COVID-19: Business Impact
FSI’s clients reflect the extensive impact of COVID-19 on the 2020 business year. Working from home, reduced business travel, cancelled conferences and contingency planning preoccupy every company.
Foremost, every company is stressing patient care, employee safety, and community wellbeing as the top priority. One example of note: a client is supporting front-line healthcare workers with access to additional supplies, food and childcare.
For most companies, COVID-19 presents significant challenges, including:
Temporary restrictions on elective procedures, shifts in patient mix, pauses in clinical trials, prohibition of sales force visits at hospitals and physician offices.
Managing a “stratified” workforce where many are asked to work from home, while others must be “present” to perform vital tasks which cannot be done remotely.
Recruiting the talent needed to replace or supplement the required staffing level. For many companies, recruiting efforts are greatest during the first half of the calendar year, and those efforts are now curtailed.
Balancing cost levels to achieve near-term profitability goals while ensuring sufficient capacity for the post-Coronavirus recovery.
Deciding when and how to proceed with planned financial initiatives such as equity raises and debt restructuring.
Numerous companies are actively responding to the healthcare needs specific to COVID-19:
Developing a COVID-19 vaccine.
Rushing COVID-19 test kits through the FDA. Expanding capacity to produce such kits at a higher rate, then distributing based on the prioritization of need.
Deploying Artificial Intelligence to predict outbreaks and infection rates so required products and staffing can be proactively deployed.
Creating new telemedicine programs and leveraging existing telemedicine solutions to enable care while minimizing exposure to patients and healthcare professionals.
Exploring options to increase product adoption and maintain product loyalty without frequent in-person selling efforts.
Responding to the current business climate by executing valuable partnerships and acquisitions. For some, turbulent markets offer investment and expansion opportunities.
FSI is following best practices to ensure both the safety and productivity of our teammates. Simultaneously, we are actively engaged with clients seeking to both manage the effects of COVID-19 and to continue building and growing strong businesses.