At the end of the day, the burden of the economy does fall on the CIO. What resources to cut back on or what areas to invest in further. Discussions from all levels of the pyramid help and why shouldn't the entire organization contribute towards the strategies that drive the bottom line? After all, if everyone thinks like the boss, there are greater chances that more people will assume responsibility for making the organization a place that benefits everyone.

And if you have a culture like that, then Nadir Khan can question the purchase of a large or small generator to run the office. "I should have a say in whether or not there my department or I can manage on a smaller generator that uses less fuel." If the CIO employs an inclusive strategy to run the organization, there might actually be more savings than are expected.

Nadir Khan's spirit would inspire hope for any organization in any business. "The best way to stay afloat in troubled times is, believe it or not, to go after more business, a fuller pipeline and consequently make more money. But won't we love getting those rewards during the entire year?"

Umair Aziz, CTO at the company shares his experiences of managing risks and a crunch situation with his other business in the past. "Despite the harrowing situation, the strategy pulled off quite well, and the business is once again in the green." So there is always light at the end of the tunnel and the sun always does come up the next day (unless of course, you're in Finland).

Mohammad Nawaz agrees and adds, "The IT services industry (or at least most of who are part of it) won't be hit by the downturn, especially because we are not 100% dependent on local or foreign demands. We have a wide and expanded market, which is something other industries just can't compete with so effectively. Yet, there are those who just don't care which industry or part of the world they belong to. All they know is that if they bear everything with focus, patience and without flinching even a bit, they will ultimately make it through."