Your next 5 moves to stay resilient for decades

—Thursday, Dec 8th 2022 — 

Economic outlook 2023: cause for caution, not alarm: The next 5 moves

Recovery from the short but potentially deep 2023 recession is proving to be more difficult than anticipated. Today the question has shifted from “pandemic" to "are we in a recession."

While the economic outlook has darkened the last few quarters, we can still avoid slipping into negative growth. 2023 will most likely be characterized by a great deal of uncertainty. A significant rise in interest rates is necessary to counteract inflation and this will 100% cause a slowdown.

For cdrg+RedTeam it has always been priority #1 to cast a vision/plan long term to remain resilient. You see, when you cast a vision/plan long term… our short term problems suddenly become small manageable bumps in the road. 

I can say with conviction that even with the looming clouds ahead the future looks bright for cdrg+RedTeam because we acted on our long term plan of 2010, 2015, 2020 and we are already working on 2025, 2030 and 2035 to ensure future sustainability.

The importance of casting a vision/plan long term is essential to stay relevant\resilient for every long standing successful company.  

Easier said than done but I can guarantee with 80% certainty that several businesses will falter in the next 12 to 18 months because they failed miserably at thinking 5 moves ahead 5 to 10 years ago.  As you are reading this in real time several businesses have no emergency fund, are accumulating additional debts, are behind on paying suppliers and are going to be overwhelmed by rising interest rates.

Luckily for us we have all our bases covered and are well positioned to face these strong headwinds.

So how did we separate ourselves from our peers?  

We doubled down, stayed focused and took calculated risks.  It might be hard to believe but opportunities are just around the corner… 12 to 18 months from now is just a stone's throw away.

Because of our long standing partnership combined with our team’s consistent efforts over the last decade we have successfully executed on the plan of 2015, 2020 and created an emergency fund growing every year, have zero debt and will NOT be affected negatively by the rise in interest rates. 

In addition, we are currently in a favored position, having the flexibility of capital allocation towards those diamond in the ruff passion projects.

Long term 2025 Vision\Plan

The only way to continue leveling up is if we start working on the next long term vision\plan 1,2,3  years out.  In order to succeed, independent disaster restoration businesses just like ours must be unrelenting in their pursuit of profitability.  Each new vision\plan is a level up from the previous.  

Today when I look back I see all of these plans, the ones that have yielded the most success were the ones where we had a roadmap and a clear plan. We had done our homework and checked all the boxes and all that needed to be done was take decisive ACTION. 

Resting on our laurels and only focusing on total volume can stump sustainable profit margins. Failing to objectively evaluate the constitution of your next 5 moves can actually give you tunnel vision and make you miss the big picture of less is more.  

In retrospect I cannot stress enough the importance of past vendor program analysis. Going through your previous masterpieces and duds, understanding their impact, and scrutinizing each one of them can really give you insight and altogether increase your chances of future partnership success.

Ironically, my mentor Richard Labbe taught me in my late 20’s that the companies that are most successful are usually the one’s thinking the least about the bottom line or making profits.  Their minds are too caught up in the work they’re doing and going to do in 5, 10, 15 years out.

That’s how legacy’s are designed & built. 

#TEAM

SsF