Looking up in a down economy

I have been writing about and providing tips on what companies could do to innovate in a down economy even before the market crashed.  Now that economists are predicting that the end of the recession is in sight and that the U.S. manufacturing orders are rising, it’s time to focus on what companies should do to thrive in a rebounding economy.  

Survival of the fittest
Over the last 12 months, companies and people have been put to the test. The recession has hit the manufacturing industry hard, among others. Yet, best-in-class companies have survived despite budget cuts and reduction of innovation workers.  In fact, these companies have become leaner and learned to do more with less as well as embraced smart technology to sustain the innovation process. In short, the best companies have right-sized themselves, focused their business agendas and retained their best and experienced people to keep innovation moving forward.  These are the people who have been chartered to accomplish the most innovative deliverables in half the time, and help their respective companies attain global market leadership positions – from alternative energy to life sciences.

Innovation mandate
Now that the fittest companies have survived and new leaders emerged, here are some tips on what CEOs should do as the economy stabilizes and emerges from the recession:

• CEOs must continue to drive the innovation agenda.  Reward employees for their leadership and creativity that has impacted the bottom-line.  
• CEOs should take inventory of its operating paradigm, get new perspective on what’s viable and adapt quickly to today’s changing environment.
• Capture and remember the lessons learned from this recession and continue to run lean, innovation-focused organizations.
• Empower innovators with collaboration and knowledge-enabled platforms to boost the innovation economy.

As I tell my employees, every cloud has a silver lining. Even though we have been surrounded by negative news, the recession has made us stronger, smarter and street savvy. Best-in-class companies have retained people with attitude and aptitude to drive innovation. They should be nurtured, given the right innovation platforms and environment. And together, we as a “global nation” can look up in a down economy and prepare to enter a decade of innovation excellence.