50 Shades of Decay

Now that I have your attention, the decay I'm referring to is corporate decay.

There are warning signs you should watch out for in your organization. If you spot a four or five things on this list, work on resolving them now. Ten or 15 mean that you are already in quicksand. Revival is not too late, but whatever you do, remember the steps you take must be transformational, not incremental. Sick companies are never turned around by doing more of the same, better.

So here is your 50 Shades of Corporate Decay watch list:

1. Absentee leadership
2. Lack of vision
3. High employee turnover
4. No matter the profit, sales are falling
5. Mounting inventory
6. Cash flow in decline
7. Office doors once open are closed
8. Loss of respect up, down and sideways
9. Frenzied work environment, but nothing gets done
10. Gossip has gone viral
11. More silos emerging
12. High stress and anxiety — at all levels
13. Abundance of consultants
14. Too many projects, too many priorities
15. Autonomy is distant history
16. Long payables, chasing the receivables
17. Hours of work are increasing
18. "End of the month’" is long term. "End of the day" is short term
19. Too many meetings
20. No one arrives on time
21. Finger pointing
22. Scapegoat firings
23. Information sharing slows
24. No more employee social events
25. Mistrust of senior management
26. Accountability is a moving, ill-defined target
27. Stars leave
28. Deadwood stays
29. External focus (customers) gives way to navel-gazing
30. Aspiration gives way to mediocrity
31. Cliques form and rivalries increase
32. Political animals rise in the corporate pecking order
33. Pessimism becomes the common cultural thread
34. Strategic and operational paralysis has become the norm
35. Innovation is something other companies do
36. Resumes are being updated and posted online
37. Too many operational changes
38. The latest strategic plan isn’t one
39. Employee development is on the back  burner
40. Budgets are constantly cut and revised
41. Minor perks are withdrawn
42. There’s a rift within top management and everyone knows it
43. New products are “me-too” brand line extensions
44. Product discounting is chronic
45. A pending sale of the company is daily coffee talk
46. Marketing blames sales. Sales blame manufacturing
47. Project deadlines are seldom met
48. Spending authority is curtailed
49. The "do more and more" strategy trumps "doing less, better"
50. People wonder if things can possibly get worse. Then can, and they will.

This reminds me of a satirical cartoon that brought a broad smile to my face many years ago. Picture this: the CEO of the decaying company is addressing his management team. He points to window and says about the competition, “Sure, they’ve got better products, a better sales force and more efficient production. But, on the other hand, they still haven’t figured out how we stay in business!”