Position Yourself for Success in 2003 | Asian American Career Center

ASIAN AMERICAN
CAREER SUCCESS CENTER

Be open to the rare career opportunities presented by uncertain economic times.
by Nickie Harris

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POSITION YOURSELF FOR SUCCESS IN 2003

e work in an economy that has been shocked by 18 months of a geopolitical suspense-thriller just as it was staggering back up from a crash that had flattened the world's Silicon Valleys, Alleys and Corridors. The nervous nellies are chewing their nails down to the nub. What a great opportunity for the rest of us!

     Corporate downsizing isn't pretty, certainly, because it produces a lot of displacement and suffering. But let's not let our sympathy for its victims blind us to the unparalleled opportunity it presents for those who see the big picture. One side of downsizing that isn't talked about much is the mandate it gives management to prune deadwood and upgrade the workforce for better efficiency and productivity.
     Experienced CEOs see a slump as a respite, a reprieve, from the demands of balance-sheet management. Once an economic slump has become official, grizzled executive-suite veterans get a gleam in their eyes as they scheme ways to write off every strategic and management mistake and blame them on economic conditions. When a colossus like AOL-TimeWarner writes down $100 billion in assets -- half of its entire value -- you know management is breathing a huge collective sigh of relief at finally being able to unburden itself of years of bad performances and grievous strategic errors which had been hidden away in accounting tricks.
     So what does all this mean for the little people who don the suits and slouch into the office every day? What should we be doing?
     You want to position yourself as the hero who fought bravely in the Big One so that when the good times come roaring back, as it is about to, your butt will be sore from being kicked upstairs so rapidly.
     Here's what I mean. For most major corporations the workforce reductions have been in the 15-35% range. That's far more downsizing than can actually be blamed on the more modest (3-8%) drop in revenues. In other words, the better part of downsizing reflects workforce restructuring to reflect changing times, as well as the cutting of deadwood to improve efficiency and boost income performance. The cuts drop straight down to the bottom line. Within a year or two, the balance sheets of the slimmed-down companies show spectacular profit jumps. Their stock prices shoot back up and they become once again Wall Street darlings, able easily to raise huge sums to fund a whole new wave of growth. That means massive hiring. That means a junior executive who survived the Big One may find himself being promoted quickly up the corporate ladder as the company rushes to take on an entire generation of new workers.
     So how do you position yourself to become one of the beneficiaries of the next big boom? Follow these guidelines:

While downsizing is in progress, be gung ho in your willingness to take on new responsibilities and more hours. Then work harder than you have ever worked in your life. Always be among the last to leave the office each day. This will position you to fit well into the transitional corporate mantra of "improving workforce efficiency". Don't worry, those wartime conditions never last more than a few months. Once a company has shown a couple quarters of improved profit statements, they get access to funds to start recruiting a wave of new talent. You will soon find yourself less of a grunt and more of an officer.
If the boss asks for volunteers to move over to a new department, give it serious consideration. Often new departments are created as part of a larger corporate restructuring to respond to changing business conditions. Those new departments can become the foundation for whole new areas or divisions that grow faster than the rest of the company. By getting in early, you will be seen as a war hero worthy of riding on the crest of peacetime prosperity.
If you find yourself in a department that has been stagnant and is more of a cost-center than a revenue center, and you aren't one of its stars, look into transferring to one that is seen as a revenue center. In bad times, cost centers like administrative and support departments are more vulnerable to downsizing and are slower to grow after good times return. Improvements in computer automation also likely to take a continuing toll as well on administrative and support functions. On the other hand, sales, customer relations and marketing functions are generally shielded from cuts. And when good times return, they are the first areas to expand.
Keep your eyes open for opportunities in emerging fields or industries. One of the casualties of hard times are outmoded departments or industries. For example, during hard times many companies decide it is more profitable to outsource various production or manufacturing functions to specialized companies. That could result in the outright cutting of entire departments. Once a department or function has been outsourced, it is rarely brought back in house when good times return. On the other side of the coin, companies that emerge during bad times often go on to become the leaders of new growth industries. An example is 802.11 Wi-Fi wireless networking which emerged following the tech crash as an economic solution to the mobile broadband problem. It may well end up realizing much of the promise that was once assigned to other sectors.

Remember, with danger and uncertainty comes opportunity. None of us has the option of passing on the danger and uncertainty, but we all have the option of saying yes to the opportunity! Not Found

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"Experienced CEOs see a slump as a respite, a reprieve, from the demands of balance-sheet management."