Recession Proof Your Business

Presented by the

Troy Treleaven of the

Dale Carnegie Business Group

Reality

Canada is the most trade-dependent nation among the members of the G-7, with exports of goods and services accounting for 35 to 40 per cent of gross domestic product.

Fully 80 per cent of the goods and more than 55 per cent of the services Canada exports are destined for the the U.S.

In 2007, total trade between our countries topped $560 billion US.

Reality

Canada is the leading export market for 36 U.S. states and ranks in the top three of 10 others. According to the U.S. Commercial Service, Canada is a larger market for U.S. goods than all 27 countries of the European Community combined.

Roughly 70 per cent of goods imported and exported from and to Canada and the U.S. move by truck,

Reality

Canadian consumer prices fell for a fourth consecutive month in January, the longest stretch since the Great Depression, led by reduced costs for natural gas and motor vehicles.

Canada’s index of leading economic indicators fell the most since 1982 in January, led by housing and stocks.

Reality

Canada has the lowest productivity of the G7 Countries.

- Conference Board of Canada

Reality

At the end of 2007, the stock of U.S. foreign direct investment in Canada amounted to $289 billion, representing about 59 per cent of total foreign direct investment. Canadian investment in the U.S. totals about $160 billion.

U.S. demand for Canada's goods and services has declined so dramatically that Canada has recorded its first trade deficit in 33 years.

Reality

Canada's industrial capacity utilization rate – the ratio of what industry actually produces to what it could potentially produce – fell to 77.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2008, the latest period for which statistics are available. That's weaker than in the recession of the early 1990s, said Michael Gregory, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, adding that the phenomenon "is very broad-based."

Major Concerns During Recession When will it end? How many should I lay off…any? How much should I cut…what should I cut? Should I invest? If I do and it doesn’t pay

off what then?

Major Concerns During Recession Should I try to take market share from my

competition? Why not? How do I keep people’s morale high? How

do we improve our People’s Productivity? What if we lose everything?

Major Themes

1. Create a different, better offering – Take Market Share

2. Innovate – drive out costs, create new opportunities, sell dramatically more

3. Sell More, Sell Better

4. Get people’s morale and productivity up!

Step # 1 – Your Current Reality Threats Opportunities Trends

Market Market ShareMatch –

Offering to Market Wants

Competition

CapacityManagerial

Effectiveness

RegulatoryUnionLegal

Capital

Analysing Business Reality

Focus

What areas should you focus on to:

Shore up your business?

Grow the business? Do you need to get into new markets? Can parts of your business go into new

markets?

Step # 2: Customer’s Reality

What is the reality of your customer’s world? Do an objective analysis (speculate first, then

ask them yourself) What are their Threats? Opportunities?

Step # 3: Current Match

Do they really want what you are offering? What do they really want? How have their ‘wants’ changed since the

start of the recession? What is currently ‘out of sync’ with your

offering?

Step # 4: Unexpected Offering What can you give them beyond what they

think you can give them? What are their ‘emotional’ wants?

Sense of security, avoid lay-offs, keep margins high, same or more profit, feel confident moving through recession, market share

What ‘technology’ can you add to your customer? Technology

Human innovation in action that involves the generation of knowledge and processes to develop systems that solve problems and extend human capabilities

Examples of Technology

Value-mapping – eliminating steps of a process that don’t contribute value to the customer

Sales skills – precise listening and communication to provide exact and full solutions to customer needs

Lean/Six Sigma – driving waste out of a process (elements of Value-mapping)

Step #5: Strategy to Deliver New Offering How can you get this renewed offering to

them? How will you communicate this value to

them? What operational processes will need to

change?

Step #6: Plan - Tactics

Do you have a plan to deliver the new strategy?

Do you have a contingency for each anticipated obstacle?

Have you involved your team in the creation of the plan?

Step #7: Engaging the People Do your people see the whole picture? Do they see the consequences of not

changing? The ‘personal’ impact? Do they see the opportunities? Do they know what is required of them? Do they know how they need to change? Have they developed the competencies

required?

Innovate

Every business has huge gaps of opportunities to:

- Give more value to the customer

- Run the business with less resources

In fact, just when you think it is ‘optimized’ you need to think again – the target has moved.

Innovate

This recession is giving us a great opportunity to Innovate – we likely have the capacity RIGHT NOW!

If you don’t, the business is poorly managed.

How to Innovate?

Use a proven process Involve your people Go for ‘impossible goals’ – Breakthroughs Act immediately

Innovation Process

1. Visualization – of desired outcome (not How to)

2. Current Reality – facts…just facts

3. Opportunity and Problem-finding “In what ways can we…”

4. Idea-finding

5. Solution finding

6. Implementation – Follow-up - Measure

Sell More – Sell Better

Canadians can’t sell…we haven’t had to We have relied on a booming economy,

average marketing, and social visitors or product peddlers (as Salespeople)

This economy requires an INTERUPTION of thinking.

Selling is Communication, Persuasion, and Confidence

Learn to Sell

Those organizations that can get their unique message across to the right people can outperform their competition every time.

Good selling is being able to tell the story of the match well (when there is a legitimate match)

Improve Morale

Be realistic but optimistic Get good at pointing out personal strengths Give feedback regularly Build skills and competencies Involve in plans

Build Productivity

Coach time management Teach and develop creativity Delegate and deputize well Build ‘game-changing’ listening skills Train, Train, Train Quantify their impact on the bottom-line and

coach improvement

In Summary…

Cut costs, sure…but do more or lose! Bring huge value to your customers Interrupt them so they SEE IT Be Strategic not only Tactical Create a Plan and engage and build your

people to deliver the plan flawlessly

What we are hearing..

Small businesses don’t know what to do in this chaotic economy, they don’t know who to go to for help (Accountant says cut costs).

They are losing sales, hearing doom and gloom, are unsure of the best next step.

They want to survive but wonder if it is possible

They don’t want to go into unsustainable debt, or kill margins to survive

Our offering…

Rethink how your company can make money NOW, in this economy

Create effective strategies to make money, take market share, and maintain margins.

Build the mindset and required skills in your people to implement the strategy, and do it within weeks (not months, years)

Business Next Series

1. Create a refreshed offering that matches your market better than ANY of your competition.

2. Create messaging to get that offering to your current and future customers.

3. Build a strategy and plan at a fraction of the cost and time to deliver that offering.

4. Kick-start and develop your people to deliver the plan.

How to start

1. A Briefing (with analysis) to see if you qualify.

2. Start in the next few weeks to improve your offering – Private sessions with you and your team.

3. Join other companies in bi-monthly sessions to execute everything required (over the next year).

4. Meet privately, bi-monthly to refine, adjust plan and to re-motivate you and your people (over the next year).