Corporate leaders recognise they have to be flexible but many can’t make it happen

Further to a previous post of mine on the success a client of mine is having despite the recession, I am also pleased to find a highly respected journal – The Economist – publishing an article that again reinforces my view that the recession will, in the long term, prove to be good news for most nimble small and medium enterprises.

The article, intended to guide large corporate chief executives, does at the same time clearly show how much of a challenge they face.  In summary, their survey showed that whilst almost all executives recognised the need for their organisation to react quickly and effectively in today’s market, in practice many found it difficult to get that to happen.

I include a few quotes below. I suspect anyone now working in an SME that has worked in or with a large corporate will recognise the obstacles listed at the end!  Read the full article “how business can survive and thrive in turbulent times” by clicking the link below.

• 88% of global executives surveyed believe that organisational agility is critical for global business success.
• 27% of respondents say that their organisation is at a competitive disadvantage because it is not agile enough to anticipate fundamental marketplace shifts.
• 34% say they have failed to deliver the desired benefits.

“The main obstacles to progress are slow decision-making, conflicting departmental goals and priorities, risk-averse cultures and silo-based information.”

Written by Bob Bradley, founder of MD2MD.