ABOUT THE BOOK
SURVIVE IN BUSINESS
"Businesses that are failing today are failing for the same reasons that caused businesses to fail in the past."
"We can learn from the experiences of those who have failed before, and from those who have successfully restored their businesses to good health."
Survive in Business: How to turn your struggling business around has been written to help you to identify what you need to do to turn the performance and outlook for your business around and to build your understanding of how to make your businesses stronger and more resilient in the future. The book is based on more than 30 years' experience in working with distressed and failing businesses.
Contents
Why do businesses fail?
The characteristics of a failing business
8 Rules for a successful turnaround
Preparing for a turnaround
An overview of the turnaround process
Analysing your current position
Stabilising your business
Turnaround strategies
Your turnaround plan
Managing cashflow
Managing your bank in a crisis
Managing people
Exit strategies
Too late?
Make sure it never happens again
A look inside...
INTROCU
INTRODUCTION
"Businesses that are failing today are failing for the same reasons that caused businesses to fail in the past. We can learn from the experiences of those who have failed before. Equally, there is much to learn from those who have successfully restored their businesses to good health. Some of the most successful businessmen in history have failed in business before they ultimately succeeded. Walt Disney’s first animation company went broke. Henry Ford’s first two car companies failed. Bill Gates’ first business venture failed and a number of Richard Branson’s Virgin spin-offs have also failed. For these people, and many others, business failure has been a character-building experience from which they have learned — and from which they have rebounded.
But let’s be honest here. For the vast majority of business owners and managers whose businesses have failed, the experience has been a debilitating one. The most difficult position a businessperson can find themselves in is when their business is on the brink of collapse. It is a time when managers are faced with having to make some of the most difficult and unpalatable decisions of their lives. Yet, it is a management experience for which no training is provided. Very few managers have any experience in managing these situations.
A business in trouble can damage staff morale, disrupt business operations and destroy business relationships. It can be a period of great stress, often one where managers are confronted with uncertainty, conflict, harassment, and legal threats, while also having to deal with the myriad of complex issues and make critical decisions, both professional and personal. You may find yourself not only fighting to save your business, but also fighting to save your staff, your home, your family and your reputation. The very serious consequences of business failure make it an experience to be avoided.
By far the most important step in managing a business that is in trouble is to......."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Steve Lloyd has spent more than 30 years advising, managing and mentoring businesses that have been going through difficult times. In that time he has seen, and experienced first-hand, the challenges, complexities, and stresses that come with managing a business that is failing and is committed sharing his knowledge and experience to assist business owners and managers in their efforts to turn their troubled businesses around
A WORD FROM STEVE
If your business is struggling, you are not alone. Despite booming asset prices we live in a world that is fraught with uncertainty, inflation, high interest rates, supply chain issues, high debt burdens, economic stresses and geopolitical risk. Thousands of businesses are experiencing financial difficulties and are at risk of failing. The rate of business failures is escalating every month.
I wrote this book to provide an inexpensive guide to help you, and others like you, understand what you need to do to turn the fortunes of your business around. The key to surviving in business is timely and decisive action. Don't wait until it is too late.
Steve Lloyd
