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The Business of America Is Business. So What Are You Doing?
President Calvin Coolidge, a man remembered for being of few words*, is quoted as having said that the business of America is business.**
Now that the closures resulting from the coronavirus pandemic are relaxing, looking back over what's transpired over the past two months, can you say that you truly had a business, a real business, before the crisis? And, can you say you have one today?
Or, have you discovered that what you had and have is more akin to a club? Or, perhaps even worse, a venture to which you previously ran for protection (“you practice medicine, we’ll take care of running the business”) only to discover it was run by those who had never, as adults, lived, or certainly managed, through a downturn, let alone a crisis?
The questions are the same whether your organization is a five person medical practice, a multi-thousand provider operation owned by a giant hedge fund, or a three O.R. ASC.
Over the past few weeks, some who sold their practices to industry giants have discovered that their compensation has been cut in two and that their large equity stake is worth, well, perhaps enough to buy a steak. Others were are frozen with fear, the deer in the headlights of a Toyota Coronavirus. And yet others not only managed through the period, they have plans in effect for the receivables dip that will hit 60 to 90 days out and are actively looking for acquisitions as well as to "take" the business and contracts of shattered local and national groups.
For those whose businesses fall into that third type, keep doing what you’re doing. I am not assuming that any particular reader’s venture is “broken,“ just that many don’t fall into that third category.
There are no do overs for the past. But there certainly are do betters for the present and for the future.
Those who bet on the “safety“ of a pseudo-daddy only to find out that daddy skipped town, that safety was an illusion, and that “risky" would have been safe, have several, albeit tough, choices. You can do nothing – it's your life, not mine. You can advocate for management change at the risk, or perhaps blessing, of losing your position. You can quit and find a new position somewhere else. You and your colleagues at a particular practice location could strategize to buy back your independence or even take it back under the right circumstances.
Those in independent practices, whether of five or fifty or five hundred, can take steps to adjust group governance towards structures that foster and protect true leadership and quick decision making. You can make sure that systems are in place to legally maximize the amount, and timing, of collections. You can shift from a pass-through compensation culture that works perfectly well when cash is flowing like the Amazon, but not so well when it trickles like Cripple Creek. You can adopt an offense, a strategy for growth, as opposed to a purely defensive posture designed to protect what you (think) you have (until you don’t).
Is it easy? No. Is it cheap? No. But do you have to do it? Only if you want to survive, let alone thrive.
______
*The story, apocryphal or not, is that, at a dinner party, a young woman told Coolidge that she had bet that she could get him to say more than three words to her. His response was "you lose."
**The full quote, in a speech to a newspaper group, was “[a]fter all, the chief business of the American people is business. They are profoundly concerned with producing, buying, selling, investing and prospering in the world."
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| | Newsflash: Business Life In the Time of Coronavirus - The Way Out
The coronavirus crisis, especially as it's become politicized, raises a number of business issues and, quite frankly, business opportunities in regard to future disruptive events.
Check out our mini-series, with actionable business lessons for medical group leaders.
Sooner or later this crisis will end. You can’t allow yourself to be too busy, too occupied, too concerned with current events, to devote time and effort to strategizing for your future.
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| | | Wisdom. Applied. 137 - This Is Why You Keep Screwing Yourself When Negotiating Deals
The problem, which can hardly ever be seen from inside the situational loop, is that you want, even need, to be liked. “Am I pushing too hard?” “What will they think?”
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| | | This month’s All Things Personal column announces the Stupid Business Practice of the Quarter Award. It goes to City National Bank, a unit of the Royal Bank of Canada.
We've been banking with CNB since, as I recall, the early 1990s. In fact, we've been dealing with the same Senior VP the entire time, someone to whom I’ll refer as “AK.”
Our firm operates across three locations and so we often use FedEx to send deposits to the CNB branch, which is located in Century City, a part of Los Angeles.
On April 17th, we learned that FedEx couldn't deliver a deposit because the branch was closed. No notice to the customers. Just closed.
An hour and a half after I sent a AK an email asking what was going on, he responded saying that the branch was temporary closed. When I replied, telling him that it would've been nice to know that, his response was that "these are challenging times for all and the bank made a decision last week to close the office [temporarily].”
Of course, that made it worse.
If they had decided a week ago to close the office, they had even more time to give notice to their customers. And, if for some unfathomable reason, the bank’s executive management was that stupid, why didn't AK reach out to the people with whom he's been doing business for close to 30 years to let them know to send deposits to another location?
The reasons: Bad management. Bad customer skills. Bad business.
Now contrast that with our firm’s personal banker for our Texas accounts at Amegy Bank. His name is Paul Pothen. He's available seven days a week and he’ll even come to your office if papers need to be signed in person. He gives more attention than any banker I've ever met. He's a banker who actually welcome your deposits and who actually welcomes you applying for loans. (Sounds simple, but to the folks at CNB, it's not.)
Paul has no idea I am writing this. Feel free to reach out to him at (214) 754-9601 or Paul.Pothen@amegybank.com.
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| | Help Us Help You With Helpful Content
What tailored content would you most like to see during this time? How can we focus on solutions to your most pressing strategic concerns?
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| | Podcast Compilation Greatest Hits - Strategy Edition 1.0
We've curated our most popular podcasts on strategy into our first compilation album.
Sit back, enjoy, and think about your future.
Listen here. |
| | | | | | We all hear, and most of us say, that the pace of change in healthcare is quickening. That means that the pace of required decision-making is increasing, too. Unless, that is, you want to take the “default” route. That’s the one is which you let someone else make the decisions that impact you; you’re just along for the ride. Of course, playing a bit part in scripting your own future isn’t the smart route to stardom. But despite your own best intentions, perhaps it’s your medical group’s governance structure that’s holding you back. In fact, it’s very likely that the problem is systemic. The Medical Group Governance Matrix introduces a simple four-quadrant diagnostic tool to help you find out. It then shows you how to use that tool to build your better, more profitable future. Get your free copy here.
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| | | Whenever you're ready, here are 4 ways I can help you and your business:
1. Download a copy of The Success Prescription. My book, The Success Prescription provides you with a framework for thinking about your success. Download a copy of The Success Prescription here.
2. Be a guest on “Wisdom. Applied. Podcast.” Although most of my podcasts involve me addressing an important point for your success, I’m always looking for guests who’d like to be interviewed about their personal and professional achievements and the lessons learned. Email me if you’re interested in participating.
3. Book me to speak to your group or organization. I’ve spoken at dozens of medical group, healthcare organization, university-sponsored, and private events on many topics such as The Impending Death of Hospitals, the strategic use of OIG Advisory Opinions, medical group governance, and succeeding at negotiations. For more information about a custom presentation for you, drop us a line.
4. If You’re Not Yet a Client, Engage Me to Represent You. If you’re interested in increasing your profit and managing your risk of loss, email me to connect directly. |
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