When knocked down by virus, stay hit or beat the count?

PART 2 OF 2

Whoever says, “You may knock me down, but you can’t keep me down” must be a boxer and a marathoner rolled into one. The company of our story, the heavyweight in automotive lamps had kept pace with the leaders in the global market for nearly three decades. Now, the virus had effectively delivered a knockout punch. Was it down for good?

On May 19, when the company reopened, the virus was still around and so were clouds of doubts. Will the company wind up? Will the creditors get their money? Was it time to find alternative suppliers and customers?

Up and talking

The first thing the company did was arrange a series of video conferences. Through those, the CEO addressed all stakeholders all over the world. He stuck to facts and presented a roadmap for the next three months, and the next three years. Like in those initial years, there was no attempt at window dressing. At the end of his presentation he was open to questions—all questions. He nominated a senior leader as the one-point contact for all issues.

The virus is still around, but the clouds have disappeared.

One major German company that has been a long-term supplier has a stack of bills yet to be settled by its Indian customer. But after the video conference, they are no longer skeptical and cautious. “They have been our loyal customers for so long. It is an honor to be associated with them. The whole world is down. This is not the time to abandon them. We need to stick together. We are going ahead with them.”

Happy ending ahead?

In the harsh world of business world, endings tend to be too soon or too far. It is the journey that counts. And the company has started out right

So, how did this company managed to beat the referee’s countdown in spite of being knocked down by the pandemic?

The answer is in their past, their strengths before the virus hit. They had impeccable reputation and a constant hunger to get better. They had a global footprint and looked set to expand their empire purely on the strength of their performance.

The virus came out of nowhere and flattened everything. None was prepared.

The company did not get up and lazily point to their past glories. They faced the world squarely and opened themselves up to an inspection as they always used to do.

They communicated. They communicated the truth. They communicated confidence. They communicated positive intent. It was a solid communication rooted in their strong foundation.

At a time when the world is full of questions, it was as reassuring an answer as any. Their credibility was never in question—then and now.

Will they return to their glory days? Will they once again light up the roads of the world?

It would be a big surprise if they don’t.