staff layoffs.
While it recommends openness and transparency, it cautions against letting everyone know a month beforehand that job cuts are likely.
Instead it calls on management to let staff know that cash is tight and that management are working on solutions. Although, let’s be frank, everyone would know that someone, somewhere in the company was sharpening the axe if your chief executive made such an announcement.
As the guide advises bosses, “act as though everyone is watching you, because they will be”.
And with marital discord rising as a result of the credit crunch, the guide also features handy hints on avoiding a divorce.
But if you had to boil the book to one core theme, managing a business crisis is down to effective communication.
Be straight with people when the company is facing a problem. Ensure staff are on board and aware of difficulties. Be available to discuss concerns that they may have. And likewise have the same conversation with creditors.
For example, over the last year a number of networks have been sluggish at paying appointed representatives commission, with Network Data the most high profile one this year.
Network Data ARs’ main gripe - aside from the fact that their cash was in somebody else’s wallet - was the fact they had had no communication from the firm. They all knew why there were difficulties - the global mortgage market had fallen off a cliff. Instead the company chose to suffer in silence until it went under.
So if you’re doing Secret Santa this year at your office and the name you pull out of the hat is your boss’, it might be worth investing in the Business Survival Guide.
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