I research and analyze distressed companies for investment purposes. I spend a lot of time looking at restaurant businesses and they tend to have managers that

I research and analyze distressed companies for investment purposes. I spend a lot of time looking at restaurant businesses and they tend to have managers that make the same mistakes over and over. Here's one of my favorite restaurant turnaround stories. This is probably not applicable to your problem, but I like telling it: A couple of years ago Steak N Shake (a fast food hamburger chain) was on the brink of bankruptcy because starting in 2002 or so, the management team decided to take on debt and rapidly expand their store-base. So they entered into markets where there was not enough demand for their products and in order to keep up with interest payments, they began raising the prices on all their menu items. When the recession hit, the sales volume plummeted (for good reason - even though people liked the food, it was costing too much for them). The management team was in a tough spot because if the company could not pay, they would have to file for bankruptcy. So they allowed a guy named Sardar Biglari (30 year old from San Antonio, TX) to take control of the company. He started a hedge fund right after graduating from undergrad (sold an ISP he founded back then near the top of the dot com bubble). Biglari came in and tried to find ways to lower the prices of the menu items in order to increase sales volume and store traffic. He changed a lot of little things which had inconsequential impacts on taste. He opted for a different kind of styrofoam cup which cost less money, switched from grape to sliced tomatoes in salads (salad sales were very low anyway), picked a different (cheaper) type of napkin they gave, and was able to reduce expenses overall by cutting costs in areas where most people didn't notice. Then he lowered prices a little bit and used coupons to increase traffic, while reminding people why they like the brand so much. In addition he reduced management salaries and paired the menu down to items where they felt they had an advantage and sold well (do less, but make it your best). They sold off some of their unprofitable locations and redirected cash flow to completely pay off their debt. The company never had to file for bankruptcy and performs well now.