My better half contends we’re in the midst of a recession, en route to a full-blown depression. I point out the GDP numbers don’t support that, and any downturn is likely to be relatively brief and shallow. Her retort: “You’re the shallow one!”
Family feuds aside, there’s no doubt we’re in a challenging economy, with tougher business conditions and belts tightening at companies throughout North Texas. At times like this, it’s well to remember that great companies see rough patches not as occasions for panic, but as opportunities. Opportunities to work smarter, to become more creative, to consolidate market share.
Here in Dallas-Fort Worth, fortunately, we’re blessed with a number of entrepreneurial leaders who can show the way. One of the most successful is Ray Hunt, scion of the legendary oil wildcatter H.L. Hunt and the president, chairman, and CEO of Dallas’ Hunt Consolidated Inc.
In a recent talk to the Entrepreneurs Foundation of North Texas—that group had just inducted him into its so-called Ring of Entrepreneurs—Hunt reviewed five characteristics that he believes separate great companies from merely good ones. I submit that his five characteristics, which follow here in bold type, are even more relevant and instructive in down environments than when times are flush.
Great companies develop a strong corporate culture, with shared values and a strong work ethic. In previous years Hunt had put “people” at the top of this list, but he now believes a strong corporate culture is the key to attracting the best people. With men and women who share personal values—and a great work ethic—anything is possible, he says.
Great companies have the ability to differentiate themselves from other groups. If you’re just like everybody else, Hunt says, that means you’re average. And if you’re only average, the best you can hope to achieve is average results.
Great companies demonstrate adaptability. The only constant in life and business is change, Hunt believes, and the best companies have a DNA that enables them to adapt to new challenges at any time. As Darwin posited, it’s not the strongest or fastest species that survive but those that adapt the best, Hunt says.
Great companies are agile, and therefore adapt with amazing speed. While it used to be enough merely to change, it’s necessary now to make quick decisions and to take fast action, Hunt says. One way Hunt Consolidated’s Hunt Oil unit does that is by keeping staff sizes small where possible, thereby minimizing the bureaucracy.
Great companies are very willing to be contrarian, when appropriate. If everyone in the oil industry is running in one direction, that’s not where Hunt Oil will be heading, Hunt says. He adds that “this [contrarian quality] will be even more important in the future, due to changes in technology and communication.” He cites two examples of contrarian thinking at Hunt Oil: his 1981 gamble that the company could produce oil in Yeman, and a deal he signed last year to explore for oil in Kurdistan in northern Iraq. Both ventures, it seems, are paying off.
So, will embracing these five characteristics keep you out of the weeds during the depression my better half is predicting? There are no guarantees, of course. But companies that follow Ray Hunt’s lead are likely to be stronger and better positioned than those that don’t.
