Once upon a pandemic: Reflections on Crisis Management and Disaster Recovery

By: Omar Abdul-Hafiz

Around this time last year, the world was still freshly coping with the sudden and forceful impact of the COVID pandemic. Lockdowns were still strictly applied in many parts of the world and the vaccines were still in their early research stages.

Numerous studies and articles were written about the different aspects of the pandemic and lessons that we can pick up from it for the future. All these studies, however, point in one direction:

In order for businesses to survive through perilous circumstances, they need a strong ability to adapt, make well-informed on-spot decisions, and also learn from mistakes and improve accordingly.

In light of that, this article sheds the light on some of the core elements that need to be in place for successful crisis navigation.

Is COVID fuelling startups or stopping it?

By: Cesilia Faustina

Thanks to COVID-19 many businesses are at a standstill and struggling to make ends meet. It has created multiple challenges for the economy, which is affecting startups all over the world. Over the years, financial analysts and journalists have continuously covered stories of the development of startups. It was seen as a great contributor to the economy for the coming years. In a way, it still is, but startups are also one of the sectors most affected by the pandemic.

According to a survey by Startup Genome, 74 percent of startups had seen their revenues decline since the beginning of the pandemic. Even one of the most popular startups sectors, fintech, has seen decreasing profits due to the pandemic. Funding for fintech has fallen 45 percent compared to Q4 of 2019, according to a report by CB Insights. Startups will need and have taken tighter steps to reduce losses, with big startups like UBER having cut its workforce by 14 percent and other companies taking part in massive layoffs as well. Some have even been forced to shut down and start new businesses.

How are Human Resources personnel coping with the Coronavirus situation?

By: Omar Abdul-Hafiz

Back in January, when the true magnitude of the coronavirus pandemic was still unclear, HR managers were merely concerned about how to protect staff as they came to the office or attended corporate events.  But as weeks unfolded, they found themselves racing against time to plan and implement a swift work-from-home transition to keep the flow of work from falling apart. So how have been the HR teams coping with the urgency of this whole situation?

Uncharted waters

The rapid unfolding of events has revealed that companies around the world are facing a challenge in adaptability unlike any other they faced before, and hardly anyone could have accounted for it at an early stage.

Working from home vs. working at the office: Which is better for your business?

By: Omar Abdul-Hafiz

The recent predicament with the outbreak of the coronavirus has created nothing short of an earthquake in the business landscape worldwide. One major aspect of this shockwave was the sudden urgent need to keep the flow of work going while still adhering to the safety measures necessary to counter the spread of the pandemic. And none of these efforts would have been effective without the option to switch to remote work as an urgent alternative to the traditional office-based model of work.

And if there’s one thing this has taught us, it’s that the current status quo that we have lived comfortably with for years can, and will, be disrupted in a matter of a few weeks. As such, working at an office became a no-option for a large number of enterprises around the world, and working from home became the one and only way to keep work going.

Why we should be talking about business continuity planning more than ever now

By: Cesilia Faustina

In times of the Coronavirus, many businesses are forced to work remotely, if not shut down completely. This situation is taking a toll on many industries and the economy. It is important in times like these that companies prepare themselves for what’s to come, not only during such outbreaks but also afterwards.

This is where business continuity planning (BCP) comes in. BCP is very crucial in these times, and whether you are a small business or big corporate company, you need to be prepared and aware.