survivalpath Pro Tips — Week #3

survivalpath aims to shed light on the business-related problems caused by the COVID-19 crisis and how to tackle them. Each weekday we hold broadcasts on our Youtube channel in order to bring the best names in the ecosystem to help guide you through these challenging times.

survivalpath broadcast guests for week #3

Monday: Our first guest last week was Şahin Tulga, founding member of Mentoro Platform. We discussed business models in times of uncertainty.

The highlights of the conversation were:

1. The crisis has several impact areas. The first area is human health. Then it is followed by sociological, psychological, and economic impact. All these impacts will surely be permanent.
2. Many sectors will be affected. Apart from entertainment, tourism, and travel sectors, banking will also see a negative impact. On the other hand, technology and digitalization industries might see positive effects.
3. We can manage this crisis with a 7-branched method: Form a crisis desk, Manage your cash, Manage raw material and goods supply, Continue transactions with customers and identify new customer values, Think about what will happen after the crisis, Show tolerance to and support companies in the ecosystem, Have a good business strategy.
4. The crisis showed that not only our health but also our success depends on each other.
5. The situation that we’re going through will make us more open to innovation and improvement.
6. We should focus on what we already have.
7. In order to preserve your relationship with your customers treat them as family.
8. Stay current on everything that might affect your industry.
9. Think creatively about how you might direct your strengths to new areas of business.

Tuesday: Our second guest was Emin Okutan, one of the founders of Viveka. We discussed the durability of the ecosystem and startups.

The highlights of the conversation were:

1. Viveka is operating in 20 different cities across Turkey.
2. The situation that we’re going through is beyond anyone’s imagination.
3. Three golden rules to survive this crisis: Form projection systems, Find how to sustain already existing operations, Keep communications strong with current customers.
4. Startups have less than 6 months left. Viveka developed a “Rebounds Metrics” system that helps startups evaluate when business will get back to normal and form scenarios accordingly.

Wednesday: Survivalpath’s third guest in its third week was Sinan Guler, basketball player and angel investor. We discussed how startups can manage the uncertainty and survive through the crisis.

Here are the highlights:

1. It is very difficult to name and make sense of this period. We are at a point where everything stopped. We can say that every industry from every level is experiencing effects on cash flow.
2. The most crucial point is to maintain cash flow.
3. Don’t try to reach high. Try to sustain yourself at a good level.

Thursday: Our fourth guest this week was Soner Canko, who now is the CEO of BKM (Bankalararası Kart Merkezi) after 30 years of business career.

Here are the highlights of our conversation:

1. BKM is an organization that does electronic transaction change and netting.
2. Give support, get support. When you give support it in turn rewards you with growth.
3. What’s going on is unexpected, even for the most experienced. We have to exchange views with no filters or prejudices. Observe the situation and the normal well.
4. The crisis will have long lasting impact on how we live our lives after it is over.

Friday: Our last guest this week was Ata Uzunhasan, managing director of Galata Business Angels (GBA). We talked about the entrepreneurship ecosystem during COVID-19 crisis and how GBA is managing this process.

Here are the highlights of the conversation:

1. Lately, we’ve been investing in AI fields; however, as long as you invest according to your strategy and your path you’ll have a greater chance of success.
2. COVID-19 acted as a catalyst for a global crisis that many were anticipating for some time. This is now a global crisis and we’ll see who will survive and get up first.
3. Through this process weak companies will be eliminated and the path as well as the competition will continue after the crisis for the strong ones.
4. Through this process we learned that companies can run out of cash. We all need insurance. A company needs to keep at least 6 months of cash at hand to survive through a crisis.
5. GBA is an old investment network and we are working towards minimizing our loss in our portfolio companies. In that regard, we prepared a damage impact report.
6. It is crucial to act fast during this time. We maximized our communication with our investors and entrepreneurs.
7. Waiting is the best option now. Keep your money in your pocket.

Key Tips from this week:

1. Focus on what you already have.
2. Try to sustain your operations and transactions.
3. Identify new customer values.
4. Support each other.
5. Forecast! The crisis will have long lasting impact on how we live our lives after it is over.
6. Stay current and exchange opinions.

If you would like to contribute to survivalpath email us at hazal@survivalpath.co

Hazal Ozkan