Mobilize your entire workforce to survive troubled times

turmoil, I think we can all agree on that. I

think we can also agree that turmoil is not a lot

of fun. However,we must remember turmoil

can lead to opportunity particularly in capitalist

societies."Creative Destruction," essentially

the replacement of old businesses or old

business processes with new, innovative businesses

and processes, occurs rapidly during

times of economic turmoil. The damage done

to existing businesses allows for entry to the

marketplace by innovative businesses. This

regular cycle of renewal is a powerful force sustaining

long-term economic growth.

To assure that your company is one of the

innovators and not one of the struggling companies,

you must evaluate all aspects of your

plan with consideration of the current environment,

understanding that standard business

procedures must be redefined. All business

leaders need to realize that their company is

composed of many, very talented, inventive

individuals. The companies that will survive

these turbulent times are those with leaders

who are successful in mobilizing their entire

team to help them find the correct path to the

future. Involve as many of your employees as

possible in your strategic planning sessions to

gain as wide a range of ideas as possible.

Once you have your employees involved,

you need to inspire them. There are many ways

to successfully enthuse people.Ask them for

their ideas and most importantly, when someone

makes a suggestion, take it seriously.Work

to fully understand their suggestion and work

with the employee determine if it is worth pursuing.

If it is viable, give the employee who suggested

it the opportunity, resources and authority

to pursue their idea personally. If someone

felt strongly enough to make the suggestion,

they are probably passionate about the idea,

and passion is the most important aspect of

successful implementation.

Another key method of mobilizing your

employees is to make each and every one of

them an ambassador for your company.

Everyone has contacts and their contacts have

contacts. Therefore, the more people you can get

out on the street promoting your company, the

more opportunities for success you will find.

Furthermore, it makes sense to teach your

employees to be ambassadors for your company.

After all,who can tell your company's story

better than your employees? Who lives your

company's philosophy more than your employees?

Think of your employees as high-ranking

diplomats representing your business much as

ambassadors represent a country when the

president, prime minister or monarch can't be

there in person. They should be expected to act

on your behalf and bridge the physical gap

between you and your clients or customers.

Not only is this a benefit from a business

development standpoint, but granting employees

the responsibility to go after new business

engenders passion and pride in your company.

In fact, research has shown that employees who

have this kind of freedom begin to think more

strategically about their work and about the

company as a whole. If given the opportunity,

employees will go beyond satisfying needs to

exceeding expectations and improving the company

philosophy, the state of the industry, and

the ins and outs of good business practices

because they know more about how your company

does things than you do.

Hold monthly company meetings where

you ask all employees for marketing ideas and

encourage each of them to always be on the

lookout for new business opportunities. Some

of the key steps in getting people involved in

marketing are identifying each person's marketing

strengths and then augmenting their

strengths by teaming them with the strengths

of other employees. In most companies, the

majority of employees are not involved in

obtaining new clients. But tough times call for

looking at the resources you have available to

you without increasing costs, so evaluate your

current employees' strengths and weaknesses

and delegate work they are capable of completing

with success.Although not everyone is cut

out for all aspects of selling, it is important that

everyone participate in the aspects that they

can perform well.

The next step is to redefine job descriptions

so that everyone understands that communicating

your company's services or products is

part of their job responsibility. It is easy to let

staying on top of new business leads go by the

wayside. Set clear expectations and make sure

your team understands that being a part of this

process is a part of their job.

Finally, educate your team and give them

the time and resources they need to succeed.

You need to have clear methods of evaluating

potential ideas, projects or leads.Ask your

employees for an idea then have them analyze

with a "GO /NO GO" form. This form tends to

help them objectively look at the pluses and

minuses and make better decisions on how to

proceed. You must also provide them dedicated

time every week to work on business development

and have enough marketing tools,

brochures, flyers, etc. so that they feel comfortable

promoting your company's services.

No matter what element of your business

you are trying to improve, you will always make

progress by motivating your employees and

trusting them to make good decisions. The key

is to remember that when delegating business

tasks,make sure employees know what is

expected of them and what the rewards might

be for their service in a timely and visible fashion.

Company management should make clear

that new business is a part of expected performance

and not just "someone else's job."An

incentive program can be implemented to

encourage involvement and reward initiative. If

their behavior is not supported and rewarded,

change will never take place.Acknowledge

employee efforts and let them know what particularly

impressed you.

Imagine the positive impact on your business

of empowering your employees. Given the

proper training and necessary resources, they

will naturally encourage others to become

clients and will do so with genuine conviction.

Although you may not see immediate results,

when the market slowly begins to turn, contacts

made now will come to you for business in the

future.