Basil Jarrett | Bracing for war

Social media can be a savage place. But as much as I decry the technology, I found myself spending a little more than the obligatory five minutes a day going through the memes and posts about the current crisis in Ukraine. Some were interesting, some gave me a bit of a chuckle, and some immediately raised red flags as pro-Russian propaganda. My favourite one remains the meme asking the Government to stay out of the Ukraine conflict, especially when the canons at Port Royal have not been fired in over two centuries.

The essence of that post was that Jamaica should stay as far as possible from commenting on the attack, and for us to mind our own business. But between the laughs and chuckles, there is a hint of danger about that claim, because forecasters have already started to tell us that the Ukraine conflict could have severe implications for us here at home. Financial analyst and my brother from 189 Old Hope Road, Mr Dennis Chung, has warned that the war could hit our economy hard, given the higher prices for crude oil and our over-reliance on imports. Petrojam has also sounded its alarm bell that gas prices could surge in the following weeks, in line with rising global oil bills. Even the tourism industry is getting a bit skittish as key areas such as supply chains, fuel cost, access to airspace, and general restrictions on movement could all have an impact on the sector. And it’s not just Jamaica that’s bracing. Our good friend Mia Motley (Hi, Rihanna) has already started to tell Bajans to saddle up.

So in all possibility, the crisis in Europe could very well lead to a calamity here in Jamaica. The logical question, therefore, at least from a crisis management perspective, is, how can we brace and insulate ourselves in preparation for the worst? While the fulsome impact is still on the horizon, there are some crisis mitigation activities that companies should start doing now, at least internally, in order to batten down.

AWARENESS

As a first step, and from the simple perspective of being able to provide information and awareness for their staff, management should themselves start to get smart on the possible implications. This will mean engaging subject matter experts who can help to identify all the possible pain points where the impact could be felt the most, and scanning the horizon to see what’s likely, what’s possible, what’s imminent, and what’s most dangerous. Financial projections may need to be revised, as rising oil prices will trigger higher inflation levels and lowered consumer spending, which will reduce sales, and possibly increase company debt.

Management should also move to engage employees by determining if they are directly or indirectly impacted by the crisis. Ukraine may as well have been on the dark side of the moon prior to last week, but now we are learning that there is quite a large contingent of Jamaican students living there. In such instances, it will be important to lend moral, emotional, physical and tangible support where possible. For those not directly impacted, however, now may be a good time to start the conversation around the internal preparations and readiness activities that may need to be adopted, especially from an employee financial well-being perspective. Financial stress will negatively affect an employee’s ability to do his/her job, and companies must demonstrate empathy and genuine concern by investing in financial well-being awareness programmes for staff. Staff education and financial awareness campaigns, training sessions, and internal communications products aimed at helping persons to devise strategies to reduce their monthly expenses, are just some ways to help staff make more informed decisions on how they spend their money.

Outside of knowledge, and awareness programmes, companies should begin to look for tangible ways in which they can help employees to ease their financial burdens in the face of rising fuel prices. And thankfully, they won’t need to look very far for examples. If there’s one good thing that COVID has taught us, is that we don’t need to be tethered to our workstations to carry out our job functions. Teleworking, where practical, should be encouraged and supported in order to help employees save on transportation and other expenses associated with commuting to work. Those who can work from home should be encouraged and equipped to do so, and management should be similarly upskilled in how to effectively run a department remotely.

REDUCE SPENDING

From an organisational perspective, companies should be looking at ways to reduce spending and to shift operational practices in order to run a leaner, tighter, more agile and more crisis-proof ship. From a customer satisfaction standpoint, they should also be looking for additional ways to engage and ready their teams to help meet client and customer needs. In very much the same way that the company is preparing for the impact of the crisis, it must be remembered that customers and clients are also likely to be equally anxious and affected, and how their pockets will ‘feel it’ is quite likely to be top of mind for them. Companies that demonstrate care and concern in these potentially challenging times will long be remembered by customers, and so any change in how the organisation conducts business with them must be carefully considered. Are changes in prices, policies or business practices likely to occur, and, if so, how will this be interpreted by customers? Companies should, therefore, strive to be remembered for the help they provided through the tough times, and this goes for both customers and staff.

For sure, we can’t yet say definitively how this crisis will affect us here, as a lot still depends on how the war unfolds. What is certain, though, is that regardless of the trajectory and outcome of the conflict, financial prudence is always in season, and so we should be looking to make the adjustments outlined here a way of life, rather than a wartime contingency plan.

Major Basil Jarrett is a communications strategist and CEO of Artemis Consulting, a communications consulting firm specialising in crisis communications and reputation management.Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.