Johannesburg, 02 Sep 2009
A positive outlook remains the best way forward in the current economy, says Ivan Epstein, CEO of Softline. Emerging economies, like South Africa, hold valuable prospects, and those who stay on top of these and embrace them will find the path ahead less daunting to their bottom line than they predicted.
The world has become increasingly small, and real-time information has enabled gloomy business forecasts to quickly seep into the boardroom. Many companies tend to panic in an economic downturn, pushing cost-cutting straight to the top of the agenda in order to manage their operations with extreme vigilance.
“It is easy for pessimism and negativity to find their way into business today, and easier still to believe the only way to wait out the storm is to bolt down the hatches. Being cost conscious is always wise, but remember that tough times call for innovative thinkers; go-getters who are prepared to ferret out good opportunities and exploit these,” Epstein says.
He adds that vendors like Softline's parent company, Sage Group, have already identified emerging markets as a source of future opportunity, and are reaping the rewards. According to Gartner, such forward-thinkers have even more to look forward to as IT spending will represent 8.5% of the gross domestic product in emerging markets by 2011, compared with 4.3% in mature markets.
“Softline has reaped the benefit of steady growth in the SME sector and we are hopeful this will continue as a larger part of the population become part of our economic expansion. It is crucial that businesses learn to work closely with our emerging markets, and to grab hold of the diverse potential these represent,” Epstein says.
He adds that business efficiency continues to be an important consideration in a difficult economic climate, but it is often pushed aside, as cost cutting needs to take priority. Generating income is the fundamental requirement of any business, and in order to stay ahead of the game, you need your sales and marketing activities to remain strong, consistent and productive.
“Savvy managers know that their sales and marketing divisions are reliant on information and communication and, as such, will continue to benefit from the effective use of systems. I understand that times are indeed tougher. However, the reality is that they could get a lot tougher if you're missing opportunities and losing staff.”
Technology allows businesses of all sizes to operate efficiently and assist in driving revenue growth. And while it may not seem like anything needs fixing, businesses should be very mindful of totally stifling their requirements. It shouldn't just be all about cutting costs during an economic downswing, but more about controlling costs, Epstein concludes.
Share