We’ve all been hearing about the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the news every day. When the news first came out, we thought it was a health hazard mostly concerning China. However, soon the Coronavirus started spreading to other countries.
When Shopify announced on February 28, 2020, that they would be cancelling their annual Shopify Unite conference in Toronto, Canada, we began to understand the magnitude of the health hazard. Then, Adobe cancelled its annual event (Adobe Summit) as well.
The health and safety of our community is our top priority. After careful consideration, we’ve made the difficult but important decision to host this year’s #AdobeSummit and #MagentoImagine as online-only experiences. https://t.co/wQQVpAo0dy
— Adobe Summit (@AdobeSummit) March 2, 2020
This is a concern, as these are some of the major events we participate in every year. While the eCommerce industry is impacted drastically with the bans on travel and restrictions on commute, these are some of the measures we are taking as a team.
What are we doing as a team?
The Health and Safety of our employees is our first priority.
- One of the first things we did as a team is to educate our employees about the happenings across the world, followed by a demonstration of the symptoms of COVID 19 and its preventive measures.
- As a company, we believe in travel and it is an integral part of our culture. Our employees have a strong predilection towards business travels across the world and make a constant effort to help our clients in their digital businesses. However, we have decided to pause any business travel for the time being until things settle down.
- We’re also keeping a continual check on our employees. If anyone reports flu-like symptoms, cough or mild fever, we advised them to immediately consult the doctor. We’re also providing the flexibility to work from home and connect to their colleagues via apps like Google Hangouts, Skype, etc.
- Our team is also working on general hygiene initiatives within the company, starting from washing our hands and using alcohol based soaps or sanitizers frequently, to avoiding close contact in meeting rooms and gatherings.
What is the economic impact of coronavirus on our business?
The US stock markets are down by over 15% from the 52 week high levels
. Though stock markets crash and rise all the time, people not buying things or people not traveling will lead to larger problems – at least in the short-term, if not the long term.
#CoronavirusOutbreak has not only resulted in a massive loss of lives, but also have impacted the global #economy heavily. Here’s a look ? Share your views with us below ✍️#Coronavirus #CoronavirusInIndia #CoronaAlert #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/REzN7ZfdOD
— moneycontrol (@moneycontrolcom) March 7, 2020
Here’s a well written blog from Sequoia businesses can refer to for further insight. Some of the things we’re focusing on include the following:
- Analyzing where it is possible to cut down on expenses without hampering business functionality and growth potential.
- Taking inspiration from iconic companies that were shaped during the Global Financial Crisis such as Airbnb and Stripe (amongst others) to figure out the best takeaways that can help you in your situation.
- Consider altering your values on ROI, in terms of your marketing spend (keeping the current situation in mind).
- While retaining resources is always a priority, such situations actually give you time to evaluate the productivity levels of each resource critically.
Most importantly, it is important to remember that the faster you make adjustments, the faster you can think of a potential roadmap to deal with and move ahead with the changing circumstances.
Usually, in times like this, you get a chance to rethink the business and make corrective measures. We also see this as an opportunity to strengthen ourselves even better.
While we prepare for any economic impacts, it is even more important to stay safe and stay healthy.
*** Update as of March 13, 2020 ***
In following all the most recent updates, and as we are committed to doing our part in keeping everyone safe and healthy, DCKAP has implemented a company wide decision to have all employees work from home temporarily.
