The Leader - September 2007 - (Page 61) th e p o t e Nt I a l pa N dem Ic: Wh y em er GeN cy pre p are dNe s s p laNs make s e Ns e W he the r the p aNde mI c s t rIk e s o r No t Can you contract for vaccinations for your employees once an effective vaccine is produced? (There are likely to be availability and liability issues that should be addressed.) n Can or should your company contract for the administration of antiviral drugs such as Tamiflu? (Again, there may be availability issues.) n How do office closures or mandatory quarantines affect an employee’s pay and leave status? n What happens if an employee expends all of their sick leave or vacation days because of the pandemic? The corporate plan should also incorporate measures to reduce employees’ exposure to the virus. Some actions that should be considered include expanding the use of teleconferencing in lieu of face-to-face meetings, closing communal dining facilities and pantries, implementing or expanding work-from-home programs, controlling employee travel to areas where the virus is widespread, and providing employees guidance on proper personal hygiene measures to limit the spread of the contagion within the office and home. Upgrading rest rooms by installing touchless fixtures is one initiative that can significantly reduce employees’ potential exposure to the contagion while reducing long-term utility costs. Developing and distributing wellness guidance is an effective and inexpensive means of reducing the likelihood of the spread of the pandemic within the work force. Guidance on the importance of frequent hand-washing, of covering coughs and sneezes, of maintaining a clean work area and of “social distancing,” maintaining at least three feet of separation from other persons to minimize the risk of inhaling the contagion, should be provided to all employees. n Companies should give serious consideration to stockpiling pandemic-related supplies, such as disinfecting hand-wipes, alcohol-based antiseptic hand gel, surface disinfecting wipes, tissues and nose/ mouth masks. If supplies are not ordered immediately, suppliers should be identified and trigger points established in advance so that orders can be placed if and when the pandemic alert reaches a predesignated level. An often overlooked step is evaluating key vendors’ abilities to provide critical services and products throughout the pandemic period. Contracts should be reviewed to determine which vendors and the services they provide are truly essential to your business operations. Those vendors should then be contacted, their pandemic preparations reviewed and minimum performance standards mutually agreed upon to ensure that they clearly understand your firm’s performance expectations. For those whose preparations appear questionable, alternative service providers should be identified and contacted to determine whether they will be able to step in if your primary service provider falters. cross-traIN to eNsure reduNdaNcy Once the list of essential services has been compiled, those key employees responsible for each should be identified and alternates selected for cross-training. To the greatest extent possible, cross-training should be conducted between departments, offices or properties to ensure the broadest possible coverage if an entire staff or facility becomes incapacitated. the property or offIce plaN The ability to provide uninterrupted essential services is of paramount importance to companies during any crisis. Mission-critical internal processes, as well as client services, must be identified and personnel cross-trained in order to cover for sick employees during a pandemic. While the list of mission-critical internal processes will vary widely between firms, some common essential functions can include payroll, accounting, payment processing, procurement and transportation. A pandemic preparedness plan for a commercial property or for an office incorporates many of the features of the corporate plan but also focuses on janitorial practices to limit the spread of the contagion at the property. Property managers should engage owners in advance of a pandemic to identify those services that they are prepared to live without in the event of a widespread outbreak. Not all vendors’ services are created equal when it comes to operating a property. Landscaping and hospitality services will not be as important during a pandemic as janitorial, security, HVAC or elevator services. Which of your vendors are truly critical and which ones can you live without, or live with a reduced level of performance from, during the height of a pandemic? Once it has been determined what the property can and cannot operate without during a pandemic, you will then have to take steps to ensure that the critical services can be provided. Review building operating systems to determine which can be operated remotely and which will require personnel to be physically present on-site to ensure proper operation. As with the company plan, the importance of cross-training mission- th e le ade r 61 september / october 2007
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