How to overcome change during economic ‘hurricanes’ – for good.

Blog
27.06.22
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You might say COVID is the best thing to ever happen to your business – while some sectors literally had the rug swept from beneath their feet, whilst others soared to new heights. Tech leaders, like Microsoft, hit the jackpot as employees set up offices on their kitchen tables. Food deliveries soared – Just Eat saw orders rise 76% in just six-months! And those who decided to ‘pivot’ discovered new revenue streams, like the 72% of gyms who follow the example of Joe Wicks to stream live workouts

COVID changed the world, and the winners were those with agility. As we enter the new normal’, the leaders are those able to sustain their profitability, because they can move their business dials when it’s needed most.   

The world keeps changing

Take a moment to ponder what our post-pandemic world looks like right now: 

  • Political instability: between the war in Ukraine and general global political uncertainty, the landscape remains volatile
  • Economic pressure: COVID cost the UK £6,100 per person – money that has to now be recovered through mechanisms such as increased taxes
  • The big resignation: over 2 in 5 employees are likely to leave their jobs this year – with the problem spread evenly across both blue collar and knowledge workers 
  • Advances in technology: during the first three months of the pandemic we witnessed digital transformation accelerated by 3-4 years, how many documents are printed now 
  • Supply chain risks: as the price of oil hits record highs, it now costs up to £20,000 to fuel one lorry, which is inflating end costs for all of us
  • Aggressive M&As: last year the number of deals rose 24% (breaking previous records) as corporations found new ways to implement their strategies

And let’s not forget about:

  • Competitive pressure: lockdown sparked a wave of entrepreneurship – the US experienced a 95% rise (30% rise in the UK) in the number of registered companies
  • Another pandemic?: it is unlikely we will see mass lockdowns again, but it’s a reminder that businesses and people are not immune to forces outside their control.
  • Environmental awareness: three-quarters of people are now as, or more, concerned about environmental issues than their own health issues
  • Legal landscape: the prevalence of hybrid working and cloud services is placing a spotlight on data privacy issues not previously seen before.

If you’re a ‘glass half empty’ person, this all might appear worrying. But if you’re more into the S&S way of thinking, we see enormous opportunities to grow in ways we perhaps hadn’t even thought of before.

Key is to ensure we are all managing change as a constant. But when you’re ChangeReady it doesn’t matter what happens next, because you’re always ready.

Take a different approach to change

Can you imagine delivering tangible business results every 90-days? Think what you could achieve…

  • Optimise your operations to boost the return on business and technology investments
  • Identify new ways of working that deliver different/better/more cost-effective outcomes
  • Use data to deliver an experience your customers will never forget.

In just 90-days…

We helped one of our clients to move the dials that matter, place the customer at the heart of their business, empower and engage their people, and enable data-driven decision making. As a result, they retained 1,000+ customers, improved its CSAT score by 17%, and achieved a 60% reduction in the manual effort required to support the onboarding of new customers.

Speed to value

During turbulent times, sustained profitability can be achieved through improved operational efficiency. The S&S Business Agility Accelerator will ensure you move the dials that matter to you and your business and remain ChangeReady. As a partner for change, we can help you to:

  • Speed to benefit by delivering in 90-day value cycles
  • Develop strong leadership that’s right for the stage of your business growth
  • Focus on outcomes (not outputs) to get your resources moving
  • Upskill your people to embed new sustainable ways of working.

Ready to embrace change as a constant?

Get in touch.

Written by
Sullivan & Stanley