What are the Next Steps for Your Business?

“We truly are all in this together.”

As every business plans its next steps to address the impacts of COVID-19, it’s important to remember these words from Mark Beasley. We truly are all in this together.

Beasley, CPA, professor, and director of the Enterprise Risk Management Initiative at NC State University, delivered a webinar for us to provide important perspectives for businesses facing what has happened and what’s yet to come. We called the webinar, Coronavirus: Impact on Enterprise Risk Management.

The concept of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) enhances processes for businesses to manage and minimize their risks.

“We need to figure out which risks need to be managed first,” said Beasley. “First, let’s deal with the here and now. Then, once we get through this, we will assess the damage and rebuild for the future.”

Beasley said the goal for businesses should not be perfection. It needs to be safety and survival.

“There will be damage to most businesses,” he said.

The first priority, Beasley said, needs to be figuring out where all of your employees are positioned and ensuring they are safe.

“Think about where they are residing right now,” he advised. “Are they traveling? Do they need to get to safety?”

Right now, many businesses and organizations are finalizing plans to have their employees work remotely for the foreseeable future. Beasley said, in this situation, it is critical that businesses consider how employees are communicating. That includes considering both technology and tone.

“As we think about communicating,” he said, “are we exhibiting compassion and empathy?”

It’s also vital that all key players have access to the technology that they will need in order to communicate effectively.

“Hopefully, in a few weeks, we will be beyond the immediate fire that we are in,” said Beasley.

While we are in our current situation, he advised that businesses do a worst-case scenario, moderate-case scenario, and a best-case scenario to get a sense of the potential range of outcomes.

“Figure out what you need to go right for your business and what are the ways that you can you make it go right,” said Beasley. “Get your people talking. Don’t try to solve this in isolation by yourself. Over-communicate with compassion and empathy.”

If you missed any part of Beasley’s presentation, you can watch the recorded version.

Additionally, the Enterprise Risk Management Initiative website through NC State’s Poole College of Management has a wealth of resources that businesses will find useful during this time of uncertainty. Beasley said there are more than 600 articles and resources. All are free.
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And, remember, we truly are all in this together.