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There's a quicker method of identifying "survival mode": just ask your accounting/finance officer about your cash flow for the last quarter and the projection

by ak39 13y ago

There's a quicker method of identifying "survival mode": just ask your accounting/finance officer about your cash flow for the last quarter and the projection for the next. If your company isn't able to cover its burn rate and keep some cash for these two things: 1. Setting up a growth plan (more revenue), or 2. Continuing pivoting until you find something that allows you to do 1 ... ... you're in survival mode. In survival mode, the only move is to lower your metabolic rate or burn rate. Much like a body would shut down non-critical functions just to "survive" so too will the company need to eliminate non-critical expenses. All this simply to buy more time for a eureka moment that will answer your growth question. Tough as hell.

downer75 13y ago
That's not quite a silver bullet definition for all scenarios. Having worked for large organizations, where "money is no object", the reality of your scenario becomes distorted by the fact that you have to pander to the almighty overlords who control the purse strings. Suddenly everything becomes purely political, and success solely relies on entertaining the favor of powerful people (powerful individuals, with respect to the scope of the organization, and their capacity for making broad, sweeping decisions). In very big organizations, there might be three or four degrees of separation, between you and your actual masters, the ones that your direct boss is beholden to. Your boss might meet directly with these VEH-HEH-HERRRY important people maybe less than twice a year, but have direct orders handed down from them by their heralds on a weekly basis. Such orders might come in the form of: In addition to your usual work load, make X work by next quarter with with Y people; We understand that you already have Y people, but your job now depends on making X work. Do not fail us. I had a boss come back from a very short meeting like that, ashen and distraught. She left early for the day, and the next few months were a living hell for all of us. We did get X done successfully, and on time, but afterward I quickly drafted my resume, and took a hike. With jobs at large companies and other forms of organizations and institutions, you might be completely disconnected from the cash flow situation. The reality may be that the organization, by most measures is actually nearly indestructible, and has existed since before you were born and is sure to exist long after you die, but as with any form of collective human effort, there is still a bottom line somewhere in the mix, and you might not have obvious clues as to how it expresses itself, other than the amount of stress your involvement inflicts upon you.
rexreed 13y ago
I think this article is pointing to Survival Mode as a state of mind more so than just an accounting reality. Some companies exist in Survival Mode far longer than their accounting might indicate.

by ak39 13y ago

downer75 13y ago

That's not quite a silver bullet definition for all scenarios. Having worked for large organizations, where "money is no object", the reality of your scenario becomes distorted by the fact that you have to pander to the almighty overlords who control the purse strings. Suddenly everything becomes purely political, and success solely relies on entertaining the favor of powerful people (powerful individuals, with respect to the scope of the organization, and their capacity for making broad, sweeping decisions). In very big organizations, there might be three or four degrees of separation, between you and your actual masters, the ones that your direct boss is beholden to. Your boss might meet directly with these VEH-HEH-HERRRY important people maybe less than twice a year, but have direct orders handed down from them by their heralds on a weekly basis. Such orders might come in the form of: In addition to your usual work load, make X work by next quarter with with Y people; We understand that you already have Y people, but your job now depends on making X work. Do not fail us. I had a boss come back from a very short meeting like that, ashen and distraught. She left early for the day, and the next few months were a living hell for all of us. We did get X done successfully, and on time, but afterward I quickly drafted my resume, and took a hike. With jobs at large companies and other forms of organizations and institutions, you might be completely disconnected from the cash flow situation. The reality may be that the organization, by most measures is actually nearly indestructible, and has existed since before you were born and is sure to exist long after you die, but as with any form of collective human effort, there is still a bottom line somewhere in the mix, and you might not have obvious clues as to how it expresses itself, other than the amount of stress your involvement inflicts upon you.

rexreed 13y ago

I think this article is pointing to Survival Mode as a state of mind more so than just an accounting reality. Some companies exist in Survival Mode far longer than their accounting might indicate.