HR Simplified

HR Simplified Pandemic Preparedness and Response Statement

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Preparedness 2020

 

Overview

HR Simplified maintains a Pandemic Preparedness plan as part of our larger Business Continuity planning process.

 

Even before the rapid spread of the COVID-19 virus in the United States, we proactively implemented action steps outlined in the Pandemic Plan to protect our business and clients from being impacted by potential disruptions that efforts to combat this situation could cause.

 

HR Simplified remains committed to providing plan sponsors, account holders, and other clients with the level of service they need and expect while also helping safeguard the health and welfare of our associates.

 

Action Plan

Following the parameters set forth in our Pandemic Plan, specific actions that have been taken include:

 

  • COVID-19-Specific Risk Identification – Based on what we know about this pathogen and its spread, we’ve validated our plan based on risks that are specific to COVID-19. Our goal is to ensure that the nuances that this outbreak shows are accounted for, including its ability to be contagious before symptoms that could lead to mass clusters of infection present

We’ll continue to reevaluate risks related to COVID-19 on a regular basis to determine if our plan needs to be updated.

  • Information Technology – A significant percentage of our staff already had the ability to work remotely, reducing the impact for our team as circumstances and governmental edicts have forced partial closures of our work sites. We’ve taken additional steps to allow more of our staff to work remotely and will continuously evaluate our Information Technology infrastructure to ensure that we have the hardware and infrastructure in place to allow all critical functions to be completed effectively by
  • Workload Management Flexibility – As a supplement to our remote working arrangements, HR Simplified leverages operational sites across our geographic footprint that can support each other. We also conduct regular risk assessments to ensure that we can execute effective workload management processes, and are now taking extra steps—such as cross-training individuals on critical functions—to further strengthen our support
  • Human Resources Evaluations – As with any pandemic, there could be a significant number of associates unavailable to work at any given time (although we fortunately haven’t seen that to date). With that in mind, our Human Resources team is working closely with Risk Management and Business Operations to ensure that work coverage is available for all key functions. We’ve also implemented restrictions on international and business travel, as well as large-group gatherings.
  • Vendor Capabilities – We’re working with vendors that provide operational support and those that are part of our hardware/software supply chain to ensure that service levels are

 

HR Simplified will continue to monitor this evolving global health situation and provide material updates on our response as necessary.