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Comtech Services, Inc.
http://www.comtech-serv.com
Ram Charan and Geoffrey Colvin's article Managing for the Slowdown: 13 moves
to make before your competitors do plus 3 rules not to forget, in the February 5, 2001 issue
of Fortune, was written to help fine tune corporate policy, but documentation department managers
will also find a lot of useful information in this article.
The "3 rules not to forget" apply to information-development managers.
Rule #1 Rethink your strategies
During a slowdown, when there are pressures against your department headcount
and budget, you can't make it doing business as usual. You'll need to develop new strategies for
the new environment. You'll need to look closely at your priorities and make necessary changes.
Rule #2 Focus on the quality of your people
Your people are your most valuable asset. Don't lower your hiring standards.
Maintain your employee training. Saving money on employee career development and learning is
foolish. You want a top notch, technically proficient staff during the slowdown and afterward.
Rule #3 Continue improving productivity
The slowdown is not the time to feel sorry for yourself and let productivity
slide. Improvements in efficiency gained during the slowdown will be a great help to your
department as the economy improves.
Some of the 13 "moves" (#2, #4, #6, #11, and #12) are purely corporate. But
some apply to us very well.
Move #1 Use the downturn as a new opportunity to evaluate people
During a slowdown, new problems with people can surface that were not apparent
before the slowdown. Can your people handle the change in direction and the new priorities that
come with the slowdown? Possibly, some of your people who could get by in the old economy can't
hold their own in the slowdown. They should be moved to jobs they can handle or moved out of the
company.
Move #3 Get out of the bunker
Now is not the time to hunker down and close the hatches. Become more creative
with the resources you have. Do what it takes to increase your productivity. Become more
customer- and user-oriented.
Move #5 Be a hero to your customers
Now is the time to develop relationships with your customers. Use your customer
knowledge to improve your efficiency and productivity. Focus your efforts on your customers
rather than on your developers.
Move #7 Lower your break-even point
Your company may want to reduce staff. Use this as an opportunity to eliminate
your least productive staff. You will emerge from the slowdown with greater productivity than
before.
Move #8 Focus on nurturing new ideas
Create teams that have an emotional commitment to new ideas. Be eager to use
contacts from outside your company. Don't just use the short-term bottom line to evaluate ideas,
but consider your long-term goals.
Move #9 Keep investing in infotech
Don't use the slowdown as an excuse to stop investing in new technology. You'll
be trailing your competitors when the slowdown ends. Keep good relationships with your vendors.
Move #10 Overhaul your budget process
Develop a lean and defensible budget. Don't let your management budget for you.
Then vigorously defend your budget. Both you and your management will be glad you did when the
slowdown ends.
Move #13 Keep communicating
While conditions are changing fast during the slowdown, your management,
customers, developers, and employees need to know your views of the situation, and you need to
know theirs.
The slowdown will be over before you know it. Your responsibility is to bring
your department out of the slowdown in the best condition possible.
The full article Managing for the Slowdown: 13 Moves to Make Before Your
Competitors Do--Plus 3 Rules not to Forget, is available in the February 5, 2001 issue of
Fortune.
You can also visit Fortune's Web site
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