A company is just like a country but run on a smaller scale.
Being small does not mean incompetence or ineptitide. England was
only a small island state but it controlled the world, an empire in
which 'the sun never sets'.
Whom amongst our local companies has that courage and determination
as England in the field of commerce?
A time of crisis is often the best time to seperate men from the
boys. This crisis is a crisis of confidence, not a lack of
fundamentals - Earth's resources.
Many companies and staff are living in fear and have no
confidence even in their own company's survivability. Morale is
low. Just like any military strategist will tell you, soldiers who
have no morale is doom to fail in any enterprise. They will also
infect the rest of the other soldiers with their fears. Misery
loves company.
Thus, if a company wishes to survive, they must first remove
those who have no confidence, rather than an across the board
retrenchment excercise. Across the board will only remove talents
or bravehearts within the company who are prepared to slug it
out.
Weed out the low morale, and properly motivate the remaining
troopers, espacially the crucial advertising, marketing and sales
force, with the govt's fund injections, the rout may be stemmed,
and success may just come.
This is a time of opportunities, not only in the local market, but
in the international market as well. Everyone is timid and afraid,
many companies had fallen.
The field is wide open, an opportunity of a lifetime, but only
for the brave. Our economy is strong, our banks solid, there is no
time to lose.
Instead of retrenching staff, DBS, based on its brand and solid
standing, should be expanding its marketing staff to capture more
depositors around the world and build an even stronger balance
sheet.
Creative tech, instead of retrenching staff, should increase their
sales staff to gain further market share where even China's and
Taiwan's, even american entreprenuers had given up.
Keppel Fels, instead of giving pink slips to engineers, should
retain them and turn them into agressive sales engineers, sent
across the globe to grab as much contracts as possible, even
sub-contracting jobs out if they have too much to construct.
These are only examples of some more well known local companies.
There are many other strong and solid companies around.
It will be a brutual time in this crisis as singaporean
companies battle it out against competitor singaporean companies as
well as international companies.
But this is the opportunity of a lifetime we singaporeans had been
waiting for - to seize worldwide domination as England and
commercial Japan did in the past.
We may lack entreprenuers, but our white and blue collared
workers do not lack determination or fighting spirit under the
umbrella of established companies if properly motivated.
Do remember, every other international company is not as strong or
confident as us in this crisis. Now is the time to attack and bring
home the bacon, not when other nations had gain confidence! Sun Tzi
or Zhuge Liang would be proud of us, if we act now.
Buying is often an impulsive act, even to purchase a ship.
Create the conditions suitable for the buyer, and h
e w i l l b u y.
