Motivate with stability. One of the ways you provide a sense of security is make sure that (your values) don’t change just because it’s a downturn, because there’s this huge opportunity that would only happen if you attempt to compromise them.
There are a lot of positive things you can do to get people focused on positioning for the upturn. People watch your demeanor, your attitude. If they continue to see you walking through the company with a smile on your face and asking questions and being involved, there’s a comfort level.
If they see you changing your behavior and all of a sudden you’re sullen-looking, they tend to read the worst into your physical appearance. Maintaining that constant attitude is very important.
Do something. The easy mistake to make during a downturn is to take no action, is to assume that it’s just going to get better, and you don’t take the time to do an analysis. You don’t identify where you can reduce expenses.
We’re going through some consolidations as a way of being more efficient presently and, at the same time, making sure that we have processes in place to deal with the volume levels we anticipate when the
upturn happens.
We’ve got to think for now, but we’ve also got to make sure we have a system and the mechanisms in place to deal with business that could go to this level. That’s all part of the analysis. You don’t wait until it happens, then figure it out.
HOW TO REACH: Waltco Truck Equipment Co., (330) 633-9191 or www.waltco.com
