As the statistics mount every day, we all hope that Covid19 will not live up to it’s potential. We hope for the best, but we need to plan for the worst.
Listening to government planning something becomes clear. As is often the case, back-up systems are designed by government for big business and those who work for big businesses. Those of us who run smaller businesses, on whom so many people rely for their livelihoods, cannot afford to shut down and still pay for a work force that is self-isolating. Neither can we afford to simply sit back and allow work to be lost because of travel restrictions that may be put in place.
• What will change in your business if you suddenly find yourself with a remote team?
• How will you continue to deliver the brilliant service for which you are known?
We need the ability to adapt quickly to new ways of leading our team and to new ways of delivering the brilliant service for which we are known. We may need the ability to devise plans quickly and to respond to a quickly evolving situation.
Planning for a team to move from being a traditional office-based team to being a remote team takes time and careful thought. If you haven’t already done this thinking, start considering it now. Not necessarily as a permanent solution, but as a way of continuing through what may be a challenging few months ahead.
• Break down the tasks that happen every day.
• Pay particular attention to the communication and interactions that make this possible
• How do you interact with clients?
• What would need to happen to replicate all this remotely?
• How could you do that?
• What would be the best way to stay in communication, to maintain the team spirit and to work together?
• What systems exist to support you to do what you need to do?
Putting in place a strategy for business continuity is clearly a good idea right now. Potentially it may need to be done quite quickly. Consider working with somebody who can help you focus your thinking and enable you to think quickly; think clearly and act deliberately.
As part of our commitment to supporting growing businesses, Growhouse are discounting their one-off coaching and facilitation to support business leaders to plan and adapt to the unique challenges of 2020. Dependent on the evolving situation we can work face-to-face or via video conferencing.
For more information contact Ian Harrison – ian.harrison@growhouse-gb.com
