Case 2: Mechanical engineering with €25m sales, 300 employees (completed)

Initial position:

Legal form: joint-stock company, responsibility as company body

Operating loss (EBIT) for past 8 years

Operational cash-flow deficit

Equity ratio < 10%

Brief: operational turn-around

Action:

Rapid short-term improvement in liquidity by reduction of working capital:

- Reduction in stocks of semi-finished and finished products
- Introduction of a three-stage payment-reminder system
- Sale-leaseback of current assets

Flexibilisation of fixed costs by reduction of manufacturing depth (core areas of expertise)

Reduction of workforce in direct and indirect production and administration functions

Reduction of product complexity and variant range by 30%

Targeted investments in marketing and sales (internationalisation)

Strategic redimensioning of brand in the growth segment

Results after 16 months:

Operational cash-flow profit

Positive EBIT

Equity ratio boosted to 15%

Case 3: Automotive supplier with $300m sales, 1500 employees (completed)

turnaround@EXMAG.ch