“Crisis? What Crisis?” A Supertramp-Inspired Guide To Leadership Wisdom

I’m a big Supertramp fan!

I especially like their 1975 “Crisis? What Crisis?” It didn’t perform as well as the previous album, “Crime of the Century.” They rushed the record, and the band was lucky to have many older, unreleased songs to use.

Yet, I love how “raw” it feels compared to many of their other productions. It prefigures what they would later give birth to, culminating with their planetary hit album “Breakfast in America” in 1979.

I often think of “Crisis? What Crisis?” when the time comes to building resilience and adaptability at work.

I’ve seen leaders ignore looming troubles, pretending all was fine. It never ended well. They often had to take drastic tactical measures, resulting in cost cuts and job losses, but it was too late.

I’ve been in those shoes as a general manager and made many mistakes. Eventually, I’ve learned how to anticipate and even prevent crises on the horizon. Every situation is unique, but let me share a few universal lessons every leader should consider:

1 – Optimize your product portfolio. 

Leaders should rationalize their product portfolio continuously, eliminating low-profit, high-inventory items. In other words, they can help rising product stars blossom and adapt to evolving trends and technology disruptions.

When a crisis looms, we’ve all been tempted to play it safe and tactical on new product developments and being too liberal, keeping products long in the tooth. We killed both our growth engine and innovation. Instead, product teams must keep inventing, experimenting, and accepting the unavoidable failures. 

2 – Cash is King. Focus on what’s generating it

As a general manager, I’ve paid much attention to my P&L (Profit and Loss). It’s essential indeed. Especially when you master which products and channels will bring optimal profit. But cash is king, and in addition to P&L, you need to deeply understand your balance sheet to identify ways to boost future cash flow. So study your accounts payable and receivable and act on these.

3 – Rethink your costs instead of cutting them

Obsessing over budget cuts can be a recipe for disaster during crises. Instead, I’ve learned to focus on variable costs and explore alternatives to layoffs, such as hiring freezes or redistributing work. Convert fixed costs into variable ones. Increasing flexibility wherever possible can save your business when times get tough.

4 – Choose your distribution channels wisely

Tough times are the perfect opportunity to examine where and how you sell your products or services. It can be challenging, especially when relationships go a long way. But walking away from low-profit channels and focusing on those with higher margins and favorable terms makes a difference. 

It worked even better when we implemented strategic pricing with proper segmentation to resist pricing wars. So, articulate a clear channel landscape and prioritize high-velocity, high-profit channels.