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A month ago I told you that we could see a possible double dip into a second recession. Since July 21 the stock market has tanked. All stock indexes have suffered double digit losses. GDP growth is barely 1 percent. On August 1 I wrote that,
“Bank of America is under severe pressure and will probably be next” (to lay off more people)
Today, BofA announced a 3,500 employee layoff (with more likely to come this year). The bank stock has fallen from $16 in January to about $6.95 today.
In Europe, The strongest economy is Germany and it grew only 0.1 percent in the second quarter. Europe is collapsing. There are now 5 countries in deep trouble. They are referred to as the PIIGS: Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain.
No one likes to hear bad news. But it is now so bad that we can no longer ignore it.
Titanic Deck Chairs
Irrelevant initiatives such as stacking the chairs as the Titanic sank are not going to save your company. You have to risk a total transformation. The market is telling everyone that we are off the mark. The laws of economics don’t lie. Why do you think that gold is up 50 percent in the past twelve months while the DJIA is up only 5 percent and fading fast?
Our leaders in D.C. are not dealing with the economic imperatives. Customers are on the sidelines because they are out of work or fearful of what is coming. Banks are starting to charge you for saving money because they can’t or won’t make loans. Deposits are a liability for a bank. Loans are assets. Absent loan assets the banks have to turn deposits into an asset. Now, saving money is a losing proposition. Is this an insane economy or what? How many bad signs do you have to see before you kick off your shoes and take the plunge? The boat is sinking folks!
The Warning Siren
On October 2 I outlined the principles and the process for differentiating and turning your company around while others continue to stack chairs. Then, I followed that up with two more detailed processes to operationalize your transformation. This is working for other companies. In one case we turned a 35,000 person company 180 degrees in six months using this methodology, which in 2008 I titled Predictive Management; HCM: 21.
Now there are two things I need to share with you:
- The bad news is going to get worse. If you don’t believe me show me some good trends. Wishful thinking and belief that America always comes out on top won’t do it. Ask you grandparents how long they suffered through the Great Recession. It wasn’t six months. I was TEN YEARS! I remember my parents crying when my dad lost his job. That has already happened to a couple million people in the last 3 years and layoffs are not finished. Do you remember how Viet Nam and The Great Society of the 60s and 70s led to stagflation; interest rates of 20 percent? If you are too young to remember, ask your parents and they will tell you how it affected your family. Putting it bluntly: Here we go again. Give up wishful thinking. Today there is no good news life preservers to hang onto.
- Still there is hope, but it is not going to be easy. You can’t put on a belt, go to bed and wake up the next morning with great abs. No magic bullets. No Superman. There is only you and only strong, relevant leadership that can avert a life you may have chosen to forget but don’t want your children to experience.
Get Up and Get Going
Rally your C-level and commit to transforming your company. Differentiate yourselves from the competition before it is too late. It can be done. The solution is here. Others are doing it and some of them are your competitors. You not only can do it. You must do it or leave your children a no growth, huge debt economy.
Call now 408 223 7750 and let’s talk about how you can do what I am helping other companies do.
Dr. Jac
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Dr. Jac Blog 
