Businesses are playing a critical role in the response to COVID-2019, formerly known as the 2019-nCoV coronavirus. How best to provide support, who to channel support to reach those in need, and when to provide support. These critical questions are answered in our latest look at responding to the coronavirus.
The impact of the coronavirus outbreak, known as COVID-2019, on business has become clear — spanning people, supply chains, operations, consumer behavior, government relations, and financial results.
Many companies are playing a critical role in the response to the outbreak. From donations of cash and medical supplies to reorienting innovation pipelines and mobilizing volunteers, many are taking action to support the response to the outbreak. The companies that have the greatest impact in a crisis are the ones that can identify a specific need, match that to assets they deploy, and act in partnership to deliver tangible, lasting outcomes.
CSR Cloud, an online CSR focused portal, calculated that as of February 5 more than 1,900 businesses had made donations including cash and goods worth RMB 19.19 billion (USD 2.75 bn). The number and quantum have increased significantly in the days since.
But in working out how best to respond, business leaders are asking themselves: what will have the greatest impact? What do we know of the NGOs working on the front lines? How will the choices we make about how we respond today, impact our business in the future?
Brunswick’s Coronavirus Response Team has been working with companies to help them navigate this and are on hand to bring insight and expertise from across sectors and geographies to help you develop and optimize your own contribution to the response.
Six steps for optimizing your contribution to the response
There are six key steps business leaders should consider when working out how best to contribute to the coronavirus response in China and around the world. Each of the steps has deeper considerations within them, as outlined in this helpful two-page guide - Download here
- Define the objectives behind your desire to contribute to the wider response. Clarity on your objectives will help you determine the shape of your response.
- Identify the core assets or resources that you can offer to help authorities, people and communities to respond. Companies have a wealth of assets and resources that can be deployed to aid the wider response.
- Determine priority geographies where you will focus your efforts to optimize impact. Where does your contribution make the biggest impact and count most to audiences important to you?
- Decide on which phase(s) of the response you will mobilize your support based on your available resources and expertise. Is it now, a latter phase of the response, or during the recovery period?
- Decide how you will deliver your contribution in practical terms. Working in partnership is critical to optimizing the impact of your contribution and to avoiding reputational potholes along the way.
- Develop plan for how and when you will communicate your contribution, and to whom. It is critically important to ensure your support is clearly documented and searchable in Chinese and English, and with a tone of humility and respect.
Making donations in China: Needs and Channels
In our latest report we provide practical guidance for success when making donations in China, along with advice on navigating the NGO landscape and avoiding potential pitfalls. The report looks at:
- What to consider when donating to NGOs in China
- An overview of the government approved NGOs operating on the ground in Hubei
- What donations are needed and how to support
- Whether to promote a donation or not
- Will donations really reach those in need
- Examples of support provided so far
Our team has been working with Chinese and non-Chinese companies as they shape their response to COVID-2019. For insights and advice on how to maximize the impact of your donation, Download the full report here: