Recession Opportunity

Opportunities come in two styles. There are growth opportunities and there are recession opportunities. The latter are frequently overlooked or mischaracterized as cost-cutting measures only. Managing well in a down economy takes more than squeezing costs. Top leaders are always looking for opportunity and that requires detailed information available early enough to make a difference.

At any company the question in a down economy is how to approach customers whose profits are declining and get a bigger share of their business.

FedEx

FedEx has grown its revenue base despite lean economic times. Considering the long lead times FedEx needs to establish distribution facilities, and buy planes and trucks , their stability in hard times is doubly impressive.

FedEx CIO Rob Carter s advice ”don t fly blind. It is more critical than ever in a changing economy to see where the company is going. If there s less package traffic through Kuala Lumpur, then smaller planes need to be assigned to that location. If there s less package traffic from and to Kansas, then reshape the network to move more packages through Kansas, making use of the state s facilities.

How does FedEx know what the right decisions are? FedEx has continued to invest in its decision support environment to ensure that its information superhub provides the most value possible.

At FedEx, information is the secret to continued success through ups and downs in the market.