This One Will Separate the Men From the Boys

As a professional woman, I feel quite licensed to utilize a cliché that could be viewed as sexist..."Separate the men from the boys."

I don’t know of any other clichés that better describe the current economic environment. Few would disagree that it is rough out there. Every company I know is being cautious, monitoring the environment carefully and cutting unnecessary expenses.

Although companies certainly run much leaner than they used to, nearly every company can tighten its belt a bit when necessary. However, which budgets should be trimmed, which budgets should be candidates for elimination if necessary and which budgets should stay in tact and maybe even be increased?

There are no cookie cutter rules. However, I believe that it is logical to ask ourselves the following questions as we are reviewing and adjusting our budgets:

• Will this budget cut damage my organization’s core value proposition?
• Will this budget cut give my competitors a window that might leave my organization exposed and vulnerable?
• Will this budget cut hamper my ability to keep sales opportunities moving through my sales pipeline even if my pipeline is moving slower than it does in better economic climates?
• Will this budget cut strip my organization of essential resources needed for long-term prosperity—talent, customer service, innovation, product development, manufacturing quality, etc?
• Will this budget cut damage my brand, potentially beyond repair?

Many of the cost-management tactics I see companies implementing right now are reasonable and responsible. Some of the tactics I am seeing are short-sided and just plain silly…these companies will likely be permanently damaged, probably will never catch up and will likely fold.

The weak are being separated from the strong. The untalented are being separated from the talented. Archaic organizations are being separated from forward-thinking organizations. The men are being separated from the boys.

Nearly everyone I know is on edge right now. It is rough out there. However, those of us who keep our heads on straight and think about how we can continue to advance our value propositions will make it through this. Those who cut to the bone, cut harmfully into their value propositions, cut their own legs out from under them and let their competition stroll past will in all likelihood become a memory.