Pandemic Positives

Contributing Author: Larry Boik

Beyond stylish masks and video call creative clothing options, there are silver linings in this global pandemic cloud.  As a small business leader, with the benefit of time and some reflection, there are tidbits to consider for the future.

Risk Assessment – Holistic view

Nobody liked Sarbanes-Oxley or COVID, but when was the last time your business did a complete risk assessment?  Beyond reviewing insurance types and coverage, what business contingencies are you planning to mitigate?

• Major customer loss/decline
  • Evaluate the long-term strength of your key clients regularly as well as your relationship with them.
  • What are they considering post-pandemic?
• Key employee retention and assessing the team
  • Who are the critical employees and what is the company’s invested relationship with them?
  • Have we assessed the total team? Time to harvest and cull the crop is now.
• Key supplier loss or disruption to critical supply-chain needs
  • Similar relationship assessment as with your customers. Are they okay and are they well-positioned within their competitive marketplace?

Growth Opportunities – New markets and bottoming-out of old ones

As the pandemic gets more in the rearview mirror, there will be surviving market ramp-ups and new business opportunities that developed during the crisis.  At a minimum, there will be new ways of approaching customers and different avenues for product or service development.

• Been through it and got the T-Shirt. Can we market any newfound strength we learned together?
• What other offerings should we be investing in now for the “new normal”?
• We likely cannot get any worse than 2020, so are we preparing for the uptick and re-setting our expectations in our planning efforts?

Vaccines are on the horizon and there are glimmers of light at this tunnel’s end.  Start working now to speed up as you emerge into the sunlight!

Larry Boik

CFO Simplified

Larry is an experienced Finance Executive, working primarily in manufacturing and distribution companies with between $200M and $1.5B in revenue. He has significant merger and acquisition experience coupled with business integration leadership.

His skills in international management, including commercial, operations, human resources and information technology make him a true asset to his clients. After recently adding small business ownership to his resume, he now has first-hand experience in a retail environment building a strong customer following and developing a strong team.

A Chicago native, he now lives in Naperville with his wife, and he has three adult children. On the rare occasion he finds free time, you can find him playing bass guitar or singing in a local cover band.