SEEING your organisation falter can be terrifying. You may feel helpless and powerless as you watch all you have worked for start to come undone. With experience stemming from years of corporate leadership, Geary Reid offers this book of expert advice to assure you that it is possible to stop the death of your organisation. With the help of straightforward comparisons, Reid illustrates the exact steps leaders must take to bring a business or organisation back from the brink and ensure its ongoing survival.

Section 1: At Death’s Door

Non-profit organisations are established to provide products or services for the benefit of society, whereas profit-making organisations are primarily concerned with generating profit for their shareholders. The greater the profit, the more financial and social gains.

Sometimes, in an attempt to make profit, an organisation engages in various activities and experiences several challenges. These challenges may become so severe that medical attention may be necessary. Many times, when medical attention is sought, the organisation is already at death’s door. When an organisation reaches this stage, a diagnosis is needed. This is a preliminary requirement for many medical officers when someone shows signs of lifelessness or dysfunction.

To help a dying organisation, the root of the problem must be identified. If the main problems are not identified, then the organisation may fall into the same situation again. One good example is an individual who is discharged from hospital and goes home, but later returns for the same reason. Therefore, identifying the root of the problem and addressing it is the most effective way to resolve an issue.

The attempt to find the problem may be time-consuming, but if you want to help the organisation, you have to find out what caused it. When the cause is found, then efforts must be made to reduce, eliminate, or remove it from the organisation. Solving some problems may be costly, but it may be the only way to address them.

Some of the problems can be a result of faulty machines, old equipment, poor performance from the labour force and more. Whatever the problem is, it must be addressed. Timeliness is also a key factor when addressing the problem.

Section 2: Learning from the Past

The past should not be considered as a bad period, especially for organisations that experienced challenges. Many people who have learned from the past are able to make a great impact for the future. The past provides many learning opportunities.

Some past experiences may not be enjoyable to remember. However, if the lesson has been learned and a similar situation occurs in the future, those who are given the opportunity to manage the organisation will know what needs to be done.

When faced with certain challenges, start-up organisations sometimes do not know what to do, since it might be the first time they are experiencing such a situation. Some organisations have taken an approach to ensure that their senior management team includes some experienced people. Those experienced people will be able to provide quality guidance to the younger management team, which can save them from many pitfalls.

Certain experiences are not easy to achieve. However, those who have learned from tough experiences will be able to guide others in the right direction. This is similar to a parent sharing some experiences with their child. Children sometimes believe they have a good grasp of life, but when certain situations confront them, they recognise that they need their parents or that they should have taken their parents’ advice.

Past experiences serve as a valuable learning tool to help avoid future challenges of the same nature from recurring. When an organisation is planning for the future, it should also consider some of its past experiences. This will help ensure that its assumptions and estimates are all-inclusive and not made as though all things will be perfect.

Some organisations will use statistics for future projections. One such statistic is the average or mean. This will allow the organisation to use a figure that encompasses both positive and negative results. The choice to use this option may have advantages and disadvantages, but something must be used as the basis for future projections.

Section 3: Fully Recovered

After a long and intense effort, the organisation might be able to find its way back on the road to recovery. Any organisation that has recovered will be more than happy to stay alive. To be alive is a good thing!

Those organisations that have been successful in the rescue operation would like to make success a daily diet. They will do everything to stay alive. Staying alive can be very challenging, but it is better than being dead.

A successful organisation, which has survived the rescue, will have to work towards building muscles. It should establish itself and spread its operations. When operations are spread, the organisation can minimise some of the risks common to other organisations. Having a new customer base is important, as it will guarantee additional revenues.

The success of an organisation in overcoming life’s challenges serves as a learning experience for others to follow. Sharing its challenges and successes with selected and confidential people may be a good medicine to prevent other organisations from falling into the same situation. However, some people are selfish and do not want to share what has happened to their organisation. They see others going in the same direction of failure without warning them.

Success is good, but trying to improve should be a constant desire for each organisation. You can achieve incremental improvements or dynamic success due to the changes. An organisation should not plan to stay where it is forever, but try to improve regularly.

Planning for the future requires much foresight. The future is not guaranteed to anyone, but planning for it helps us to grow. Always try to be conservative when planning for the future. Stick to your plan if most of the factors remain the same. If any factors change, you will need to make the necessary adjustments.

Often, the success of an organisation requires the guidance of a visionary captain. Often, success lies ahead, but not everyone is able to see it. A visionary captain can see far beyond that of other members of the organisation.

You should connect with the public. Many people may be depending on you. Marketing is an area that some organisations do not place much emphasis on, but that should change. Advertising what you have will enable your organisation to attract more customers, generate more revenue, and stay afloat. When people are aware of the quality products you offer, they may be willing to leave where they are and purchase what you have to offer. You should make the public familiar with what you have.

Here is the link to the book cover:
Book Cover

For more information about Geary Reid and his books:

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