First lever pulled by your organization in an economic downturn?

MWilliams

The year of macroeconomic headwinds. The war in Ukraine, Covid-19 lockdowns in China, Supply chain bottlenecks, sky high inflation, astronomical gasoline prices, slowing economic growth and the list goes on.

Patrick McGowan

Great poll! I'm going to abstain from voting since we work with many organizations. I am curious that at the time I looked at current results, it's 100% "Ways to increase revenue." That's not what I expected. I often see organizations look to cut costs, so surprised there are no votes for that, yet. Regardless, I've always thought the best answer (or lever to pull) is "Ways to innovate." Why? Because innovation leads to many positive outcomes. It's not a binary outcome of either cutting cost or increasing revenue. Rather, innovation(s) can lead to cost savings/margin improvement, revenue growth, new customer acquisition, new market expansion, greater competitive differentiation, future potential(s), etc., etc. What are your thoughts? Is "Ways to innovate" a lever that any organization looks to first when faced with significant headwinds?

MWilliams

@Patrick McGowan I really appreciate the response. I'd have to say that you are absolutely right when it comes to a lot of companies looking to immediately cut cost and your thoughts on being innovative in a downturn. As I remember the story of how Amazon chose to step it up a notch immediately following the popping of the tech bubble. The innovation they showed in a downturn coupled with their competitors dropping like flies allowed them to build one the most hyper growth driven companies in history. If we are being fair we will say that the most successful companies are always trying to innovate. The best companies feel the need to always be finding a new idea, method or device, which is the definition of innovation. However the reason why it won't be the first lever pulled for some organizations is the lagging aspect that accompanies a business that isn't always thinking about innovating. In other words companies tend to take the path of least resistance and innovation requires fresh ideas and new strategies that have to be afforded time to successfully navigate obstacles. Companies generally know cutting cost and ways to increase revenue. Cutting cost is something they are very familiar with and the latter not as much. This is where TSIA research can prove extremely valuable to any company because our researchers have the data to show an organization how to generate new revenue and how to affectively cut cost without disturbing current revenue generation. Your thoughts?

Patrick McGowan

Very good points, @MWilliams (and apologies on the delayed response, the log in wasn't working for me for quite some time, but all fixed now!). I am in full agreement with you, most companies (to be fair, it's the leadership in the company, most often the management level) default to that which they know and are comfortable with, and that is often cost cutting measures. Having more examples, case studies, and methods to help companies unlock paths to new revenue is critical, for sure!

MWilliams

Thanks for your response, @Patrick McGowan. I look forward to hearing more from others as companies are forced to make tougher decisions as they try and navigate a harsher less forgiving landscape.