The economic downturn: Coping strategies and the way forward

Achal Raghavan takes an in-depth look at the manner in which various business leaders in the Indian manufacturing and IT sectors coped with the downturn that hit the Indian economy from Q4 2008. Faced with significant threats to sales, profit, and enterprise value, CEOs initiated a slew of coping strategies – such as cost reduction, cash management, operational excellence, people management, and customer portfolio optimization. Implementing these strategies involved facing up to many challenges, both internal and external. With the economy showing signs of recovery, now is the time for corporate leaders to retain the gains made in operational efficiencies, and focus on emerging growth opportunities in the marketplace.