On March 12 in the year 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. This declaration took the world by storm and led to the aftermath of closings, shutdowns, and quarantines.
Businesses were hit particularly hard by the realization as most had to shut their doors and stop production. Employees around the world grew worrisome as firings were announced and hours were cut.
If you're a business owner, you may find yourself confused and even scared in this time full of unknowns. If this is you, you've come to the right place. We know how you should conduct your business in reaction to COVID-19.
Keep reading to learn how to transform your company policy amidst the pandemic striking the world.
Protecting Everyone
Every company should go forth with handling this pandemic as if it is on the doorstep of their organization. If you have to, just assume that everyone is a risk for infection or everyone already has it.
You need to make sure that you're taking the entire threat of the coronavirus seriously.
If you haven't done so already, you should be sure to make an announcement to your staff regarding the pandemic and what your plans are going forward. If you have no plans, you should create that email after reading this entire article.
However, there are some basic points that we want to mention before we go into how you should change your policy.
Make sure to address what the Centers for Disease Control has mentioned regarding personal protection. You want to make sure that your employees are safe, even if they are outside of the office.
Mention handwashing and distancing. Talk about sensitive populations and symptom tracking.
Make sure that your employees know you care. Then, you can address policy changes and company responses.
Prioritize
First and foremost, you should meet with all of the leaders in your company. Every single department should be represented. Hopefully, you can have this meeting over video chat.
During the meeting, you should address the most important and most time-sensitive matters within each department in your company. These are the tasks that you should mention to staff and cover within your company transition.
For example, your internet technology staff may note that there is a problem with your website. This should be a priority as many of your customers or clients will be using your website to communicate with your business for the foreseeable future.
When addressing your staff, you should note that this is a priority and make a plan to fix it safely.
Communicate
Your organization should already be amazing at communicating with everyone. However, you should be five times as devoted to communicating during this time. It is the most important thing to do when everyone is distancing from one another.
We recommend that you send emails regularly to your staff. If you'd rather, you should have department heads send out regular emails.
The point of increased communication is to ensure that everyone is on the same page. You never want an employee to feel like they are left in the dark or stuck in confusion.
Regular meetings, emails, and other forms of communication and collaboration should be taken advantage of. Be sure to highlight exactly what you expect of employees during this time.
For example, you may need Bill on your marketing team to make an Instagram post about cleanliness during the coronavirus outbreak. Make sure to clearly tell him this. Otherwise, it may not get done and then everyone will be frustrated.
Go Home
If you can, you should send everyone home including yourself.
As we said earlier, you can video chat and use email to continue business operations. We understand that it may be different, difficult, or just plain annoying, but it is truly what is safe for everyone.
Sending all employees home or at least the non-essential ones show how much you care about your staff's wellbeing. They will appreciate the care that you have for them and possibly even work harder when they're at home to make up for the difference.
Use Your Resources
There are plenty of online resources that are available to you and all of your staff during this time. Don't let your business tasks become stressful simply because being at home is a different means of operation.
Take advantage of discounted deals, free trials, and given products that many companies are announcing during the pandemic. These may even come to improve your business tactics or you may just find a new tool you'd like to use for company organization in the future.
These free and discounted products and platforms will make the online transition easier for you and your staff. Use different offers and reach out to your staff to see what they may need help with during this time.
Stand Out
Don't be afraid to speak out during this time. As COVID-19 becomes more prevalent in the United States, we're seeing more companies come out to help with the spread.
Some companies are fundraising, while others are simply announcing that they are doing their part by staying home. Some organizations are even encouraging people to reach out to their senators and other people of influence.
With the coronavirus outbreak aligning with elections, companies are finding it important to highlight candidates that are responding positively during this time. As a business owner, you should discover more about those specific candidates.
The pandemic has become a time where all kinds of organizations are using their voices to call for greater action and better government. Don't be afraid to speak out with them, especially if it is for the betterment of your employees and your clients or customers.
Changing Company Policy
Addressing company policy with everything that is going on can be difficult. Your business may be struggling with trying to keep some things the same while everything else seems to change indefinitely.
However, you should definitely be making changes to your company policies. You have to address the matter at hand and keep everyone in your company safe with an updated company policy reflective of current employee and customer safety concerns.
