Bovee offers five actions you can take today to help position your company for future success:
The ability to be flexible in the face of shifting market conditions is essential, particularly in times of uncertainty. “You need to be asking yourself, ‘How can I become more resilient and more adaptable in times of stress?’” Bovee says.
He recommends companies engage regularly in what he calls “sensitivity scenarios.” This involves identifying where you feel your company is most at risk and what the potential impact of those risks could be. By evaluating your degree of sensitivity to different risks, you can take steps to manage them proactively, he says.
For example, if you believe interest rates could rise by a given amount in the future, you can adjust your debt mix between fixed and floating rate loans accordingly. Or, if you own a consulting firm and have a high degree of concentration in a single client, you can explore how you would replace the loss in revenue should that client leave. For example, you could try to achieve a more balanced client portfolio by adding contracts in adjacent industries or geographies.
“Stress testing your scenarios can equip you to course-correct fairly quickly, as opposed to saying, ‘This too shall pass.’ It might, but it might not. You’ve got to have the ability to flex when needed,” Bovee says.
Technology can be critical to making your systems more resilient and help reduce the time and expense involved in doing tasks manually.
“Utilizing all the digital and automated tools available to you as a business owner can give you an important leg up,” says Henrik Lang, global head of Liquidity for Global Payment Solutions at Bank of America. These could include automated treasury management and liquidity platforms and, if you conduct business in multiple currencies, FX solutions that could make foreign exchange management more transparent and predictable. “Anything that can streamline and optimize your company’s processes could well be worth the initial effort and investment,” Lang notes. Automated treasury management tools could also help you avoid or offset overdraft and other service fees, he adds.
And while artificial intelligence (AI) may still seem unfamiliar to some, getting on board with the right AI tools now rather than later could be key to gaining a competitive edge. This could, for instance, include ways to update or adapt your manufacturing infrastructure or your production lines to help you produce at a cheaper and faster pace, Bovee notes.
Understanding where your cash is coming from and going to is critical. For example, if you have cash leaving faster than it’s coming in, that could create a cash crunch — possibly requiring a scramble to secure short-term financing to cover the shortfall.
Bovee recommends companies conduct in-depth, 13-week rolling cash flow forecasts regularly. This allows you to understand what’s happening with your cash for the upcoming quarter. It can also yield the most up-to-date view into your company’s financial picture, as opposed to last quarter’s financial statement. “By continually updating those rolling forecasts, you’ll know where things are going instead of just looking in the rearview mirror,” says Bovee.
The pandemic exposed underlying vulnerabilities in many companies’ supply chains. Bovee says it’s as important as ever to continue monitoring where those potential critical failure points may lie.
“Consider whether you’re too reliant on one supplier or on supplies coming from a particular country or geographic region,” Bovee says. Then take steps to reinforce those vulnerable areas with a backup plan by finding alternative suppliers. Or, if you rely on a particular product that’s difficult to source, consider increasing your existing inventory. “That way, if a disruption does occur, you have a stockpile to fall back upon,” says Bovee.
Having a deep bench of trusted advisors you can turn to for guidance can be invaluable. “This could include your banker or other financial partners, CPA, reliable research sources, industry contacts, or anyone who can help you understand different sides of an issue, offer good information, and also challenge your own assumptions,” says Bovee. This includes seeking different perspectives on how emerging risks and opportunities might apply to your business.
Regardless of what the headlines may shout from one day to the next, there is solid reason for optimism about the broader macroeconomic backdrop, with both monetary and fiscal policy supportive of economic expansion, says Joe Quinlan, head of CIO Market Strategy, Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank. “For example, a declining dollar could benefit U.S. exporters,” he adds.
While overall growth is expected to remain tepid through 2026, the U.S. economy has continued to defy recession, and uncertainty over the direction of taxes and tariffs has eased — all of which could serve as a tailwind going forward.
“The U.S. has remained resilient in the face of a host of challenges in 2025, and we expect that resiliency to continue,” says Quinlan. “Bottom line, the U.S. is the clear global leader in innovation and entrepreneurship, as well as for attracting capital, and this should be supportive for businesses in this current cycle and beyond.”
Still have questions? Having a trusted advisor to guide you through economic or market challenges can make all the difference. Contact your Bank of America specialist for more information.
