What are the greatest risks facing your business today?

There’s a lot of talk about AI and its impact these days. I am concerned that this oversimplification of AI as the panacea to all ills or the root of all evils is steering the conversation away from the real global and local risks that are impacting on small business on a day to day basis.

Your average corner shop or small distributor or manufacturer is I feel unlikely to see the impact of AI in their daily operations for the foreseeable future. However there are local and global risks which need to be faced and you should ask yourself if you have done an analysis of the real risks facing your business.

While we are all busy carrying on business from day to day it is imperative that you set time aside to make a Plan B and look at the “What ifs”

What if my key manager leaves the business ?

What if my main competitor steals my main customer ?

What if the new POTUS decides to incentivise all European based US companies back to the Mid Western states and I lose my main customer ?

What if global unrest and the rise of the far right destabilise tourism and entertainment and those are the fields I make my living in?

What if certain conflicts in certain regions spread and cause global supply disruptions ?

Of course you cannot answer many of these questions  but what you must do as a business owner is take time to consider them and plan for the ones you can. For the others at least be aware of what the implications would be and be prepared to work on a plan more deeply if they become a little more likely.

Complacency is the enemy of Preparedness…….