HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing in a Downturn, Expanded Edition (with bonus article "Preparing Your Business for a Post-Pandemic World" by Carsten Lund Pedersen and Thomas Ritter)

Seize Advantage in a Downturn

by David Rhodes and Daniel Stelter

INACTION IS THE RISKIEST RESPONSE to the uncertainties of an economic crisis. But rash or scattershot action can be nearly as damaging. Rising anxiety (how much worse are things likely to get? how long is this going to last?) and the growing pressure to do something often produces a variety of uncoordinated moves that target the wrong problem or overshoot the right one. A disorganized response can also generate a sense of panic in an organization. And that will distract people from seeing something crucially important: the hidden but significant opportunities nestled among the bad economic news.

We offer here a rapid but measured approach—simultaneously defensive and offensive—to ...