How Businesses Will Cope With The Negative Effects Of The Pandemic

In addition to the extreme global health disaster triggered by the coronavirus pandemic, companies across the world are faced with immense market challenges like consumer demand collapse, major regulatory changes, supply chain disturbances, unemployment, economic recession, and increased uncertainty. Like the health and socioeconomic facets of the crisis, the business side needs ways to recover as well. Organizations must lay the foundations for their rehabilitation now.

History is one place to explore for this kind of information. Thus, past pandemics, and there have been four more in the last 100 years, offer important lessons for companies that are now trying to make socially conscious choices while aiming to still stay operational in the future.

Notably, the 1918 pandemic occurred in three waves, one in the spring of 1918, the other in the fall of 1918, and the third in the winter of 1918-19. While the H1N1 virus subsided in the summer of 1918, it was the second wave in the fall that proved to be the most lethal in the United States. Thus, even though the number of cases falls after many months, companies should be well prepared for reemergence.

Since we have come so far in terms of science and medicine, we didn’t have to wait long for the emergence of a vaccine, avoiding further suffering. It would still be wise to stay prepared for other mishaps. This was the first time our generation suffered from such a pandemic and everyone was unprepared. Such a pandemic will hopefully not occur again in the near future but just in case, companies will need to have some sort of backup if something similar ever happens again.