Change is inevitable in business. But when faced with unexpected bumps in the road, how prepared is your business to navigate through times of uncertainty?
To steer a business through particularly difficult times, it takes a lot more than wishful thinking. With a lot of decisions to make and not a great deal of time to do it, businesses must be analytical, creative and poised to act.
Guiding Business Through Uncertainty
For those businesses not quite sure where to begin, to protect the health of their business, NetSuite has created a useful guide to managing business uncertainty. Helping companies pave their way through this challenging time with visibility, control and agility. Asking businesses to ask themselves:
- What can you see right now?
- What can you control now?
- How can you be agile to change now?
For full details on this guide, download the whitepaper here. We have also shared some of our highlights from the report, highlighting where NetSuite could support business through these difficult times.
3 Steps to Managing Business Through Uncertainty
NetSuite customer have the flexibility to work from anywhere, with critical information right at their fingertips. No guessing or waiting for answers, businesses can have immediate clarity on what their next step should be.
Know Where You Are
Before any business can begin to take on a change, the first step is to take a look at where they are now. Only by having a clear image of where you are can you begin to think about where you want to be.
A flowing stream of capital is always significant, but even more so in times of uncertainty. A fall in demand or break inthe supply chain can have an immediate effect on cash flow. So, it’s essential to understand where your money is coming from and going to, in order to evaluate risk and determine where your business might need a boost. For companies who don’t have direct of up to date visibility into their numbers, they could end up acting too late or not acting at all.
NetSuite’s real-time dashboard provides business with live sales figures and stock reports. With crystal clear visibility into your numbers, your business can make smarter decisions with confidence and ahead of time.
Determine Immediate Priorities
The next step is to determine your businesses priorities. From people and processes to performance, what factors could affect your business from resurfacing during this time of change?
Most businesses run on a 12 month plan. But in times of turmoil, those priorities must shift to a short-term focus, be able to pay staff, cut costs and minimise inefficiencies. How you define priorities will influence decisions going forward. To be able to secure these priorities, you business must first be able to track where the process could be improved.
By streamlining processes onto a single platform and automating manual tasks, business es can save time, gain insights and ultimately support cash flow. NetSuite offers customisable dashboards to suit the needs or preferences of each department. That means each individual can focus on the statistics most relevant to them, while also having the ability to keep an eye on the broader business landscape. Arming their workforce with the ability to both react and retract ahead of a problem.
Make Change
Times of change and uncertainty are challenging, but what’s important to remember is they don’t last forever. The chaos will calm and a new normal will emerge. Those businesses who acted quickly and thought creatively will enter this new this new landscape healthier than ever.
Once you’ve got a handle on the short-term priorities, it’s time to think about what your business can offer once growth returns and the economy stabilises. By tracking your workflow and having up to date insights on hand, you business is poised to focus on what areas of your business you should minimise and what areas you can capitalise on. Switching up products and services can be challenging when working through busy periods. While a slowdown in business may seem daunting, it can be the perfect time to act on those innovative ideas you’ve been talking about for months.
A key benefit of NetSuite is its ability to grow alongside your business. It adapts where necessary providing your business with software suitable to your needs, whether it be you need to add extra users to your subscription or the addition of new ERP modules. Your business remains supported, so that’s one less thing to worry about!
For more information on this full report, download NetSuite’s guide here. Or, as always, if you’re looking for guidance or advice, get in touch with our team.
