Tuesday, 11 June 2013

Seeking the philosopher’s stone.


 

When trying to boost the bottom line, there are 2 obvious courses of action; reduce operating costs and increase revenue. If you’re the FD you’ll probably aim for both.

 

The decision by the new CEO of Anglo American (one of the world's largest diversified mining and natural resource groups), to sell the company’s $30 million corporate jet is not merely showboating but an example of the new sense of realism in the corporate sector.

 

There is a new wave of executives hired in recent months to slash spending and sell assets after years of profligacy at the world’s top companies.

 

As to generating revenue, the Sales Director only has one shot in his/her armoury namely increase sales. Sales targets can always be raised but a sense of commercial realism also needs to be applied.

 

If you are marketing a totally unique product or service the task is easier but for the most part there are many companies offering a similar range of products in a broadly similar price range.

 

As such for most companies it is about getting back to the basics – ensuring orders are processed efficiently and in a timely fashion. Following up on customer satisfaction, in short providing what in old fashioned terms was called “service”.

 

No comments:

Post a Comment