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Back to basics: is to innovate, but it is more impor-

tant to keep both eyes on the prize
Growth through business and concentrate on the fundamentals
that ensure growth.
Move carefully and
fundamentals maintain things

By Scott Dawson One driving force of the current eco-
nomic landscape has been the explo-
DECTA sion in investment in fintech, pay-
ments and other technology-based
he start of this year brought with it legitimate concerns about the businesses. Many investors have
state of the global economy caused by a culmination of issues. A poured billions of dollars into these
worrying result has been a plethora of experts predicting a major companies, hoping to capitalize on
T recession on the horizon with businesses struggling to adapt to the the promise of new technologies and
constantly changing landscape. So, what can companies do to drive growth in business models. However, this rush
this uncertain economic climate? to invest has often been driven more
by hype and speculation than by a
Many businesses have responded by adopting and developing new technologies clear understanding of the potential
and business models in an effort to stay ahead of the curve, but this rush returns on investment.
to innovate has come at a cost. Numerous companies have lost sight of the
fundamentals of doing business and are experiencing significant challenges. The "move fast and break things"
Many well-placed pundits are now advocating for a back-to-basics approach mentality has become synonymous
that focuses on reducing costs, freeing up cash flow, increasing speed and with the tech industry in recent years,
reducing complexity, all while staying within regulatory limits. but this approach has led to numer-
ous failures and setbacks. Many
This can seem like a counterintuitive approach to business. It has always been businesses have rushed to bring
assumed that the only recipe for growth and forward moving within a market new products and services to market
without fully considering the risks
and costs involved. This has result-
ed in many struggling to scale their
businesses and generate sustainable
returns. Making mistakes is impor-
tant—that's how we learn, and it is
the same in business—but this is less
of a luxury when the purse strings
become tighter.

By focusing on the essential elements
of doing business and staying with-
in regulatory limits, businesses can
improve their resilience and ensure
they are well-positioned to weather
the economic storms. This approach
means fulfilling a real need, prioritiz-
ing profitability and reducing com-
plexity.
Words to the wise

Recent years have been rife with eco-
nomic cautionary tales. A prime ex-
ample is Meta, previously known as
Facebook, which bet big on its Meta-
verse product. The issue was that this
had no obvious uses and featured an
aggressively steep barrier for entry.
For many, it looked like a solution in
search of a problem. Unlike the Face-
book app, it can be used only at home

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