Corporate Strategy During Covid: What Can be Done As the Economy Changes?
As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, many people will be changing their behaviours, which in turn will impact how we trade, just as lockdown has hit the cash reserves of many businesses. Absolutely no one is safe in the Covid-19 world, and this means that the formulation of a unique, corporate strategy during Covid-19 is necessary if we wish to stay afloat in the rich but ravenous rivers of cash.
It is purely Darwinian (survival of the fittest) at play now, and so the question is as follows; what can you do to ensure you stay ahead in the rivers of cash? We see two main games to play. The first is ‘productivity’ gains; that does more with less and the second is to make sure the strategy is right and to clarify it fast.
Productivity Gains and Corporate Strategy During Covid-19
These are best achieved by an objective review of the following points, which may require external help to assess:
- Reducing management, which is often too fat & layered, and to build faster decision-making protocols.
- Looking at how technology is used as an enabler and can be enhanced.
- Creating a more flexible supply chain model.
- Dispersing your workforce yet maintaining collaboration.
- Investing in central enterprise resource processes, planning and systems.
- Increasing standard ways of working, backed by better tracking and skills training.
Getting the Corporate Strategy During Covid-19 Right
Every business and every industry will have to calibrate and re-calibrate in order to tackle the monstrosity that is Covid-19, however, creating a strategy that will put you ahead of your competitors is more elusive. It requires placing your business ahead of market demand rather than simply chasing it, and this can be achieved through asking yourself a variety of questions.
Getting the corporate strategy during Covid right will involve figuring out what new services, territories, strategic alliances, or acquisitions are needed, based on where you see your market going and how you believe as an organisation your sector will evolve? When reviewing to understand market direction, this requires careful research into:
- Your competitors – when did you last really study them?
- Researching parallel sectors, what actions, trends, and strategies are comparable?
- The data – what does your data tell you the trends are? Additionally, with the ‘big picture’ what are the macro trends, for example, age demographic or average pricing?
- Listening to your ‘rebels’ – both employees and customers. They may be right or ahead of you. The world is not changed by reasonable people.
- Being counterintuitive. You may need to compete with yourself to succeed.
The river in the title is the global market, and right now it is flowing very rapidly, with big rocks, white water, and in some cases waterfalls ahead, and we are in its flow. If we fight it, we will exhaust ourselves, but that’s where a focused corporate strategy during Covid-19 comes in. We need to get to whatever calm water we can find, take a rest, and get some help. We can then look ahead to navigate how we flow with a greater freshness, sense of adventure, energy, and clarity, implementing a solid corporate strategy during Covid-19 in order to prepare for the world that comes after it.
Synopsis – Navigating the Rivers of Cash by Kevin Uphill (Published: Falconbury – 2015) can be purchased from several good booksellers including Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. Buy it here.
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