5 ways to survive the economic crisis

Admitted, times are hard. Budget cuts, many lose their jobs, panic all around. But this economic crisis could offer some opportunities to survive, and prosper afterwards.

Let me give you some idea's:

1. First of all: don't panic!
Do not immediately throw away vital knowledge, experience and expertise that is hard to hire when the crisis is over. In the past months, many companies announced mass redundancies. When firing lots of employee, the level of knowledge within a company is reduced drastically. It will be hard to hire expertise and regain the same state of knowledge after the crisis has passed.

2. Think of the future, with you playing a major role in it
Now that you have got lots of time to spare, contemplate on what's going to happen after the crisis. Probably, your customers will be confronted with three stages: recovery, adapt to new regulatory, and restart innovation to catch up with the competitors. In each stage, you will probably be able to help them. Think of cost cutting during recovery, make better use of existing tools. Think of ways to improve your customer's adaptability to new regulation and prepare them for innovation during recovery. Think, for example: information workplace, mobility and standardisation. Then, when business is booming again, you'll benefit as well.

3. Remember, many great ideas emerged during crisis
Think of Apple and Microsoft, both ware founded in times of economic crisis. IBM succesfully expanded their laboratories during the great depression. After losing Finland's major export market after the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, Nokia emerged as a world telecommunications leader. Crisis can revitalize your urge to survive.

4. This could be a great time to learn new tricks, contemplate and for synergism
Think of open source (there are a lot of great ideas that are also free!), think of integration (open standards), think of ways to reduce custom made software, think about the practical application of concepts like web 2.0, social networks and collaboration.

Technies, talk to Business Consultants, Business Consultants, talk to technies; now you've got the time, use it! Devise idea's to pull your customers out of this crisis. Think out of the box, inspire each other, create some synergy!

5. Think of temporarily outsource your employees
Let your customers temporarily hire your employees and hire them back after the crisis. In the mean time, you'll provide their training. Your staff budget is minimized, the employees learn exactly what's going on in your customers' company and gain a lot of great ideas to improve your customer's business (think of the 3 stages I mentioned earlier). And your customer, of course, has a great deal. After the crisis, you again hire the employees who have become more valuable for both you and your customer.