Don’t miss opportunities for growth in the gloom

Watch the cashflow, watch the debt – and keep one eye open with the eventual recovery in mind.

Wow, another roller coaster ride week.

After two days of recovery the slide started again. And companies are now reporting big drops in profit, reduced revenue and increased retrenchments – all very bad for the long term.

In my last few blogs I focused on strengthening your cash position and getting out of as much debt as possible.

I’ve been working hard on both those issues for my own business. And I’m celebrating tonight with my favourite red. Today I finalised both these jobs – my cash position is very good with access to plenty of additional cash (if I need it) and I have now substantially reduced my debt levels.

That’s a great feeling in these times. I’m now moving ahead with my new marketing plan and feel more than comfortable with my expansion plans.

When you have consolidated your base, think about your priorities in the next 12 to 24 months. Business risk will increase and you might assess your own areas of risk. Can you delay some of your riskier plans? Are there marketing alliances that will help spread your risk? Can you develop any joint ventures where you can access other company’s resources?

There may very well be new opportunities for you right now. Those companies that are solid can benefit in these times. Adverse times do bring people together and you may be able to forge alliances that were not possible just a few months ago. And if your company is in a strong position you will be able to negotiate and get the good deals.

Take time out to re-assess where you fit in relation to your competitors. With the business landscape changing so quickly keep your eyes open, get to networking events, talk to colleagues to keep up to date with what’s happening in your industry.

Managing (as some of the world’s biggest economies slide into recession) will test most entrepreneurs – particularly those who are heavily into export markets. You cannot afford to miss one opportunity.

And you’ll need to really understand how a major recession will affect your business. The trouble is that no one is going to give you the answer. You’ll need to make decisions as events unfold. You’ll need to know what’s going on and what you need to do to make sure that your company is one of the winners – or at least survives intact as we come into better times.

And we will come into better times. I think that the Australian Government has taken very quick and decisive action to reduce the impact for Australian businesses. I think that we will ride out this storm better than most. But it will still be tough. We are a very small economy and the global recession will hit us.

Stay vigilant, watch your figures, particularly your sales, and move quickly if you see any negative trends.

Till next week…

Gail Geronimos, is the founder of Achaeus, which helps entrepreneurs develop their businesses and she has just started a new site www.pitchingtoinvestors.com with tools and tips about how to develop killer presentations to raise capital.

To read more Gail Geronimos blogs, click here.