Yesterday I was at the heart of Europe. At least, that's what it says on the signs in Brussels. The reason for heading to the land of luxe chocolates was a conference resulting from an EU-sponsored project looking at the future of the printing industry.
The background theme was 'best practices in socially responsible restructuring for printing companies', recognising the structural crisis affecting large parts of the industry. Some would doubtless argue that it feels a bit late for that given the seismic change that's already taken place in the industry over recent years. However, the headline for the event itself was the rather more positive 'printing matters for the future'.
Some sobering stats were unveiled, including the fact that almost half (47%), of the 200-odd companies surveyed for the project were considering the closure and winding-up of their businesses in the long-term.
Perhaps it was no coincidence that another event, 'learning to live with bipolar disorder' was taking place in an adjacent room.
A topic given considerable airtime was the need for company owners and managers to get the whole company on board whether they're dealing with a problem, or indeed, a potential opportunity. This chimed with a recent blog about how important it is to communicate when difficult decisions have to be made to secure a company's future. I loved this quote from the BPIF's Andy Brown: "Successful businesses don't ask their employees to leave their brains at the gate when they come to work."
Rather, they work very hard at ensuring they make the most of the collective brains trust within the organisation. Nigel Stubley from Northend Creative Solutions promptly proved the point by explaining how the firm has created a common purpose - to exceed client expectations while creating a sustainable future for everyone in the business - that's the cornerstone of everything the company does.
The efficacy of this strategy was proved in the summer of 2008, when the company made a £1m investment in new equipment just before the financial crisis hit. Faced with high gearing and a cashflow forecast that looked a bit iffy, Nigel shared the problem with all 53 employees and in return the solution came from all of them, in the shape of a 53-point plan to conserve cash. Marvellous.
Conversely, Unite's Steve Sibbald cited the example of a company that didn't consult well with its staff, then imposed changes including increased working hours, with the unhappy result that productivity has actually gone down by 20-25%. Hardly the desired outcome.
The EU-funded project has resulted in the creation of a practical toolkit to aid managers and staff representatives work through restructuring in the most positive way possible. It's intended to be as relevant for a firm with five employees as one with 500 or 5,000, and will be downloadable from the BPIF and Intergraf websites. If it's not there just yet it should be in the next couple of days. Definitely a recommended read.
