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Prepare Your Road to Recovery
Los Angeles, CA
Monday, November 09, 2009
Gene Siciliano is Your CFO for Rent
What should business owners be doing right now to prepare to survive the economic recovery? Did I say "survive the recovery"? That's right, read on.
Gene Siciliano, a Los Angeles based Financial Management consultant recently discussed this counterintuitive topic. "Henry Ford once said: 'One who stops advertising to save money would stop a clock to save time.' The message here is about staying focused on maintaining your company's strength and competitive edge, not always top of mind when fear sets in."
Siciliano goes on to discuss a study done more than a decade ago about business bankruptcies and the economy. "This study revealed that more businesses failed after a recession has bottomed out than during the actual decline. My experience tells me that is true." But why?
Here's what Siciliano sees: "When the economy is tanking, every company is conserving cash because they don't know how long it will last or how bad it will be. Solid companies and weak companies look alike to the casual observer (witness the recent collapse of the stock price of companies like GE and Caterpillar). However when the collapse has run its course and the economy begins to recover, the strong companies flex their economic muscles, begin using their cash reserves, and assert themselves at the expense of the weaker companies that have no cash reserves with which to compete." Siciliano's point, "That's when you can tell the difference between strong companies and weak companies - by how they act coming out of a downturn. And one of the primary ways strong companies show their strength is by projecting that strength into the market. Focus on new products, new marketing initiatives, new services, and renewed visibility." If that's not your focus today, Siciliano suggests you take a second look before the guy down the street does it first.
Gene Siciliano, CMC, CPA, is an author, speaker and financial consultant who works with CEOs and managers to achieve greater financial success in a dramatically changing economy. As "Your CFO For Rent" and president of Western Management Associates, Siciliano has spent more than 20 years helping his clients build financial strength and shareholder value through applied knowledge and process improvement. His book, "Finance for Non-Financial Managers," (McGraw-Hill, 2003) is available in bookstores and online. More information and free articles are available at www.GeneSiciliano.com.
Gene Siciliano, a Los Angeles based Financial Management consultant recently discussed this counterintuitive topic. "Henry Ford once said: 'One who stops advertising to save money would stop a clock to save time.' The message here is about staying focused on maintaining your company's strength and competitive edge, not always top of mind when fear sets in."
Siciliano goes on to discuss a study done more than a decade ago about business bankruptcies and the economy. "This study revealed that more businesses failed after a recession has bottomed out than during the actual decline. My experience tells me that is true." But why?
Here's what Siciliano sees: "When the economy is tanking, every company is conserving cash because they don't know how long it will last or how bad it will be. Solid companies and weak companies look alike to the casual observer (witness the recent collapse of the stock price of companies like GE and Caterpillar). However when the collapse has run its course and the economy begins to recover, the strong companies flex their economic muscles, begin using their cash reserves, and assert themselves at the expense of the weaker companies that have no cash reserves with which to compete." Siciliano's point, "That's when you can tell the difference between strong companies and weak companies - by how they act coming out of a downturn. And one of the primary ways strong companies show their strength is by projecting that strength into the market. Focus on new products, new marketing initiatives, new services, and renewed visibility." If that's not your focus today, Siciliano suggests you take a second look before the guy down the street does it first.
Gene Siciliano, CMC, CPA, is an author, speaker and financial consultant who works with CEOs and managers to achieve greater financial success in a dramatically changing economy. As "Your CFO For Rent" and president of Western Management Associates, Siciliano has spent more than 20 years helping his clients build financial strength and shareholder value through applied knowledge and process improvement. His book, "Finance for Non-Financial Managers," (McGraw-Hill, 2003) is available in bookstores and online. More information and free articles are available at www.GeneSiciliano.com.
Mary Baldwin DeHaven
Public Relations Director
Western Management Associates
Los Angeles, CA
310-645-1091
First Url: CFO for Rent
Second Url: Gene Siciliano
