Business and the swine flu threat

I recently attended a conference in Singapore that tackled preparations for the possible pandemic that the A/H1N1 virus (swine flu) can cause, and I was impressed by the concern shown by the city state’s business community. More than 1,300 business executives, along with the Minister of Health, joined the discussion to adequately address and manage the effects of the problems brought about by the evolving health crisis. I remember during the SARS epidemic, I initiated a similar session for Singapore and Hong Kong business on behalf of the APEC Business Advisory Council. Manila was not interested.

In the Philippines, the rapid emergence and spread of A/H1N1 cases highlights the need to ramp up our efforts to avert a potential crisis, especially in a worst case scenario. The outbreak has become more than just a health issue. The potential for a real public health disaster with huge social repercussions demands a re-thinking of the national response to the pandemic threat.

Business continuity planning as a response

The business sector, in particular, has to undertake Business Continuity Planning (BCP) to meet the objectives of ensuring returns on the investments of its stockholders, providing goods and services to the community, and maintaining a reputation for reliability and efficiency, even in the midst of a crippling social and economic environment where public utilities and services can grind to a halt, or a significant number of the workforce become sick and are unable to work.

While various measures have been put into place by a number of companies as part of their contingency response — including the stockpiling of medicines, regularly posting medical bulletins and updating their existing disaster preparedness plans — these fall short of BCP that is designed to properly and effectively address the whole range of issues that a public health disaster brings about.

Impact of a pandemic to business operations

BCP involves a number of key activities to ensure that essential business functions can survive a natural disaster, technological failure, human error, or other disruptions. First, businesses should plan for the impact of a pandemic on its operations. This involves building various scenarios where demand for products and services either increases or decreases, and developing the appropriate plan in response to these scenarios, which should include possible closure of banks and other financial institutions, increase in prices, disruption of social services, travel restrictions due to quarantines and border closures, and workplace security. This stage in BCP also requires the setting up of a pandemic team, with defined roles and responsibilities for response planning that considers inputs from labor representatives. It is essential at this time to identify essential employees and other critical inputs to maintain business operations, train and prepare an ancillary workforce, or engage contractors, employees in other job titles, and even retirees, in the event of employee absences or deaths. It is likewise important for the company to establish an emergency communications plan with a database of key contacts and back-ups, an established chain of communication, and a tracking system for monitoring status of business contacts and employees. These components of a company’s business continuity plan should be tested through drills and exercises, and updated or revised as necessary. Lastly, the company should develop a recovery plan to restore full-blown operations once the pandemic is over.

Managing key stakeholder relations

Another key activity under BCP is planning for the impact of a pandemic on employees and customers, allocating resources to protect them, and establishing relevant policies to be implemented during a pandemic. Aside from forecasting and allowing for employee absences on account of personal illness or illness among family members, official or self-imposed quarantines, school closures, and interruptions of public transportation, the company should allow employees flexible working hours, or to work from their homes altogether and use IT to ensure and maximize productivity. Employees should likewise be encouraged to undergo annual flu vaccination – and monitored for compliance – and provided access to health facilities (clinics or hospitals) or health insurance coverage. Guidelines for employee and customer protection, such as the use of face masks and checking of temperature, should be implemented, while infection control supplies in all business locations should be made sufficient and accessible to both employees and customers.

Institutional awareness and preparedness

The third component activity for a comprehensive and effective BCP is continuous communication and education for employees, which requires that the company provide informational materials on pandemic fundamentals that answer frequently asked questions (FAQs) on personal and family protection. It would also do the company well to anticipate fear and anxiety, as well as rumors and misinformation, and plan communications initiatives accordingly, with relevant materials that are culturally and linguistically appropriate. Needless to say, it is important for the company to share its pandemic preparedness and response plan with the entire workforce.

Community engagement: Expression of social responsibility

As a measure of its obligation to the community where it operates, the last but certainly not the least critical component of a company’s BCP is working with external organizations. It is important for the company to collaborate especially with public health agencies and make available assets or services that would contribute to the welfare of other sectors of the community. At the same time, the company should be able to share best practices with other business organizations, chambers of commerce and industry, and other associations or private-sector networks to improve community response efforts.

Planning & Preparation: Doing Business During a Pandemic

Influenza pandemics have wrought havoc on human populations in the past, the more serious of which resulting in millions of death. The most horrible outbreaks include the “Spanish” influenza in 1918, which took the lives of more than 40 million people, and the Asian and Hong Kong pandemics in 1957 and 1968, each killing more than a million people. The A/H1N1 outbreak will certainly not be the last, and the more prepared we are in the business community; the better it is not only for us, but for the entire national community.

We do well to heed the words of Trust for America’s Health: “It’s Not Flu As Usual: What Businesses Need to Know about Pandemic Flu Planning” (www.healthyamericans.org). Business Continuity Planning is a sensible means to keep your business in business, in spite of, or even amidst, a pandemic.