Now is time for leaders

Firms that can make the best of a bad situation will survive this turbulent time, says Sara Yirrell

Sara Yirrell: The firms that will stand this test will play to their strengths

It seems the huge $700bn cash injection into the US economy has had about as much impact as the Large Hadron Collider.

I was suffering from the flu when the US government agreed the bailout, but even in my dosed-up state I had my doubts as to whether the move would work or backfire.

Like millions of others I hoped it would be the cure-all solution to the global economic crisis. Although, I sympathised with the ordinary people who protested against the bailout because the very institutions it was helping were the ones that got us into this mess.

Early indications are not good. Share prices plummeted last week on both the FTSE and the Dow Jones, which is worrying to say the least.

Many technology firms in the stock exchange have seen millions wiped off their company value as a result. But hopefully this initial stock market plunge is just a blip and the situation will recover.

Whatever the outcome ­ now is not a time for panic. As reported in our coverage of CRN’s Reseller Leadership Forum this week, this is a time for leaders.

We in the IT industry have been here twice already in this decade, although I would say this is the worst one of the three ­ not helped at all by the hysterical build up in the national press.

The firms that will stand this test are the ones that play to their strengths and that try to make the best out of a bad situation.

Sara Yirrell is editor of CRN ­ [email protected]