Using Crisis as a Catalyst

We are all aware of the trying times that we are in right now and the toll that it is taking on us. I say we or us, because each and every one of us globally, are being affected by the Novel Coronavirus in some particular way. There’s so much noise that can distract us from seeing clearly and distort our judgement in making good business decisions. Our day-to-day may never look the same again… but that may not be such a bad thing. 

It’s obviously hard to make the best decisions for your organization or department as it is. How will it affect my people, my operation, perception of my leadership? These, among many other things run through a leader’s mind when making decisions in good or bad times. 

Bottom line: Making Decisions = Tough. 

Obviously, business tools can serve to be very important to use during this time. Tools that are used in these times of crisis to make business decisions will define an operation on the other side of the crisis; or maybe, it will open eyes to use tools where they haven’t before. Whether to pivot, launch a new product/idea, or hunker down and ride out the storm, tools and data have to be used to support your actions or decisions for the betterment of the operation. 

Whether you work in upper Management, Quality, Safety, Production, or anything else, you have seen tools used on the floor and in offices to react to a crisis. These may include spreadsheets, Traceability systems, SPC charts, Quality Management Systems, or others that you most likely already use in some capacity. This allows you to look into what has been happening and adjust your strategy to the crisis you may be in. But what if, instead of these systems serving as a reactive solution, they served you as a proactive solution? 

What I mean by this is: instead of being in a crisis and rushing to find new ways to cut costs, reduce downtime, increase yield, or boost profitability and many others, you did that beforehand? In that sense, preparing you to become more agile when a crisis like COVID-19 strikes. Making the bad times seem okay and the good times seem even better. 

That all starts with what you look at and how you look at it. There are 3 key elements to utilizing the right information for those critical business decisions; it is a sequential process that starts with data collection and reporting, leading to the end result of being able to analyze performance results to make more informed/better business decisions. It can be broken down into these simpler steps as: 

  1. Collect
    • Identify data points and KPI’s that will help boost your operation and set up an efficient system around collecting that information. 
  2. Inform
    • Sift and Disperse information that matters most to the users and departments receiving it; only delivering the most important data to the right people. 
  3. Analyze
    • Bring it all together in an inclusive and understanding way to identify new opportunities for your operation. 

The steps above will help you become more prepared for the next crisis and help your operation perform better for the long term/ work toward achieving operational excellence. Set yourself and more importantly, your team up for more success using these steps for decision-making.

It doesn’t make a lot of sense to wait until the next crisis to act on something. Be prepared, be agile, and be ready for the next “Coronavirus” so that you can stay profitable, retain your team, and help your business thrive in any economic situation.

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