Company confidence in the crunch

The recession has drawn one thing to the minds of business people more than anything else; risk.

It was the careless disregard and disproportionate view of risk, after all, that unleashed the recession in the first place, and now with budgets ever-tightening, it is risk that everyone is trying to avoid.

Over-managing risks, however, can be just as destructive as paying no attention to them at all. Srihari Vedante, CEO of Inatech Solutions Ltd., explained in CEO Today that too much caution can be a killer during a crunch.

“It is becoming apparent,” Vedante writes, “as some businesses turn sensible caution into nervous inertia, that board directors have a responsibility to look beyond the immediate fear that surrounds the global economy and look to energise their organisations.”

This seems simple in principle, but balancing risk is just one of the tasks facing organisations today. Vedante goes on to highlight the melee of responsibilities businesses must meet:

“Businesses today are under greater pressure than ever to perform and innovate. On a daily basis, executives are faced with challenges such as competing for entry into a new, more buoyant market, coping with red tape, responding to shareholder pressure to speed up the supply chain, and trying to find the most cost-effective way to be sustainable.”

It is challenging enough to keep the day-to-day running of a business going, without worrying about risks, and so how can companies ensure that the risk is taken care of whilst their staff concentrate on meeting targets? Vedante considers wisely-chosen partnerships as key to eliminating some risk:

“It is vital that you learn from your partners’ experience – this is not the time to let your suppliers cut their teeth on your project,” he writes.

The emphasis is on efficiency and experience when it comes to partners. This way, businesses can work safe in the knowledge that the services they are paying for are foolproof and cost-effective.

“It is key to select partners who have first-hand knowledge of the type of programme you are undertaking. Anyone you hire to deliver a project must contribute more than you could do yourself, forewarn you of the pitfalls, help you through the hurdles, and suggest shortcuts.”

Further, whilst Vedante emphasises that cutting-edge technology alone is not always the answer to all of an organisation’s problems, business intelligence is an effective method in eliminating risks, spotting problems and improving the decision-making process:

“Business intelligence tools are taking centre stage in decision-making and directors are pouring through a sea of data gathered in order to inform their strategic choices.”

In summary, Vedante’s recession survival tactics are simply to make use of good partners and good data; something Inatech is renowned for providing. Check out the full article here.