Business continuity plan for the novel Covid-19 pandemic
A business continuity plan or BCP lays out a set of recovery and prevention guidelines for businesses in the face of disasters. Think of it as a safety net against natural calamities, unforeseen strikes, and cyber attacks. Proper business continuity management ensures the safety of company assets and personnel so that businesses can resume quickly after a threat.
Unlike calculated financial and operational risks, disasters can strike without warning. Take the coronavirus outbreak, for instance. Strict quarantine measures and travel bans have paralyzed businesses, most of who don’t have a predefined disaster recovery plan. Here’s a quick guide on business continuity planning for companies, especially for small and medium enterprises, to help them mitigate the risks of the novel Covid-19 pandemic.
1. Human resource management-
- Familiarize employees with existing business continuity plans.
- Consider flexible work option for your employees
- Ensure compliance during the quarantine period
- Review employee management policies like workplace closure, sick leaves, and absenteeism
2. Workflow and business functions-
- Prioritize vital business functions and set up alternate teams of employees who can handle different work schedules
- Educate employees on infection control and public health response guidelines (e.g. social distancing)
- Establish covering arrangements for employees by cross-training them.
- Set up a robust employee monitoring program to identify and manage unwell workers.
3. Communication-
- Identify proper channels of internal and external communication.
- Ensure the employees have a clear understanding of their responsibilities during the quarantine period. Their roles should be predefined in the business continuity plan.
- Keep your suppliers, service providers and clients informed about your contingency plans.
Businesses are encouraged to plan and execute business continuity plans to minimize disruptions to their operations. An easy way to do this is by deploying a business continuity software that doubles as a risk management solution. This is especially important when allowing employees to work from home.
Remotedesk is an AI-based business continuity software that makes sure your business remains viable during the virus outbreak. With remotedesk, enterprises can:
- Monitor employee activity when they are working from unsecured remote locations.
- Exercise financial risk management by mitigating the risk of insider threats and data breaches.
- Secures confidential company information and safeguard sensitive client data
- Ensure policy compliance for work-from-home agents.
