Welp, the fastest growing startup in the world is the Corona virus, pejoratively speaking. Its effects are spreading across the world more rapidly than the stock market can decide which direction it wants to go each morning of the past week and a half. There is a Robinhood pun somewhere in there but, alas, we are aligned in our antiestablishmentarianism.

There are a lot of Corona resources, there is a lot of hype, and hysteria is bubbling to the surface. Have you seen the price of hand sanitizer on Amazon?!? Seriously, check it out 👀

Most companies and startup managers are probably wondering how it will impact them, their families…and their bottom lines. And no one has any idea! The next few weeks are likely to be a little bit tense socially, politically, economically, and startup-y.

Let’s hope for the best.

A strong forward thinking manager will also be well served to put some additional contingency planning into motion to benefit your team if things slide toward the worst:

Does your team have distributed resources ready to go? Can you limit person to person contact without business disruption?

In a potential work from home or widespread quarantine situation are there going to be any disruption to day to day business practice? Is Zoom ready to go? How are the Google Doc workflows at your organization? Can all meetings and/or processes run uninterrupted digitally? Any systems that can’t be accessed remotely? Start thinking now.

What are the business impacts?

Is your startup exposed to the travel sector? Events revenue? International e-commerce? Good forecasting is good business hygiene so start to envision where the softness might come from and how material it could be as things drag out (or in). Conversely, one could imagine mobile game developers or Clorox or consumer goods retailers would benefit financially? Weird, these downstream impacts.

Can you get creative?

Hold an old fashioned webinar for bored prospects sitting at home. Or how about a digital game show for clients to entertain them while they’re WFH? Could be an opportunity to try something new in the futuristic world we already live in with these evolving conditions. Appropriately, in good taste.

And of course, stay safe out there. Air pound. Explosion.