The pandemic has everyone on edge. Businesses are worried about how it will impact their bottom line, and employees are concerned about their safety and the future of their jobs. While there is no one-size-fits-all answer to ensuring your company survives this pandemic, there are some steps you can take to improve your chances. Maxim Gorin will discuss four ways to help ensure your business makes it through these difficult times in this blog post.
Put Together a Business Continuity Plan
One of the most important things you can do is create a business continuity plan. This document will outline how your company will continue to function in the event of a pandemic. It should include information about which employees will work from home, who will be responsible for making decisions, and what procedures need to be followed to ensure that critical tasks are still completed.
If you do not have a business continuity plan, now is the time to create one. You can find templates online or talk to an insurance company about creating a plan specific to your business.
If possible, have Employees Work from Home
Many businesses allow their employees to work from home if at all possible. This helps keep employees safe and helps reduce the spread of the virus. If your company can allow employees to work from home, make sure you have the necessary technology in place to support them.
If you do not have enough laptops or other devices to support your entire workforce, consider buying more. If you need help setting up a remote work environment, talk to your IT department or hire a consultant specializing in remote work.
Encourage Social Distancing among Employees
Another way to help ensure your company survives the pandemic is by encouraging social distancing among employees. This can be accomplished by having employees sit at least six feet apart and avoid congregating in common areas, such as break rooms. Consider allowing them to take breaks and lunch separately so that they are not in contact with each other during these times of the day. You should also provide hand sanitizer or soap and water for all employees to use when they wash their hands.
Reinforce Hygiene Practices Among Employees
Good hygiene practices can help prevent the spread of germs, which will improve employee health and business continuity during a pandemic situation. Encourage employees to wash their hands regularly for at least 20 seconds with warm water and soap after using the restroom, sneezing into a tissue (or if no tissues are available), touching someone else’s body fluids (blood, saliva, urine), etc. You should also provide hand sanitizer or soap and water for all employees to use when they wash their hands.
Review Insurance Policies And Make Sure You Are Covered
Another way to help ensure your company survives the pandemic is by reviewing insurance policies and making sure you are covered for pandemics. This may mean updating existing policies to include coverage of pandemic-related losses such as lost revenue due to business closures or supply chain disruptions caused by quarantines in other countries where goods are produced (i.e., China). It could even result from an employee being sick with COVID-19 while working at home because someone else has it too but didn’t tell anyone about their diagnosis until it was too late.
The best way to make sure your company survives the pandemic is by creating a business continuity plan. This should include putting together an emergency response team, having employees work from home if possible, restricting travel for employees, encouraging social distancing among employees, and reviewing insurance policies. Keeping in mind these steps can help ensure that you are both prepared for when it hits and know what to do once it does strike so you don’t go under.