In a recent conversation with one of our local government customers, we discussed the experiences that we have had and the lessons that we have learned from the economic downturn of the past several years. What we found was that we had a lot in common. I thought I would share some of these experiences with the hope that they will resonate with your own.
The length and depth of the recession put unprecedented pressure on organizations (businesses and governmental units alike) to rethink their business practices. For us, that meant a top to bottom evaluation of our company. We needed to consider all aspects of how we were doing business and look for every possible way to improve. All processes, product lines, and services were evaluated. Furthermore, all overhead expenses were examined from the perspective of how important they were to our business. The result of this process is that we have become much more efficient, cost conscious, competitive and focused. We have adapted our product and service offerings to meet the needs of customers who have limited budgets but critical needs. We are applying what we have learned about improving our business processes to helping our customers improve theirs. Simply stated, the pressures placed upon us forced us to improve as a business. We are more focused on what is important, most especially customer service. We have learned what is important to our business and our customers, and what is not. As our economy inches towards sustainable recovery, we are committed to carrying what we have learned into the future, retaining our focus on excellence.
I’ll bet many of you have had similar experiences. Like us, you have had to learn to do more with less, while always focusing on customer service. You’ve learned valuable lessons and discovered capabilities, talents and resources in yourself and your staff that were not known before. I’d love to hear your stories and I am sure we can learn something from them. I invite you to email me if these comments inspire you to respond. You can reach me on this or any topic at ncarpenter@sidwellco.com. Thank you.