Right now you are looking at your business and trying to figure out how to keep it going. What can you do to manage the value it can still have when things turn back around?
You may also be looking at what help you can get in that effort. What value can you get from someone who has experience in getting value, reducing cost, and improving profit?
This is a dilemma. It is one that you need to take seriously.
You essentially have three choices.
You can hire the new kid on the block because they have the lowest price. I think it is easy to see that lowest price isn’t the best choice if the people you are working with don’t have experience in delivering value.
You can pay the big company; the old name in the field. You’ll get the history of those firms and a team of people to help. The Partner or other senior person to do the contract, along with some new associates, sometimes still learning their craft, who take the notes and write the PowerPoint slides. You will probably also get a big report. Maybe even a spreadsheet or six. Ultimately, you are likely to have your problem sorted out…in the end…with lots of hours and people and an invoice to match.
There is another choice. Many smaller businesses have real experience that can be applied quickly and flexibly. These smaller businesses are often staffed with professionals of 10, 20 or more years experience. The difference is simply that they wanted to do things differently to the big guys.
If you are looking for a solution to a problem then you might find that smaller businesses provide excellent value. They are often run by passionate professionals who decided they wanted to be flexible, innovative, and provide more personal service. The person you speak with up front is often the same person who leads the team to work with you to solve your issues. Or maybe they simply do it themselves.
There are many great businesses out there, big and small. In the current environment of cash flow constraint it is sensible to consider just what you see as value. The dilemma is whether you are more comfortable spending more to hire a big name who does things their way, or engaging with a less expensive smaller yet experienced company who can be flexible to deliver the way you need it.
