Coronavirus: Prepare and Protect Your Business
The March 11, 2020 World Health Organization (WHO) announcement of the novel coronavirus pandemic certainly escalated concerns about the level of disruption to businesses. And as the situation continues to evolve, taking a 360-degree look at what you can do to secure your business and employees has never been more important.
Consider the following actions:
- Closely monitor the situation
Review national, state, local and World Health Organization information sources daily, if possible. Primary sources are preferable, such as the following:
- Your local and state public health authorities
- Centers for Disease Control (CDC): https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/
- World Health Organization (WHO): https://www.who.int/
- Mitigate impact on your business and team
- Continue to reduce potential exposure to COVID-19 by encouraging good hygiene and, as recommended by health authorities, avoiding high-risk environments.
- This is the time when a business continuity plan is vital to ensure you have enough people on staff to maintain business operations. If you already have a business continuity plan, review and update it.
- If you do not have a business continuity plan in place, consider:
- Forming a cross-functional pandemic planning team.
- Establishing a regular meeting schedule and response cycle to review and assess situation.
Other considerations:
Conduct basic, all-scenario planning and develop appropriate strategies. For example, consider potential interruptions to your business from issues with key partners and understand their response plan and any potential impact to your business. Consider:
- Employees who are ill or are quarantined.
- Employees who are not ill but need to care for others.
- Employees who refuse to work based on fear of unsafe work environments.
- Supply chain disruptions.
- Impact on demand / potential financial impacts.
- Evaluate how your operations are impacted by the coronavirus crisis and consider whether your insurance policies potentially provide coverage for losses. Consult with your insurance broker and business advisor to review your coverage.
For additional information, contact us at info@herbein.com.
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Herbein is responding to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic with our Coronavirus Resource Center, which provides regularly updated information, answers to frequently asked questions and other resources to help during this global health crisis. Continue to check back for more updates in the coming weeks.
