Rich Pierle highlights the importance of Return to Work (RTW) Planning and introduces Pier Digital’s online COVID-19 Information Project. The information contained within the COVID-19 Information Project is a state-by-state listing containing various pieces of information such as state opening status and public gatherings. A repository of resources and data from state and federal governments, health organizations, Think Tanks, and more. Leaders can augment their existing efforts with the site’s information to better mobilize their people, planning, and processes during COVID-19. Rich also introduces his next focus, the Return to Work (RTW) workbook for CIOs, CEO, and C-Suite Leaders responsible for mobilizing their people, processes, and technology.

Deeper dive into projects at Pier Digital to provide support during COVID-19

In this post, we’re going to be taking a deeper dive into some of the things we’re working on to help support you, our customers, friends, and people who we’ve worked within the past, as it relates to COVID-19.

The gap of information that currently exists

When we began this project to assemble Return To Work (RTW) initiatives, we discovered a gap in the information available. What became apparent is that if you’re doing business in multiple states or countries, there isn’t one single place to gather data that are easily understood.

To overcome this, we had our team research different sites such as Johns Hopkins, USA Today, CNN, Politico, and local newspapers to try and pull these resources together in a simple info-graphic. We also grabbed data from the IHME website, which is one of the few places where we were able to find projections and predictive modeling on curve flattening in various states.

State-by-State format of the Pier Digital COVID-19 Information Project

Our aggregated data is organized state-by-state, as rows and then by when the predictive model estimates it’s safe to return to normalcy.

• States lifted stay-at-home orders
• Are schools reopening
• Acceptable levels for public gatherings

We’ve attempted to pull all of this together in an easy to understand format so companies can use this as part of their Return To Work (RTW) planning.

Most companies we’ve interacted with have taken a conservative approach to RTW. Some of those companies are organizing workers into different groups based on need and returning them to work in waves.

Return to Work (RTW) Workbook Introduction

Our goal was to package this information together so our partners can leverage it and combine it with their internal information in order to get back to business in a post- COVID19 world. In addition to this info-graphic that we’ve been working on, we also put together a workbook that focuses on leaders in asking key questions.

The workbook is broken down into sections, and Pier Digital has decided to make the workbook a free tool because we want people to have access to it and use it to get back to work. This is version 0.1 and it’ll continue to be improved upon by working closely with you, our audience, and even more so with our clients.

The goal is to get leaders thinking about what they need to do prior to bringing staff and customers back onsite, or some hybrid situation of remote paired with onsite functionality.

• What are the tools?
• What are the technologies?
• What other factors should be considered?

The world has changed and what’s needed now and moving forward is to adapt our work processes, adapt how we work together, and adapt our overall business. Some have already started and this may sound repetitive or cliche.

If you follow me on LinkedIn, you may have noticed I recently posted how a simple personal background picture can signal a more casual individuality. These are challenging times for everyone, and sometimes keeping small details fresh and light-hearted can put everybody at ease.

The workbook is broken down into numbered sections and include:

• Key questions that should be asked
• Checklists
• Governance actions with a focus on structure and process

At Pier Digital, we believe every company should have a double-ended and open conversation, from the lowest levels, up to senior management and include the board of directors. The number one trending topic in business operations right now, is how do we move on.

As we’ve said in other posts, different industries have been impacted in different ways.

The purpose of the workbook is to get leaders thinking about frameworks and actions that need to be taken. A large part of this is straightforward and common sense, but having a checklist to reference can help you balance against what you’re doing and is always a good thing. Pier Digital wants to iterate this and improve it over time because all of us are defining what tomorrow will be as we go through this process of a shared learning experience.

Governance & Facilities

From the governance perspective, we look into facilities. Identifying environmental changes that are needed, which could include a new cleaning methodology or security protocols, and those could be with 3rd party contractors being utilized. If you’re only bringing back 20% of your workforce, confine that 20% to the same 20% of your facility and cordoned off the other parts so you only clean what’s used.

We’ve pulled information from hundreds of credible websites to put together the best breed of Frankenstein monster that in our estimation, hasn’t been put together in one place. And this goes beyond just Pier Digital. Our goal is to take the hard work out of the equation and make it easier for you. We’re going to give you a tool that’ll be useful and something you can bring back to your organization.

The next section is about people.

The workbook will have some organizational templates to get you thinking about:

• Resources
• Skillsets
• Who works best remotely
• Who works best onsite

We’ll go over Personally Identifiable Information (PII), and how to balance those requirements.

The goal of building this list is to understand which employees can work remotely and who needs to be onsite. This conversation needs to happen at the right levels in your organization so you can get the right mixture to continue to get business done in a safe, effective way that ensures keeping operations running. The list should be compiled beyond the office workspaces and into other divisions as well.

Risk Planning

Risk planning should include contingencies in the event of an outbreak in your manufacturing plant as well as office locations. During the COVID pandemic, many meat producers faced challenges that led to complete shut down and consequently, meat shortages. Our respective risk planning will see more real-time examples like this taken into account as this is new ground for everyone.

Moving forward, we need to continue to evaluate our environment and make real-time adjustments to our strategy based on changes with the virus and the impact to society and its repercussions.

Processes

As effective leaders, we should have a complete overview and understanding of each worker’s skill set. This can be challenging, but you’ll want to try and connect those people to different processes. Some of which may lend themselves to remote work, others not so much.

Historically, about 10+ years ago, desktop support meant someone was going to physically come to your desk and fix your computer. Most companies have moved away from that to more of a depot or online support model.

Some jobs just can’t be done remotely, which is where your workforce and process list will need to be cross-referenced so you can understand where your remote work is challenged.

Manufacturing, for example, for the most part, must be done at the plant. In order for manufacturing to happen, it’s going to happen on the machinery and equipment that is physically located on-site.

How people, processes and technology work together

For other tasks, that simply require workers to be on a computer and/or telephone for 100% of their tasks, will probably be better suited for remote work. Shifting your office staff over to remote work will bring a new set of questions you may need to address, such as:

• Do we need digital agents?
• Do we need big data solutions?
• Do we need cloud storage, back-up, and access?
• How do we bundle all of this and make it work holistically?

Some of this technology will take longer to implement, some may be quick and painless, but looking at all of the pieces from a distance will help you to evaluate what’s needed.

Each and every one of these factors should be planned out according to your specific company needs. And of course, the workbook wouldn’t be complete without a legal issues section.

We’ve grouped legal with risk management.

• What are some of the risks that you’re facing from an organizational perspective?
• What are some of the legal challenges?
• What are some of the legal / risk concerns that you have?

Understanding your existing macro environment

This section covers pulling all this together, customizing it for your organization, culture, and overlaying it on existing programs. Pre-pandemic issues are going to be blended with new problems that also need to be solved. And those issues will vary by industry. Bringing all together and getting it into a manageable layout is what the start of governance looks like.

As we finalize the draft of the Pier Digital program workbook, our hope is to give others hope.

With pulling all this information together, and giving anyone that needs it access to it, our aim is to assist those in need to transition into the new normal.

Starting to take control during COVID-19

Most people we’ve talked with have stated that they feel like we’re out of control.

Other Type A personalities, like me, love to drive things, and being out of control is extremely challenging for us.

The more we can organize the situation, the more we can help our companies, our peers, and our leaders, and start thinking about what the next chapter of this long story is.

What does that next chapter look like and how do we shape it for our organization to take ownership and control of it.

We don’t want to oversell the resources of the workbook, it’s only a starting point, from which you’ll need to put in the work and understand that right now, there’s no wrong answers.

• We’re all trying to find the right answers
• We’re all trying to do the best we can, with what we’ve got, in a challenging situation

We’re getting there, together. There’s tons of great leadership out there, and there are more junior employees who will start to shine and step up into larger roles. So let’s continue to support each other.

Please shoot me a note at Richard.Pierle@PierDigital.com. Thank you for your time. And hopefully, there were some nuggets for you as part of our conversation today.

In this episode, Rich Pierle discusses the importance of Return to Work (RTW) Planning and introduces Pier Digital’s online COVID-19 Information Project. The information contained within the COVID-19 Information Project is a state-by-state listing containing various pieces of information such as state opening status and public gatherings. It is a repository of resources and data from state and federal governments, health organizations, Think Tanks, and more. Leaders can augment their existing efforts with the site’s information to better mobilize their people, planning, and processes during COVID-19. Rich also introduces his next focus, the Return to Work (RTW) workbook for CIOs, CEO, and C-Suite Leaders responsible for mobilizing their people, processes, and technology.

What To Listen For

1:44 Deeper dive into projects at Pier Digital to provide support during COVID-19
2:01 The gap of information that currently exists
3:05 State-by-State format of the Pier Digital COVID-19 Information Project
4:20 Return to Work (RTW) Workbook Introduction
6:47 Key Questions – Return to Work (RTW) Governance
8:15 Key Questions – Return to Work (RTW) Facilities
9:15 Key Questions – Return to Work (RTW) People
10:15 Key Questions – Return to Work (RTW) Risk Planning
11:29 Key Questions – Return to Work (RTW) Processes
12:03 How people, processes, and technology work together
14:05 Understanding your existing macro environment
14:30 Starting to take control during COVID-19

Resources and Links

Pier Digital COVID-19 Information Project Link

You can find Pier Digital podcast:

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Transcription

Rich Pierle:

Hello and welcome. I’m Rich Pierle and this is the Pier Digital Podcast. This show is for technology leaders who want to discuss important topics and issues of the day from a technology perspective, everything from digital transformation, business continuity planning for coronavirus, legacy infrastructure replatforming, and much, much more. I’ll be helping to guide your transformational journey, navigating through tough terrain while overcoming obstacles and reducing costly mistakes. Whether you’re a CEO, CIO, or just trying to plug into the digital landscape, you need proven strategies and someone who has been there and done that.

Rich Pierle:

You can learn more and stay up to date at pierdigital.com.

Announcer:

Rich Pierle is CEO and managing partner at Pier Digital Advisory Solutions, a boutique consultancy that supports companies on their journey from legacy technologies and business models to the realization of a digital operating model. Rich shares insight from the perspective as former CIO and EVP for Global Services at Becton Dickinson. Now a leading independent consultant helping Fortune 500 leaders take advantage of accelerating technological change, digitally transforming their organizations and culture. All opinions expressed by Rich Pierle and Pier Digital and podcast guests are solely their own opinions.

Rich Pierle:

Hello, this is Rich Pierle and this is our third episode of the Pier Digital Podcast. And what we wanted to do today is do a little bit deeper dive into some of the things that we’re working on to help support you, our customers, our friends, people who we’ve worked within the past, as it relates to COVID-19.

Rich Pierle:

As we were looking at how we can help companies on their return to work initiatives, the return to normal, whatever that is, we noticed that there was a gap of information out there. And what I mean by gap is that if you’re doing business in many states or multiple countries, that there’s not one place that’s pulling all these different data sources together in a way that’s kind of easy to understand. And so we had some of our team members scour the web, go to the state websites, go to Johns Hopkins, go to USA Today, CNN, Politico, local newspapers, and try to pull together these resources into a simple information graphic.

Rich Pierle:

We’ve also pulled information from the IHME website, which is one of the few places where we’ve been able to find where they’re giving projections about when the curves in various states have started to flatten or what their predictive models are saying. So what we’ve tried to do is organize this in a state by state, as rows, and then having when did the predictive model say that it’s safe to go back? When did the states’ stay at home orders expire? New Jersey’s yesterday was actually just extended for another 30 days. What’s going on with the schools? What’s going on with the largest public gathering size? And trying to pull this into a simple, easy to understand format so that companies can use this as part of their planning.

Rich Pierle:

Again, what I’ve been in conversations about is most companies are taking a fairly conservative approach about bringing people back to work. They’re thinking about waves, obviously organizing the people into different groups based on need. And this has led us into really talking about putting together some tools on how do we take this information, leverage it, how do we combine it with our internal information, and how do we start to organize this into a program on getting back to business in the post-COVID-19 world.

Rich Pierle:

The other thing that we’re really working on is a workbook that starts to ask you some key questions. It breaks it down into a number of sections. So what I want to do today is talk about those sections. And shortly after we release the podcast, we’re going to have a draft 0.1 version of the workbook that we’re going to work and iterate with our customers and with you all and make this something that is a free tool, because we want people to have it, use it and brand into their organization. Some of this stuff you may have already, some of it may be new. That’s okay. But really the goal is to get people thinking about what they need to do to get ready for bringing people back on-site, or to have some type of mixed model where maybe a portion of your resources come back on-site, and you still have a portion that’s going to be remote or working from home and really start to think through how you’re going to make that work.

Rich Pierle:

What are the tools? What are the technologies? What are the things that you have to consider? Because we said it’s probably going to be cliche. We’re going to be tired of hearing it, but the world has changed and we need to adapt our work processes, adapt our businesses, adapt how we work together and keep moving on. I think a lot of folks are already doing that. I just put a note out on LinkedIn about backgrounds. Something is as simple as a background, being able to use a personal picture for folks that I’m working with is lighter. It’s a new way to express your individuality. So again, just something to highlight as we’re getting down to the details of things to think about, not just at the macro level, but also things to keep it fresh and keep it light in the midst of this very challenging time for everybody.

Announcer:

This podcast is sponsored by Pier Digital Advisory Solutions, a boutique consultancy that supports companies on their journey from legacy technologies and business models, to the realization of a digitally operating model. If you would like to learn more about peer digital and see notes from today’s show, visit www.pierdigital.com/podcast.

Announcer:

Now back to the show with your host, Rich Pierle.

Rich Pierle:

Starting to get into the specifics of the workbook, we’ve broken it down in a number of sections. We’ve got one, in general, that’s key questions that are questions that we would ask for each of the sections. We’re going to have some checklists, some things to consider. What should you be doing from a governance standpoint? And again, not going to go into the lowest level of detail, but just wanted to kind of give everyone a sense of the organization. And really governance, the point there is you can’t just think this is going to happen organically. You need structure. You need a process. You need people to engage the lowest levels, but you need a way to bring this up at the senior management level because my belief is that this is going to be an ongoing conversation with the board of directors at every company. This is probably the number one topic across the world on how do we keep moving on?

Rich Pierle:

As we’ve said in previous episodes, different industries have been impacted in different ways. And again, the purpose of this is to get you guys thinking about these frameworks, things that you need to do. Some of this is fairly common sense and straightforward, but having a checklist, having something that you can kind of balance, what you’re doing against is always a good thing. And like I said, what we want to do is iterate this and improve it over time because we are, all of us, are defining what tomorrow is going to be as we go through this process, as we go through this shared learning experience. So from governance, we want to start to talk about your facilities. What are some of the environmental changes that you have to make, whether it’s some type of new cleaning methodology, working with your various contractors, could be outside security, could be your cleaning team.

Rich Pierle:

We think that’s changed. If you’re only bringing back, let’s say 20% of your workforce, how do you cordon off parts of your facility so you only clean the parts that are absolutely necessary or really thinking about that differently. And we’re going to have a section that talks through some of the thinking on that. And again, it’s not just Rich and my experience that we’re pulling from. We’re going out to hundreds and hundreds of different websites trying to put together a best of breed, Frankenstein monster of information that in our estimation, we haven’t seen pulled together in one place. So we’re trying to take some of that hard work out for you all to make it easier and, like I said, to give you a tool that would be useful and something that you can bring back into your organization.

Rich Pierle:

The next section is about people. We’re going to have some templates on how you should organize and think about your resources, understanding skillsets, thinking through who can work at home, who may be challenged to work at home. Obviously, there’s a whole concern around the personally identifiable information, PII. So obviously, you have to balance some of those requirements against having this information. But the ultimate goal is to make sure that you understand who can work remotely, who needs to work in an office site and how do you get that list and have those conversations at the right level in your organization so that you’re finding that balance with your associates and with your organizations so that again, you can continue to get business done, do it in a safe way, do it in an effective way and keep your operations running.

Rich Pierle:

And this is something that you want to do across, not just your office environments, but as well as your manufacturing and starting to think through what happens in the event of if I have a breakout at one of my plants or one of my office locations, and this really gets to risk planning and contingency planning, because we believe those types of things are going to happen. I mean, look at what’s happened with the meat producers and some of the challenges that they’ve had at their plants and what they’ve had to do. And again, we’re going to start seeing different examples that we’re going to have to use those real-time examples into our respective risk planning. Because again, this is new ground. It’s something that none of us have done before, and we’re going to have to continually evaluate the environment and make real-time adjustments to our strategy and to our plans based on changes in the profile of how it’s impacting society and how people are reacting to the virus.

Rich Pierle:

So moving on from people, again, talking a lot of this at a very high level. And after you listen to this and you start going through the workbook that we’re going to put out there, you’ll start to see some of the templates that we’re talking about. Again, I don’t want to bore you on the podcast with the row by row, the column by column information that we’re contemplating having it pulled together, but we want to kind of layout the structure. The next piece is about processes. The point of this is you’ve got your people, you understand the various skill sets that they have, or maybe you don’t understand the skill sets that they have. And this can be a challenge, but now you want to try to tie those people to the different processes. And some processes lend themselves to being able to work remotely. And others may not.

Rich Pierle:

Historically, and I’ll use an example of desktop support. Desktop support 10 years ago meant somebody was going to come to your desk and work on your computer and fix it. Many companies have moved away from that to more of a depot or an online support model. So there’s going to be certain jobs that may still be problematic for you to be able to work and do in a remote location. And this is where you’re going to have to make sure your people information and your processes that you can cross-reference that so that you understand where there are challenges to being able to do stuff remotely.

Rich Pierle:

Obviously, if you’ve got a manufacturing plant, manufacturing, for the most part, has to be done at the plant. There may be certain things that you can do remotely, but the core manufacturing is going to have to happen on the machinery and equipment that you have there. So there’s certain things that just will be very difficult to do remotely while others, more of the traditional office work, it’s much easier. It’s easier to do them in a remote way. So again, taking your people, taking your processes, lining them up.

Rich Pierle:

And then the last piece really on this thread is talking about technology and how people process and technology work together. And this is where you’re going to need to look at, do I need digital agents? Do I need big data solutions? How do I kind of bundle this together to make it work holistically? And some of this technology is going to take a little bit longer, but this is where you need all these pieces so that you can kind of evaluate what you need to do. What are some of the quick hits that you can do? What are some of the things that are going to take longer as part of a holistic plan on how your organization’s really going to manage through COVID-19? And then obviously, you don’t want to lose sight of any potential legal issues. And I would kind of put legal and risk management into a bucket.

Rich Pierle:

What are some of the risks that you’re facing from an organizational perspective? What are some of the legal challenges? What are some of the concerns that you have? And then really, how do you pull all this together and make it work and customize it for your organization, for your culture, overlaying it on existing programs and projects. And that’s probably another tab on that workbook is understanding your existing kind of macro work environment. What are some of the things that were important pre outbreak, and what are the things now, maybe that are new importance? And I think that’s going to vary by industry. And then, like I said, laying it all together and then managing it with really what we started with is your governance process.

Rich Pierle:

As I just talked about, we’ve got the information that we’ve been able to pull together. We’ve got an initial draft on a program workbook and what our hopes are and pulling this information together and giving people access to this information is that it starts to, and I don’t want to overplay this, give people hope about getting things back to the new normal, I think we’re going to call it. And how can you start to take control? Because I think a lot of us, as I talked to folks, feel a little bit like almost we’re out of control. And if you’re like me, type A personality, likes to drive things, this is challenging. And so the more that we can kind of organize, we can help our companies, help our peers, help our leaders organize this, put a plan around it and start to think about what is the next chapter of this very long story.

Rich Pierle:

What does it look like and how do we start to shape it for our organizations and really take ownership and control. I think it’s going to put all of us in a better place, and I don’t want to oversell these resources. I think this is a starting point. I think there’s a lot of work that needs to be done and understand that there’s no wrong answers right now. I think we’re all trying to find answers. I think we’re all trying to do the best we can, given these tough and challenging situations. But I think with all of us pushing in and working together, we’re going to get there. I’ve seen a lot of great leadership out there, and I think there’s a lot more to come, so let’s just continue to support each other. And I look forward to hearing your feedback and to helping make the materials that we’ve put out there better.

Rich Pierle:

And please shoot me a note at Richard.Pierle@PierDigital.com. Thank you for your time. And hopefully, there were some nuggets for you as part of our conversation today. Bye.

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