This article begins with an explanation of a possible bird flu epidemic and the steps you can take to reduce the impact of such an event on your workforce. The article continues below.
Supplier Risk Planning
You can expect two main problems with suppliers during a bird flu epidemic, their ability to deliver may be reduced as their workforce is reduced by illness and their quality may slip as they lose workers with specific expertise. You can begin now to prepare for these risks by:- Diversify your supply chain.
You should have dependable suppliers in many areas so that a problem in one location will not interrupt your entire supply. Even if a bird flu epidemic spreads over a wide area or even globally and becomes a pandemic there will be places that are less severely impacted. The more distributed your supplier base is, the better your chances are of maintaining adequate supplies. - Adjust your production estimates.
You may not need as many supplies as you do now if your customers reduce demand. Try to match supply to demand. - Enhance your incoming inspections.
In addition to receiving supplies, you will need to do more quality checks because of potential quality changes at your suppliers. If you are receiving packages, etc. from suppliers, you may want to provide enhance personal protection (gloves, masks, etc.) for your receivers and some method for them to decontaminate or isolate specific packages.
Customer Risk Planning
For most companies, a bird flu epidemic will lead to a reduced demand for their products. You will need to plan for this possibility just as you currently plan for changes in demand. However, some companies will experience an increased demand if their products (e.g. surgical masks) will help people deal with a bird flu epidemic.If you expect demand to fall:
- Focus on reducing production to match demand,
- Know which employees will be laid off or which plants slowed down, and
- Maintain close communication with your customers to monitor changes in their needs.
If you expect demand to increase:
- Determine whether if makes sense economically to increase production before the bird flu epidemic strikes so you will have additional stock on hand.
- Make sure your suppliers are also planning ahead for such an event.
- Make your workforce aware of the importance of their productivity during an event like this. Explain the plans you are making and the steps you are taking to keep them as safe as possible while they work.
- Focus on cross training. You will undoubtedly lose at least a few key employees during a bird flu epidemic. Cross training others reduces the severity of the loss because the cross trained person can help take up the slack.
Governmental and Other Risk Planning
In the event of a bird flu epidemic, governments may impose travel restrictions. They may impose quarantine restrictions on incoming shipments. People and packages may not be able to move as readily from country to country as they do now. You will have no control over such actions by any government. However, you can prepare for such risks by:- Diversifying locations of your production facilities and your suppliers. Even if a bird flu epidemic spreads over a wide area, or even globally, and becomes a pandemic there will be places that are less severely impacted. The more distributed your company is, the better chance you have of avoiding impacts from governmental restrictions.
- Find ways to produce and deliver your product without crossing governmental boundaries. Software companies can deliver their product over the Internet rather than having to ship a disk to a customer overseas. Investigate whether technology can help your company in a similar way.
- Work with your governmental representatives. You should know and establish working relationships with your elected officials, but also with the employees of the various agencies that have an interest in, or impact on, your product. Make sure they know the effect any restrictions they impose will have on your business. Work with them ahead of time to discuss possible alternatives.
Communications Planning
In the event of a large scale bird flu epidemic, one of the key factors to keeping any business successfully operating will be the execution of its communication plan.- Make sure you have a disaster communications plan
- Add a section to your disaster communications plan to cover a bird flu epidemic
- Make sure your employees, suppliers, and customers know you have a plan in place and that they know the parts of it that affect them.
- Make sure your employees know your sick leave policy and how it has been adjusted to account for a possible epidemic.
- Make sure your employees know about, and understand the purpose and value of, your cross training program.
