Have You Planned for Your Next Business Crisis?
Every business gets rocked by crises – at least once. And, truth be told, usually more often than that!
Sometimes the crisis comes in the form of a key person leaving. It can take the form of a strong competitor blanketing and sustaining a heavy promotional ‘push’ or dramatically underpricing your offerings. Alternatively, crises may come in the form of a very public error in judgement or processes.
The consequences of your next business crisis can be minimal or potentially disasterous. For example:
- Losing short- and/or long-term sales
- Lengthening the sales cycle
- Employees leaving
- Investors cashing-out
- Law suits
The rule of the thumb is to devote time, energy, and resources to crisis planning directly proportional to the potential seriousness of the consequences you would face.
Robert and I have found that most entrepreneurs are very aware of potential crises and often, they have even identified likely time frames when crises could hit them! However, entrepreneurs — who tend to be very enthusiastic — are equally as unlikely to plan for crises to avert or minimize their consequences.
This ability for entrepreneurs to foresee crises and yet not prepare for them strikes us as highly problematic. So, let us know about your state of crisis planning. And, we’ll share the results in an upcoming BusinessCast podcast.
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