Around 76% businesses across industries are severely affected due to covid19, out of which 90% are from Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
3C’s of Business Compatibility in Covid19 Era
Around 76% businesses across industries are severely affected due to covid19, out of which, 90% are from Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)
But the worst of all situations at present is that there is no sign of recovery as the covid19 pandemic hasn’t subsided a bit, even after exceptional efforts of the governments worldwide.
In India it is a huge frightening scenario at present, shrinking demands have forcedly halted production while supply chain disruption is creating an unforeseen jerk simultaneously, which is damaging the spine of the businesses across industries.
As per the industrial reports, 100 thousand employees are losing their jobs every quarter so to talk about the tough time and L shaped recovery is fairly acceptable here.
But instead of being indecisive due to fear, you must ask yourself today that how much disruption this convid19 shock has to have on your business?, what important decisions to make or delay in such circumstances?, what efforts do we have to make to recover from it?, and how to keep your business afloat?
At the macroeconomic level, it is the worst ever experience of the 21st century but when you start to think at the microeconomic level that is to think at your company, competition, and industry level, things will become understandable and recoverable.
You should realize that it is a circumstantial preference issue simultaneously.
On a superficial level it looks as if everything is gone but isn’t it a wrong assumption that due to covid19, the market has vanished permanently?
Meaning that if you would be smart enough to look at it as if it is one of the business compatibilities issue whereas you measure the present reality and alter your course to make it a market fit otherwise.
This mindset will be easy for you to cop up and be afloat again with better understanding and preparation for the wishful opportunities lying at present and in the near future.
Let’s look at the circumstantial preferences with business activity mindset rather than market scenario mindset.
Let’s explore 3C’s of business compatibility again which are category, community and catalogue.
Category
You win the battles first in the mind, then in the field.
And If you have ingrained your purpose in you, you don’t bother what obstacles are coming, but you simply face it, fight it, and overcome it.
Purpose
Now covid19 is a time to revisit, review, and revise your business purposes, the drive and the passion, you and your business have.
Due to which your business was is and will continue to work, acquire sustainability and hopefully thrive.
But while assessing the past few couple of decades, many of our businesses have simply assumed to be a money printing machine whereas I do accept that one of the most important factors in assessing company’s valuation is primarily its financial strength but it is also true that the drive of any organization for becoming a great company is lying in the form of customer value proposition.
Problem solving
Simply thinking about covid19 and wishfully imaging it’s solution at macro level will not suffice.
You need to answer some tough questions relating to what problems you were solving?, what problems do you need solving now?, how covid19 has affected your customers demographically, psychologically and in purchasing priorities?, what has changed in their day to day working?, and how your decisions are going to impact their preferences?
Most importantly, in the current scenario, what has changed in your customer’s preferences? when you explore further you will know that your past assumptions which were helping you do your work smoothly, has become redundant and abnormal in covid19 era or not.
So the reassessment of categories of your business purposes and your customer’s problem management must be the focus.
You will still serve with your purposes but you must have to alter tactics of your business to serve who you claim as your customers or to be your targeted customers while you have to be observant to the present time and the situational abnormalities.
Communities
Companies strive for success through it’s communities only. In the above paragraph where we talked about categories, one of the community that is your customers to whom your business serves is prioritized.
But whether your business will strive through some conducive environment or not, is dependent majorly on your internal communities.
These internal communities are leaders, employees, partners, and your associates who are the actual key executive systems of your business.
And to count on them, around 80% of your workforce is behind your day to day work execution, without which, you can not expect your customers to be served better and face market competition at large.
So it is quite imperative that these communities are in the right frame of mind, reshuffling, multi-tasking, reskilling and upskilling on priorities and high in morale to deliver what is expected in these circumstances.
Your reactions, communications, and decisions have a huge impact on these communities. So you have to watch it while ensuring that your business serves as a compatible unit.
when you keep all your internal communities in confidence, develop proper channels for communication, recognizing their initiatives while integrating them as a unit for the common cause and shouldering responsibilities, whether your company will sail through any devastating storms of the sea, is rest assured that, it will.
Catalogue
As we saw above, your being focused on your business purposes and keeping yourself updated on the pain points of your customers make you timely interpret their current problems and requirements thoroughly.
But is it sufficient if you don’t alter your solutions accordingly?
Even in Covid19 era, It has to be business as usual.
Now also, you are required to assess what needs alternation, elimination, reduction or increase so that you will continue attracting the existing customers and even identifying and influencing the new ones.
Because the product portfolio which you designed to solve your customer’s problems in the past is not only eventually a quality driven expectation but it is also fairly tested on the time, the place, and the price sensitivity of the market.
Sometimes, it will be enough to play on quantity and packaging, to continue pulling demands but sometimes like this, you might have to do overhaul changes.
How effectively your system is in sync with new information simulation to alter the course of your business and how fast?, has to be seen.
Conclusion
So you don’t just be overwhelmed by the covid19 mess which may be apparently lying in macro level conditions of the economy, alternatively you have to stick to your business plan. Your system of 3C’s for business compatibility will still differentiate you from the competition.
Although you surely have to alter your catalogues in terms of product portfolios, batch prioritization for its production as per the present market demands, timings, and price sensitivity.
Simultaneously you have to ensure that your communities are in the right frame of mind to be engaged, connected, and spread the fresh communication across all other communities including operations, supply chain and the consumers.
And when you are sticking to the broader categories simultaneously, means, your business purposes and your customer centricity to deliver the expected solutions effectively, covid19 will not be a hindrance and you will be a sure winner.