Time to plan for effects of U.S. recession, ‘Business Lifeguard’ tells SMEs

“Small and Medium enterprises fill an important niche in our system and right now, they need help”

TORONTO – With the U.S. spinning into a recession, executives at Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) are facing growing anxiety on how best to prepare for the fallout.

According to Norm Nopper, Director, Varanor International, a Management and Training Consulting firm, Canadian companies should put plans in place right now to deal with future economic challenges.

Mr. Nopper has a 25-year track record in providing business strategy.

In the past, he helped save jobs at Honeywell Canada and contributed to keeping Magna factories globally competitive. However, being raised in a family business environment he well understands the day-to-day concerns of SMEs. He describes himself as a ‘Business Lifeguard’ who helps companies move from “barely surviving to thriving.”

According to Mr. Nopper, this is what SMEs should do right now to prepare for an economic slowdown:

* Keep an eye on manager-employee relations. This is the time when teams within the company need to stick together. Solutions lie in the teams. Start asking employees for help because “the answers are not in the corner office or boardroom – they’re on the floor where the work is being done,” Mr. Nopper advised.

* Don’t shy away from tough decisions. Keep the company financially viable, but don’t lay people off as the easy solution. Decrease costs, waste and inefficiencies. Employees will know where the waste is and will provide the solutions you need.

* Look for areas of competitive strength. Have your customers purchased from you based only on price? What is your customer looking for? Increase the value that you provide to the customer.

“Small and Medium enterprises fill an important niche in our system and right now, they need help,” he explained.

In the early 1990s, Honeywell Inc. considered closing its GTA factory and shifting operations to a low-labour cost country. Thanks to initiatives Mr. Nopper put in place, which changed aspects of the manufacturing processes, the factory remained in Canada and he helped save 300 jobs.

Mr. Nopper also guided Tesma, a division of Magna, in its goal to keep factories competitive on a global basis.

“Small and medium sized companies are the backbone of the economy,” he noted. “They play a key role in job creation and productivity growth.”

According to a Statistics Canada December, 2005 report, small enterprises represent 97% of all Canadian businesses. Medium enterprises, between 50 and 499 employees, make up two per cent of the businesses in Canada.