In the current economic climate where many businesses are close to the brink of collapse, business turnaround is a hot topic. Saving an ailing company will be a challenge not every CEO will want to take on or relish - however, business leaders who fancy their chances should abide by some key rules; most important of which is establishing who is a 'banker' and who will be an 'obstructor', says Richard Close, a business turnaround specialist.

According to Richard, the first few days of a business turnaround plan are crucial, as is finding out who is with you and who is against you, so that the top team that will sit with around the boardroom table is ascertained quickly.

"Once you've established your top team, the priorities of fire-fighting become clearer and you can be more effective with a strong top team behind you. Is the business running out of cash? You can implement measures such as the sale of inventory. Are customers fleeing? Then you can address the customer retention issue, which is a harder one to resolve but one which must be prioritised. Low staff morale? Challenge the culture. All of these things are much easier to do with a trusted team behind you," says Richard - the CEO at Briggs Equipment, a leading Midlands' materials handling equipment provider.

Richard has turned around the fortunes of four loss-making companies into multi-million pound profit generators. He advises to challenge the status quo, which applies to staff culture, management techniques and the business model itself.

"Changing staff culture will never be plain sailing - in fact, it can often be a long, drawn out battle. However, in my experience, it's always possible and the end result is a well-run company with cooperative and competent staff who enjoy what they do. I find if you 'walk the talk' - meet all the staff, right from shop or factory floor - and source allies, they will be invaluable when you need to crack the 'middle management concrete'. This is the toughest layer to crack, so attacking from the bottom will be as important as managing from the top. With 'shop floor' staff on your side, encourage and empower them and they will really make the managers work," he added.

According to the business transformation specialist, the 'middle management concrete' typically consists of managers who have been established in post for a while and may be resistant to change. The filtering process can take a few months - but if managed and executed correctly should ultimately leave the right staff base to take the business forward.

Briggs Equipment is going from strength to strength under Richard's management, and recorded a tenfold profit increase last year - from GBP 300,000 in 2010 to GBP 3m in 2011.

For further information about Richard Close visit www.richard-close.com.

Contacts: Victoria Harris +44 (0) 1858 411 600victoria.harris@punchcomms.com