What is waiting for international companies that decide not to leave the Russian market?

It is not only about intangible assets to which reputation belongs, but also about increasing the value of money, reducing competitiveness, narrowing the variability of "chess moves" in activity and business development. Video of the day How does it work? Without loans, for example, no modern business lives, and not all financial institutions are ready to lend a problem company.

If a business can choose a business where and on what conditions, then during and after the crisis - is forced to agree to the proposals from anyone who is ready to deal with him. Accordingly, the bar of requirements for partners, employees, quality of their own products can be reduced. After the start of Russia's war against Ukraine, it was possible to observe as a company that had not left the Russian market, pressure was exerted.

At first it was like a question of "free choice", then - a "strong solution". But gradually the pressure increased, and at some point it ceased to be ethics, and became a matter of financial expediency and financial risks. The chain reaction began. At some point, management began to realize it - and during the spring we almost saw the news that the next company decided to leave the Russian market.

Of course, there were those companies that declared their intention to leave, but were looking for ways to bypass Cancel Culture. The variants were different, from the willingness to "not smoke the bridge finally" when business stated that it only "suspended" its activities in Russia, to the creation of married "laid companies". However, now the world is transparent, and these things cannot be hidden, especially large companies - would be desire and experience.

That is why the public, which is usually the initiator of CANCEL CULTURE, began to unite in tracking groups, whether they follow their words if they really went, as they stated. At the same time, these volunteer groups not only, relatively speaking, are harassing - they have taken on a voluntary function to bring to the tops, to CEO companies their risks, reputational and financial.

At the same time, they operate in close cooperation with international structures and state bodies in Ukraine, in particular, with the Ministry of Digital Transformation. We see how narratives of companies change in our eyes, which a few months ago, for example, called the events in Ukraine "conflict", and now they begin to use the word "war". These are powerful changes that occur due to a variety of but purposeful.

Nevertheless, there are companies that continue to work in the Russian market or just slowly prepare for leaving it. They may not scream about it, but do not hide too much. Such actions look logical if the company tries to protect the team created for years, the other is worried that management can be persecuted, the third - they think how to get out of the situation with the least loss, take out someone and something.

But the most important, perhaps, calling that this is a new experience not only for me, as a specialist with Cancel Culture, but also for the companies themselves. After all, no one of the management, even the very experienced, has ever encountered a situation where such a huge country has come under the culture of cancellation that Putin Farestein and Rial Politic approaches have recently been used quite recently. Of course, companies are used to calculating the risks and putting the straws.

But the challenge that few believed that this risk would be real and would be so significant. Simply put, companies did not have a real experience of this situation. Accordingly, few people had an understanding of what could happen, not to mention the road card with the instructions when, how and what to do. After all, collapse of a branched business in a large country is not only a psychological and managerial problem.

It is difficult logistically, difficult psychologically and expensive, very expensive. All this has to be solved on the move. However, "on the go" have to act both those who decided to leave and those who decided to stay. And almost no one had algorithms of action - as they did not have their company in 2020 during quarantine. Then the crisis covered everyone at the same time - and now it covers everyone without exception.

Just like then, in 2020, someone made the right decisions, and someone tried to look up to the last, thus making false decisions. You can now observe similar processes. The main thing is that the company is aware of the current situation as a crisis and accepted for itself as an axiom that it is necessary to leave the crisis, it will not be able to "move".

And just as it is necessary to create a team of logists that would bring a business from the country with the lowest possible losses, so it is necessary to consult a crisis managers capable of withdrawing a company from the current situation with minimal losses for reputation. This should be done as soon as possible, because time works against companies. Their situation can be compared to the behavior of the patient, who, when hearing the unpleasant diagnosis, tries to delay the time of surgery.

Instead of acting quickly and decisively, he thinks "What is it for me?", "Can somehow pass?" Irreversible processes will begin in the body. From my experience and event analysis-I advise any company to leave the Russian Federation and as soon as possible. After all, the cost of money (attracting investments, receiving loans, hiring highly qualified specialists) for international companies that hesitate or inhibit with a decision growing daily.