As working from home is becoming the new norm at least for now, organizations might be finding that their business continuity plan (BCP) overlooked a few things. Following are three key questions for your organization to consider and add to its plan.
Are Employees Equipped to Work from Home?
Besides potential distractions like active children and barking dogs, working from home can present basic challenges, such as:
No dedicated office space
Lack of equipment or programs to do the necessary work
Absence of ergonomic work stations, which is becoming a bigger deal since no one can predict when business as usual will return
While many employees are used to working from home occasionally, this is not the case for everyone. One VP informed me that his company has asked each employee to provide a photo of their work setup at home. He has seen less than ideal situations, including card tables and chairs, as well as laptops positioned on kitchen islands. His company is currently debating whether employees should take their office chairs home. This leads to the next big question.
What are Employees Allowed to Purchase?
Does your BCP define exactly what each employee needs, including the quality allowed? Will your organization pay for basic items like pens and sticky notes? What about big ticket items like chairs, monitors, and printers? Another issue is Internet connectivity and whether your organization will pay for employees to upgrade their home situation. Be clear about what is allowed to prevent a free for all buying frenzy.
What is the Purchase-to-Pay (P2P) Process?
Will purchases be centralized or decentralized? Is one person or one team (e.g., procurement) responsible for placing office supply orders? Or will each employee be able to do their own purchasing? I see the latter option as riskier, but each organization needs to decide what works best for them. At a minimum, I endorse Commercial Card usage, as expense reimbursements to employees can be a costly process. See more on P2P options for remote employees.
Final Thoughts
Crisis situations can bring out both the best and worst in people. To protect your organization from the worst, ensure there are appropriate controls. You do not want to pay for employees creating extravagant home offices for themselves or family and friends.
See additional content about disaster planning and recovery.
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About the Author
Blog post author Lynn Larson, CPCP, launched Recharged Education in 2014. With 20 years of Commercial Card experience, her mission is to make industry education readily accessible to all. Learn more…