Businesses that wish to thrive and become sustainable in the long term have been advised to consider constant adjustments in some five key operational areas.
Director of Business Banking at Absa Bank Ghana Limited, Grace Anim-Yeboah, says it is imperative for organizations to regularly review their models to meet the changing trends.
For her, the areas of Leadership, Strategy, Cash flow, Value addition, and Digitization remain critical for businesses whose activities have been disrupted by the crisis but are willing to exist and thrive.
Mrs. Anim-Yeboah shared these insights on the second day of the on-air series of the Citi Business Festival while speaking on the topic: “Keeping your business alive during a crisis”.
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- Leadership: “Leadership is a big piece here in times of crisis and how you restrategize your business. So you need to look at all these factors to be able to make a decision. In times of uncertainties, there will be confusion. But in all of these, you need to guard yourself and lead your team.”
- Strategy: “Now in a time like this, it’s important that you look at your business model and it’s important that you assess whether you can continue to operate in the same model you have been operating. You may be delivering a critical service, but can you continue to deliver that service in that same mode. What do you do for your business to pivot and become a safe house and meet needs because every crisis is an opportunity?”
- Cash flow: “Profit is sanity and you are making money in what you do. Cash is king because no matter how you make revenue or profit you make- if it all stuck with debtors and suppliers and you don’t have funds to meet utility bills, taxes or pay your employees, then what are you doing? So at any point in time, there must be cash flowing through your business to meet your short term needs. We also have the tendency to invest a lot in fixed assets and especially in fixed assets that are not generating any cash flow for you immediately. Maybe you need land in ten years’ time but you have gone to buy it now. You have locked up your money but you have sucked money from your business.”
- Value addition: “Ideas are brilliant and they are bound. There are thousand and one ideas every day but check the ratio of those that survive. There are a number of reasons, the idea has to be firmly grounded. So what value are you giving to your clients to encourage them?
- Digitization: “You must take some pragmatic decisions and those decisions don’t come easy and that is why the whole digitization conversation is important. Also, because it will help you build efficiency into your business and give you skills. Also, for most employees, it’s an opportunity to begin to retool, re-skill, up-skill to be able to do other things apart from whatever your existing service is. So, if you are a teacher and school is going digital, how digital savvy are you, can you quickly learn and position yourself. After all, how many hours of teaching happens a day. You can position yourself strategically and even be teaching for three or four schools and making more money.”
The 2020 edition of the Citi Business Festival started on Monday, June 1, 2020, with a line-up of radio and TV programs. It will feature virtual business forums and will be live on Citi TV.
This year’s edition of the Citi Business Festival is sponsored by Absa Bank, GIPC, Citi 97.3FM, and powered by the most comprehensive business news website; citibusinessnews.com.
