From the Editor

OUTSIDE INFLUENCES THAT WE CANNOT CONTROL…..AND THE EFFECT IT  WILL HAVE ON THE REPOSSESSION INDUSTRY

GROWTH MEANS CHANGE……AND THE COMMITMENT AND DEDICATION OF THE COMPANY OWNERS.  CHANGE HAS TO COME FROM THE TOP….IT HAS TO BE PLANNED, MANAGED AND CONTROLLED.  YOU….YES YOU THE COMPANY OWNER/PRESIDENT ARE 100% TOTALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN COMPANY….NO-ONE ELSE….JUST YOU!

It would seem that my little friend in the cartoon here is needed yet again, to illustrate what is going on in many companies within the repossession industry, as the more repossession companies I talk to, the more convinced I am that there is  a great need to develop the potential that I know is within many growing companies, but unfortunately there is a big question mark  as to which way to go to achieve their desired goals. 

It is 2 years to the issue i.e. October 2006, that my little cartoon friend first appeared on this website, in an article that I wrote called “TO CHANGE IS TO GROW” and based on the last 2 years alone, there is no doubt that that CHANGE factor is a predominant need within the industry still.

Also, attached to that is a difficult transition that many company owners do not want or feel that they can go through at any time and that is mostly due to their lack of trust in others, coupled together with the lack of know-how.  Unfortunately, that is the mindset of thinking  that they can grow their company while they are repossessing and driving a truck.   I don’t doubt for a second that the love of repossessing and being out in the field is a hard one to let go of, but let go you must if you are serious about wanting to grow your company.  Simply said, you cannot do both and do them successfully.

This also means, that the company owner cannot let go in thinking he/she they cannot afford staff or if they have staff, they cannot delegate because ….”no-one does it like I do”!

To grow, you need people as there are not enough hours in the day for you to do it all. You need more than just people, you need people that have the skills, knowledge and commitment to enable you to achieve growth.   In addition, if you consider nothing else, consider your health as working 24/7 is not the answer either.  Working smart and not hard is key here.

There is a different set of skills that is needed to start up a new company and additional skills to run the company and grow it – the two are not the same!
With growth comes growing pains - big time…. And when you have overcome that set of growth pains, there will be another set….  Simply put – that is business.

Without exception, each and every company owner/President that I speak to knows what they want for their company and most simply don’t know how to get it based on where the company is at that time.

Of course, nothing will come together if you don’t plan as planning is a key element of making of achieving your goals.  Yes, I have said all this before, so what’s different now?   We have an even larger plethora of individuals and tow companies coming into the repossession market place which will expand our numbers of competitors.  We are really now playing a game of …the survival of the fittest!  And if your company is not fit….. you will not survive!

If you think the repossession industry is ‘recession proof’, then stop your thought there right now as there is no such thing!  Yet again, we have an outside influence that we cannot control that is taking it’s toll in the USA (and the rest of the world)….THE ECONOMY!

And because of our economy, it has created a problem that will only grow if the economy does not change.  We may have repossession orders coming out of the ‘yahoo’ but the economy does not lend, for the most part, in lots of people looking to buy second hand cars.  In several States, we have many auctions having to find additional land to store the plethora of vehicles that are saturating the auto retail market.

So, if vehicles are not selling as they should, this means that the Lenders will look to alternative tactics to maximize on their investment of loans to the debtor. Extended arrangements are being made so help the debtor repay the loan instead of repossessing the vehicle.  It’s out there and it’s happening.  Consequently, if this tactic is replicated throughout the Lender industry, this throws a completely different light on repossessions and how we deliver our services.  By that sheer fact, we will have to CHANGE, to react to what will be thrust upon us by our clients - like it or not!

The Repossession Industry is not cocooned and untouchable just because of what we do, in an economy that provides us with excessive work.  Take heed, as this will last for as long as the trend does.  History is repeating itself, one way or another,  and we have to ‘think outside the box’ if we are to remain competitive and look to diversify where possible to ensure that we do not have ‘all our eggs in one basket’, as this often catches companies out when they least expect it when clients change or reduce the norm of work we are used to.

There are many things that are within our control but there are even more that are not and as you have seen this past week or so, the Economy as a whole will dictate what happens, whether you like it or not.  But we are not alone, as there are many other countries in the world that are suffering the same way we are.
With that said, we can only look forward and not backwards and life goes on…as does business.  IT IS WHAT IT IS – NEXT!

Don’t you just love being in business? J

Susan

Oct 4, 2008