Wrapping up 2010 and heading into 2011, BedTimes asked a sample of more than a dozen mattress and sleep accessories manufacturers to ponder these questions: “What is the single most important survival skill every business must develop? Why? And how do you cultivate it at your company?”
Many chose to focus on ways of dealing with the current economic malaise; others outlined specific tactics their companies have employed to their best advantage. Some discussed their overarching business philosophy and delved into the challenges of doing business in the 21st century.
If there were themes to their remarks, it was the importance of change—accepting, nurturing, even encouraging it—and the need to listen carefully to everyone from customers to employees.
Jimmy Orders
President, Park Place Corp., Greenville, S.C.
The single most important survival skill is the ability to change—quickly. As our world becomes less stable and less predictable, the hardest thing to manage is not what is happening, but how fast it is happening. As for how we cultivate it, we foster an environment where input is encouraged from all sources. The overriding philosophy is “nobody is as smart as everybody.”
Dave Roberts
President, Comfort Solutions, Willowbrook, Ill.
I don’t believe that survival for a business ever comes down to a single skill. Today, companies need to have a number of critical capabilities, not just to stay in business but to generate real growth and development. On the more practical side, however, business survival often gets down to the two kings: the customer and cash. My advice is don’t lose either.
Larry Rogers
President and chief executive officer, Sealy, Trinity, N.C.
The ability to adapt through innovation is paramount to a firm’s survival. This is especially true in the bedding industry where innovative product wins. At Sealy, we have always made the development of new and innovative products one of our key strategic goals. This provides our retailing partners’ products with a fresh and compelling sales story, as well as providing the end–consumer products with enhanced value, technology and comfort.
Gerry Borreggine
President, Therapedic International, Princeton, N.J.
We have to be able to respond to change by being able to change ourselves. To some extent, we have to be chameleons. It can be subtle or a quantum leap. Because of the economic times, our company has evolved its strategic focus and made many changes. We’re being much more realistic as a second–tier brand. That’s a big change for us, but we’re responding to our dealers.
Ron Passaglia
President and chief executive officer, Restonic, Duluth, Ga.
The single most important business survival skill is listening. In this day and age—in the fast–moving electronic world—listen to all the bright new ideas from young people entering the workplace each day. If you don’t listen to their solutions, it’s very difficult to keep your business contemporary for today’s customers. But I’ve never seen a problem solved with just one person doing the talking—it requires a conversation with give and take, which stems from truly listening to each other. If you’ve been successful through the years, you’ve adapted your business model—and done it using communication skills, reaching out to others for input, asking for help.
Bob Sherman
President, Serta, Hoffman Estates, Ill.
The key to survival is a combination of growing sales and controlling expenses. Anytime one takes precedence over the other, the business will suffer. As the manager of a business, you have to look at both; it’s a balance of the two.
Niles Cornelius
General manager, Hickory at Home, Hickory, N.C.
In order to be a strong business, you have to develop the best listening skills possible. Everything we do is about trying to listen to customers and consumers. So often in these challenging times, there is a tendency to throw ideas and products into the marketplace that satisfy our own egos and make assumptions about what the consumer wants. By not listening to the customer or consumer, you increase the chance for product or service rejection.
Frank Gorrell
President, Jamison Bedding, Franklin, Tenn.
In my experience, the most important survival skill is conservatism. It is a temptation during good times to expand, splurge, build new plants, acquire other companies or diversify. But during those times, it is most important to conserve cash, lower debt and prepare for a negative cycle. When that time comes, you have the cash to ride it out and are fully ready to take advantage of the next positive run. In our company, we lead by example and practice what we preach.
Dan Hige
President and chief operating officer, International Bedding, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
By far, the most important survival skill in business is to develop a culture of continuous improvement. Whether it’s in product development, marketing, customer service or employee quality of life, the objective is to seek out improvements—big or small, wherever they are—on an ongoing basis. Continuous improvement becomes an organizational mind–set when its value is consistently communicated, demonstrated and rewarded. Typically, businesses that embrace this concept are amazed by what things look like just one year later.
Stuart Carlitz
Owner and chief executive officer, Bedding Industries of America, North Brunswick, N.J.
A company’s success is the result of people working with the common goal of being better. The largest room in the world is the room for improvement. Have every employee work together toward a Total Quality Management program or philosophy. Build quality in upfront. Do things right the first time. Eliminate nonvalue–added chores. Repairs and re–work are nonvalue–added. Put things in their proper place the first time—if you need to move things twice, the first handling was nonvalue added. Buy right, sell right: Get three quotes for every product, raw material, service or project.
Dave Young
Chief executive officer, VyMaC Corp. & Durable Products Co., Fort Atkinson, Wis.
To stand apart from the competition and succeed in this economy, my businesses have stopped competing on price and we focus instead on value through innovation. In order for a business to survive today, it must be innovation–driven. A successful company operates with the basic philosophy that its success has far more to do with its product and innovation—its deliverables—than its technological or financial resources. The leader must communicate the company’s core values and everyone within the organization must share in this common vision. Employees must be made to feel like an important part of the whole.
Ralph Rossdeutscher
President, Natura World, Cambridge, Ontario
The ability to innovate and to change the way you do business is vital. It’s not just about products, but how you do business with people. Innovation is creativity in my book. We’re still up (in sales) from last year. Why? It’s the culture that has been here right from the beginning. I hire creative people who enjoy solving problems, people who must have challenges, people who got bored in their last jobs and had to move on to something more challenging.
Rick Robinson
President, Spring Air International, Boston
What’s the single most important survival skill? Managing your costs. That may sound simple but it’s amazing how few companies do that effectively. During times of economic downturn, the consequences can be devastating. Our team is diligent about every business expense and we reward the efforts of any employee whose initiative results in that magic combination of lower cost and higher return.
Tim Oakhill
Executive vice president of marketing, Simmons Bedding Co., Atlanta
It’s the ability to embrace change and identify real, meaningful innovation. Innovation isn’t difficult, but the whole question is how do you do it in a meaningful and compelling manner? My favorite chart is the Dow Jones Industrial Average from 1900 to the present. GE is the only company that has been on it since the beginning. Think of all the changes it’s been through. Or IBM and how it’s embraced change—remember the Selectric typewriter? And then there’s Apple and Google. Virgin amazes me—from records to airlines. All great companies change—it’s a fundamental skill set. You cultivate a culture of change by reducing fear because with change comes failure. You must have processes and approaches where you encourage and vet ideas upfront. And you hire people with a high level of curiosity.
Jim Nation
President, Five Star Mattress, Hoffman Estates, Ill.
You must have growth. If you’re not growing, you’re going to have issues. You need a sales organization dedicated to finding new business. Develop programs that retailers like and work every day on finding new areas to explore.
Lee Hinshaw
President of international sales and senior vice president of brand management, Kingsdown, Mebane, N.C.
The key is entrepreneurship. It evokes a corporate culture of striving for excellence and subduing complacency. When properly instilled, entrepreneurship drives innovation and success in all facets of a business. Kingsdown is an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) company, which, by nature, advocates a feeling of ownership, not just financially but also in the daily actions among our employee family. Interestingly enough, although Kingsdown is 106 years old, we are in the process of transforming ourselves toward a “why entrepreneurship is important” mind–set.
Kevin Toman
President, Englander
There is no single most important survival skill. It’s a combination of many factors to stay viable in this climate or in any poor economy. Cash management, manufacturing efficiencies, intelligent marketing, sales plans—all are survival skills. A main ingredient for survival is trust. Companies must be able to trust their people at every level to execute their primary area of responsibility to the maximum. After that, a company must remember the customer. The late Theodore Levitt of Harvard Business School asked this question at his seminar: “Why are you in business?” Many answered “profit,” “make good money,” etc. Levitt countered: “To keep a customer.” Everything else will develop from that point.
Andrea Mugnai
General manager, Magniflex, Prato, Italy
It’s about sustainability and being able to adapt to a constantly changing marketplace—one that is getting “greener” all the time. It means being eco–friendly in all that you do—in your product, your manufacturing, the practices within your customer service department and throughout your operation. Think about it: The demand for sustainability in business will only grow as everyone in the culture wakes up to the importance of it and as precious resources like water and power become more scarce and more expensive.
