Real Jobs for Real CEOs.

JOHN BRANDT 

A mid the tattered remains of our equity portfolios and the erosion of our bottom lines, it's easy to forget that this--leading a company through troubled times--is what CEOs really get paid for. And that the best CEOs always make their marks--and their careers--far more easily during a downturn than during boom times.

That's not to say that savvy CEOs are looking forward to the next few months. In fact, many analysts now believe that a sustained recovery won't occur until late this year or early in 2002. Every CEO I know would give almost anything to turn back the clock by a year, to bask a while longer in a time when every day brought another acquisition that could be paid in stock, when every month brought another surge in consumer confidence, and when every quarter brought another spate of record earnings.

It was a party that seemed as if it might never end, and, truth be told, it was one of the best--and easiest--times ever to be a CEO. When all boats rise on a tide of good economic news, all the captain need do is to make sure that the railings are polished and that his blazer is buttoned, the better to wave at throngs of cheering investors as his ship comes in.

But now the wind has changed, and it's time to be a real CEO again.

The decisions we face now are more challenging--and more business-critical--than the ones we faced a year ago. When revenues and profits are rising, even a series of bad decisions and bad investments seem mere detours on the road to prosperity. But during a downturn, just one or two of those same bad decisions can lead to the end of a CEO career--and to disaster for a company.

Yet real CEOs recognize that the biggest opportunities--to build market share, to recruit disaffected talent, to acquire distressed companies, to implement a new technology-come when times are uncertain. While amateur CEOs fret and dither, the pros look beyond their current problems for opportunities. While amateurs struggle to hold onto last year's margins, pros invest in tomorrow's markets. Most important of all, while the amateurs cut back on everything- from talent to customer service to research and development-the pros carefully cultivate new customers, implement new technologies, and develop new human performance and training programs.

Real CEOs view a downturn as a time to build for the future. They see downtime--for their factories, for their offices, for their employees--not as a reason to panic, but as a chance to re-tool for increased productivity and customer value. They recognize that although you get paid well during the good times, it's during the bad times that you actually earn it. Which means that while you probably can't expect much in the way of growth or bonuses this year, 2002 should be just fine--assuming, of course, that you make the right decisions and investments during a less-than-robust 2001.

How much will you and your company make next year?