Chosen Thought

If you are like most companies, you have spent the better part of the last one to two years cutting as much expense out of your P&L as you can. In past years, this was trimming the fat, but this time around you had to cut deeper. You now have a much leaner organization, but now you need sales growth.

SO, WHAT DO YOU DO?

The most common responses that we have heard CEOs answer to this question are:

• “We just need to wait for the economy to pick up and then we are well positioned for growth.”

• “We need to upgrade our talent and get better sales people and/or sales managers.”

• “We need to penetrate new markets.”

• “We need to discount now to capture or retain market share.”

We have seen several companies put these strategies into action, but few have seen a significant difference on their bottom lines. Let’s take a closer look at each:

• Waiting for the economy…

If the economy does pick up, that’s great news for everybody (including your competition). But depending on who you listen to, that could be two quarters or two years away. Even when the recession is over, recovery takes a long time, possibly years. Waiting for an economic change is an uncertain strategy which depends on too many things outside of your control.

• Upgrading your talent…

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