CORONAVIRUS APRIL 2020
REBULDING INDUSTRY
The scramble to both stop the community
Companies must act now to mitigate against the economic e ects of coronavirus
22
BY NICHOLAS BAHR, GLOBAL PRACTICE DIRECTOR, DUPONT SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS
spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus) and
mitigate its economic impacts continues
to consume the attention of business
leaders. Indeed, the very nature of this
pandemic – it being a fl uid, continuous
emergency vs. a one-time event – demands
extreme agility and creativity from executives.
Yet as they debate the impact of employees
working from home and changes to their supply
chains, they are losing valuable time to plan their
recovery. Though businesses are currently in
the Response phase, it is not too early to start
planning for the Recovery phase.
Much remains unknown about the coronavirus
and its economic impacts. As the situation
continues to evolve, and business continuity
plans specifi c to prevention and response are
increasingly deployed, it is vital that business
leaders divert some attention now to how they
will return to full capacity.
stay in touch. Companies can
off er further support by being
sensitive to employees’ families
and their safety and health and
sharing with regular, reliable
and proactive advice. Many
people get their health news
from social media, a place very
susceptible to rumour and
misinformation. No employee
can function properly if they are
afraid for their family.
When planning for the
Recovery phase, develop
protocols that ensure that
employees are healthy before
returning to the offi ce, and
provide a safe, sanitary work
environment when they return.
All workstations and equipment
should be sterilised to ensure
that no further transmission
is possible.
Establish a clear
governance system
One of the fi rst priorities for
recovery planning is to have a
clear governance model that
prioritises quick decisionmaking.
This is particularly
important for larger, more
hierarchical companies with
an abundance of processes. An
Executive Recovery Committee
(ERC) should be established
for the corporation, one that
cascades responsibility to
regional and local organising
committees. Each should be
given authority to take decisions
at the local level related to
personnel and operating assets
as needed. Be prepared for a
phased recovery. Most likely,
it will take time to return to
full operations; that means
you need to prepare to bring
people and operations back
up in a reasoned, planned
and structured way. Game
out various scenarios and
roadblocks to help prepare.
In the recent Operational Risk
Management survey, conducted
by DuPont Sustainable
Solutions, it was discovered
that executives are prioritising
immediate crisis management
response and failing to prepare
for long-term recovery. While
70% of business leaders are
confi dent that their business
disruption plan will protect
them from the immediate
eff ects of a major incident, 25%
are unsure of its quality and 33%
admit that there is a possibility
that a single point of failure
could bring the entire plan
crashing down. This tells us that
companies are not suffi ciently
prepared for impacts of the
current pandemic
This lack of preparedness
may foretell their demise:
according to the US Federal
Emergency Management
Agency, more than 40% of
businesses never reopen after
a disaster, and for those that
do, only 29% were still
operating after two years
(https://bit.ly/3dc5VN5).
What follows are some ways
your company can start the
recovery process.
Take care of your people
For any operation, the most
important resource is people.
Naturally, they will therefore
be the fi rst priority. During the
Response phase, companies
will need a robust and frequent
communications channel
with all employees, one
that includes a monitoring
mechanism to understand
whether the employees or their
families have been infected
or impacted by the virus,
particularly when employees
are working remotely. They may
need support with the digital
tools and software needed to
www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk
/3dc5VN5)
/www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk