Harvard Business Review Report says that a ‘flu pandemic would be single biggest threat to business continuity

A special report in the May issue of Harvard Business Review says that companies need to ‘wake up to the threat of avian flu and create business continuity plans that specifically address the risk of a pandemic’.

The 14-page report, ‘Preparing for a Pandemic,’ says that the unfolding, global nature of a pandemic makes it fundamentally different from traditional business continuity threats. In a worst-case pandemic scenario, the report says, businesses will experience logistics breakdowns, supply chain disruptions, security concerns, a drop in demand for many products and services, and see up to one-third of their workforces out sick or otherwise unavailable.

The report contains contributions by 12 experts on communications, organizational resilience, global health, and other crisis preparedness topics.

Jeffrey Staples, a senior medical advisor for International SOS, says that the greatest threat to business continuity will be from unprecedented absenteeism. During peak periods, companies could experience absentee rates between 15 percent and 30 percent due to sickness, quarantines, travel restrictions, and fear of contagion.

Harvard Business School Professor Nitin Nohria advocates an ‘open source model’ to crisis response in which companies co-develop preparedness plans with partners and suppliers.

Larry Brilliant, founder of the global health project group Seva Foundation, says that companies should call on government leadership in three crucial areas: early disease detection, rapidly responding with vaccines and treatments, and supplying credible information about symptoms and how to prevent transmission.
Baruch Fischhoff, a psychologist and expert in risk communications at Carnegie Mellon University, says that communications will backfire if officials spin the truth because they think that employees will panic when given accurate information about a crisis. Companies must pressure test communications beforehand to ensure they are understood as intended.

Peter Susser, a partner at the law firm of Littler Mendelson, urges companies to limit legal exposure by making sure their HR policies in health communication, hygiene, privacy, and leave are adequately up-to-date.

•Date: 4th May 2006• Region: US/World • Type: Article •Topic: Pandemic planning
Rate this article or make a comment - click here