Posts Tagged ‘recession’

Lessons Learned From a Layoff

Thursday, February 26th, 2009

Dear Boss,

I can’t express the depths of my gratitude for laying my husband off.  Really.  I know, you’re thinking this letter must be laced with Anthrax.  Relax.  I’d like to buy you a beer.

Because we were forced by you to cut back and pinch pennies, we have learned what’s really important.  Gone are the movie channels and the bottled water.  We bid adieu to the housekeeper, the dry-cleaner who delivers and hot lunches at school.  And surprisingly, we don’t miss them a bit.

Christmas was quaint, but the kids said they didn’t notice.  The oldest boy used his winnings from a $1 Superbowl bet to buy his own shoes.  Middle guy cooked dinner when I was too busy at my new job. Even the baby offered up her Valentine’s cash from grandma for the family ante.

You may feel guilty about the layoff, but we are grateful.  Eating hamburger for six months has helped us to savor the occasional filet.  The house is a mess, but it’s a happy home.  Our marriage is stronger than ever, because teamwork and support are no longer optional.  Our often over-indulged brood has learned how the other half lives, and they’ve discovered it’s not half bad.

Boss, thanks for nothing.  We used to believe that anything was better than nothing.  Now we know it also works the other way around.

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Posted in Business Etiquette, Economy | No Comments »

Retrain. Rethink. Retool.

Friday, January 30th, 2009


Not to make light of the 151,352 jobs that have been lost in January 2009 alone, but I just found out that people actually work at Home Depot.

This doesn’t pertain the the paint guy, who’s stuck behind the counter mixing pigment all day and couldn’t possibly know the aisle for the hose filter washer I needed last week. But try to get help with cement grout filler or a flush assembly for a commode, and you might see tumbleweeds blowing across the aisle.

I’m not exactly sure why Home Depot had to lay off workers who I’ve never been able to find anyways. After all, they aren’t the “Do it Yourself Store.” That’s where I’d go if I thought I was capable. I go to Home Depot because they swear “You Can Do It. We Can Help.” Well, how are they going to help me now when 7,000 more employees go missing?

“We see the announcements as largely positive,” analyst David Schick said. Really? Because if I couldn’t find anyone to tell me the difference between incandescent, CFL and LED lightbulbs before, now I’m really going to be in the dark.

I can’t help but wonder if Home Depot lost so much money because of poor sales or poor service–or both.

There’s a lesson to be learned here. If you, too, have had to lay employees off, now is the time not only to rejuvinate your remaining staff, but to look closely at what part customer service–or lack of it–played in any losses you may have had.

Quantity? Out. Quality? In. As hard as it is on a personal level, “cleaning house” may be exactly what your business needs to suceed in the future. It’s time to Retrain, Re-think and Retool. Invest your time in employees who truly care about your company’s success and future–as well as their own.  The end result will be a more secure, motivated staff who can best represent your vision, standards and goals. Read: improved sales and more repeat customers.

Home Depot, are you listening?

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Recession? What Recession?

Saturday, December 27th, 2008

gamestop

What’s missing from this photo? About seventy-five squabbling siblings, several (though not enough) overwhelmed staffers, a couple dozen frazzled parents (including me), and the line leading out the door past Starbucks.  Because, when it comes to the economic “downturn,” the only thing down at GameStop stores I have visited recently is their inventory.

Halfway between the Christmas Eve peas and mashed potatoes, I recalled “THE GAME”.  It’s capitalized to express its utter necessity to my pre-teen son. Although the mall lot allowed a bevy of prime spaces, GameStop was packed like a can of sardines even as Santa made his way through the eastern seaboard (updates courtesy of NORAD). I waited patiently for 30 minutes to pay while being thrashed by anxious customers in my same predicament.  I can’t imagine there was anything left to buy by the time I straggled out, bruised but not broken. I had THE GAME in hand. 

Alas, the relatives dished out GameStop gift cards galore–and we found out on Friday morning that apparently, the rest of the world’s kin did the same.  And that ALL of them planned to use the cards now.  At the same location.  At the same time.   On the same games.  Or so it seemed.  After failing to find everything at the nearest store–which was so busy we had to wait 20 minutes in line just to be let inside–it was off to another mall.  Me, the three kids, two neighbors and somebody’s cousin from Oklahama.  And ALL of them were loaded with GameStop gift cards.

I dutifully took my place in line while my charges jostled with the 50 or so other card-carrying kids. I was impressed by the “Buy Two Used Games, Get One Free” sale.  One mom about to drive to Texas with triplets waited to purchase a stack bigger than a ten-gallon hat.  Trade-ins took twice as long, but they offered good money plus a discount for used games.  They even suggested we buy a used game over new, which saved us $10 and gained us rights to return.  My youngest scored several ”Buy One, Get One” deals, and huge “Guitar Hero” and “Rock Band” boxes flew out the door.  I know because I was hit by them.

GameStop seems to be playing this recession right.  Deep After-Christmas discounts?  Check.  BOGO offers to move excess inventory?  Check.  Agressive marketing, value branding?  Check.   Even the annoyingly long lines create a certain buzz.  Of course, it doesn’t hurt that even when money is tight, many parents are willing to sacrifice to keep the kids happy. While I doubt that GameStop’s fourth quarter will be its best ever, I guarantee their December numbers will be better than most.  And while I don’t own any stock in the company, maybe it’s time to buy some.  As long as I don’t have to wait in line!

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Posted in Marketing, Sales, Technology | No Comments »

Flat is the new up

Thursday, November 20th, 2008

When it comes to revenue, “Flat is the new up.” That’s what I heard tonight at UCLA’s Anderson School of Business from Norm Brodsky and Bo Burlingham, co-authors of the terrific new business book “The Knack.” Where did they hear it? From people at the recent Inc. 500 conference. That matches what we’re hearing from many of our clients as well. It’s hard to grow against the sort of economic headwind we’re all running into right now. But if you can’t grow, it’s a good goal not to recede during the recession. In particular, invest your resources wisely (especially your most precious resource, the one that can never be recovered:  your time), and stay focused on your core business. Better to be flat than flat out of business.

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