Business Continuity Planning: Remote Work

The coronavirus (or Covid-19) is taking a more serious turn in the South Africa with warnings that it could very well impact how, when, and where we work: That's a lot of disruption for the technology industry and for most industries, especially since the virus has not spread very far in the country yet. The global spread of the virus may be a moment that reveals whether employers are ready to respond rapidly to unexpected workplace changes. Business travel will decrease or come to a full stop. More employees may need to work outside of local “business hours” and use video conferencing to operate across time zones. And, if it gets bad enough, many could indeed be asked, or request, to work remotely. Thanks to digital transformation and cloud computing, you probably already have migrated a lot of work to the cloud. You may also have collaboration tools in place such as chat software and video conferencing. If you haven't prepared at all for such an event, it's a good idea to start with a team of maybe eight employees and tell them all to work from home. That team works from home for one day with each person doing their normal work. They should be able to interact with co-workers, clients, and partners as weel as use all the systems the company has set up. Perform regular assessments. How did it go? Were there any hiccups? That's where you need to direct your attention. Troubleshoot the problems and then roll out the solutions to the team. It's only through practice that you will turn this new way of working into muscle memory, making it as natural as working at your desk at the office. You need to plan as if the only way to remain operational will be for as many employees as possible to work remotely. Gather a cross-functional team together that includes business-line leaders, IT, HR, communications, and facilities to start to plan for different scenarios and optimize execution, should circumstances require a rapid response. Note which roles and duties: 1) Can be done, even partially, without a physical presence in the workplace, 2) Cannot be done, even somewhat, outside of the physical office, and 3) Not sure.

You will need to challenge any potentially inaccurate default assumptions about specific jobs you may have thought couldn’t be done remotely. And for those in the “not sure” column, be willing to experiment. For example, for years, We’ve been told, “Helpdesk analysts can’t work flexibly.” And, for years, We have worked with teams of systems administrators to prove that is not true. Yes, certain tasks they complete require physical presence, but those can be planned for. The majority of their tasks can happen effectively outside of the traditional model of work and benefit the business. If you'll be using your mobile phone and video conferencing, you will also want to make sure you have a headset and maybe an external webcam, We also recommend that you test your vitual private network (VPN) before you leave the office. To do that, first disconnect from that office network, then turn on your mobile phone's WiFi hotspot, and connect to the corporate network that way. Make sure you can connect via VPN or gain entrance through whatever security measures your enterprise has in place. You also need to assess the comfort level with specific applications, such as video conferencing and other collaboration/communication platforms. Where you find gaps, provide training and opportunities for practice before people need to use them. Real-time mastery is not optimal and is inefficient. Identify devices owned by the organization that people could use and clarify acceptable “bring your own device” (BYOD), be it phone and laptop options. Determine if there are any data-security issues to consider and how best to address them beforehand. Your communications plan needs to outline: how to reach everybody (e.g., all contact information in one place, primary communication channels clarified — email, IM, Slack, etc.); how employees are expected to respond to customers; and how and when teams will coordinate and meet.

For management, pull out those rules and procedures you wrote up to deal with emergencies and crises, Figure out the way that you will communicate directives with employees. Determine what systems, communications, and processes you need to implement to continue on as an existing business entity serving customers and employees. After the flexible response period is over, this data will allow you to reflect on what worked, what didn’t, and why. The data will also prepare you in advance to answer the inevitable question once the crisis has passed, “Why don’t we do this all the time?” Depending upon the outcomes, you may decide to continue certain aspects of the flexible response permanently. For example, perhaps you cut business travel by 25% and substitute video conferencing. You determine afterward that about 80% of those meetings were equally as effective virtually. Therefore, a 20% decrease in business travel will continue, but this time as part of the organization’s sustainability strategy to cut carbon emissions. Global health emergencies, like Covid-19, are scary, disruptive, and confusing for everyone. And if you plan and nothing happens? Then, at minimum, you have an organized, flexible work disaster response ready the next time there’s a challenge to operational continuity, which chances are, there will be.