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February 2009
Keep calm and carry on!
When all around you are losing their heads, it’s probably a recession. Interregna finds solace in the Great British Ability To Soldier On, and learns that for many managers, it really is ‘business as usual’...
 “Keep Calm and Carry On”. This legendary slogan was created on the cusp of World War II, (although it was never actually released), in order to stiffen the resolve of the great British public in the face of adversity. Evolution had bred into us an unusually stiff upper lip, a grit and determination to be proud of.
Seventy years on, and it’s time to dust down our Churchillian spirit (not that you’d be allowed to smoke a cigar any more). Depending on your political slant, either Gordon Brown, George Bush, Margaret Thatcher or Robert Peston is responsible for what are shaping up to be challenging economic times.
At Interregna, we thought it might be interesting to gauge some first reactions from our interim managers, clients and friends. Most interesting, perhaps, is the number of people we spoke to who were entirely honest in telling us that they had no idea what lay round the corner. At a time when the press have run out of superlatives (“unprecedented” seems to be the mot du jour), it’s just not worth predicting the future.
Where we did find willing commentators, the key trend we found was pragmatism and discipline. Simon Mead is CEO of educational software publishers, the Logotron Group; and has previously worked through Interregna as interim MD for a Japanese software company. Here are his thoughts:
 “Having worked on both sides of the arrangement - Interim and now CEO - you begin to see what the real issues are when you are faced with a resource problem. As an Interim you are always told that you must define your skill set. I suspect that in the present climate, many are tempted to appeal to as broad a market as possible. I would caution against this.
“As a CEO I am prepared to spend money to solve a problem, however I am not prepared to spend money without a return on investment. So, I will evaluate the benefit of bringing in outside skills on this basis. Therefore, I would argue, as an Interim you must approach every assignment and meeting with the mindset that any employer is, now more than ever, going to look at you as an investment - you must therefore be specific in what you can achieve, persist in working in areas in which you know you can achieve; and prove to any prospective CEO that you will return to the business more than you will take.”
John Brocklebank is a highly experienced interim Financial Director, with Interregna and other assignments under his belt. He says “Today it’s all about cash management. With the money markets illiquid, investment is hard to come by and companies of all sizes can only rely on old-fashioned sales and revenues. That means very rigorous cost control and tight supervision of cash flows. It requires regular - and realistic - short and long term cash forecasting, and if possible repayment of debt. One more thing; management should be involved in understanding all the financial issues facing a company.
Brocklebank continues: “But is this not what the FD should be doing anyway?” And this is where “Keep Calm and Carry On” is surely the point. None of this advice should represent a change of direction for disciplined boards. It might be like the first day of a new term, but the school rules haven’t actually changed.
“Keep Calm” was just one of three motivational posters produced at the time, and one of its sister slogans also seems most pertinent to the business world: “Your Courage, Your Cheerfulness, Your Resolution Will Bring Us Victory”. Even in straitened times, it’s business as usual.
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