Read more about the measures Sci-Net have taken regarding the COVID-19 situation.
31st March 2020
Protecting our people
- Sci-Net staff are following the government’s advice to work from home.
- Our office is now closed to all but those who require critical access.
- All staff business travel ceased as of 16 March 2020 and our clients have been contacted remotely since this date.
- We actively encourage our employees to follow Public Health England (PHE) advice and guidance on how they can help prevent the spread of the virus while looking after each other and continuing to serve our clients. Daily team meetings are held to maintain connectedness, reduce isolation, and safeguard mental health.
- We will continue to monitor current and future advice from PHE to protect the health and safety of Sci-Net staff and that of our clients.
Continuity for our clients
Remote working.
- Our IT systems are designed to suit a remote workforce. We use Microsoft Azure cloud technology and ensure our people can access documents from anywhere and share them with each other and our clients and suppliers. Working remotely (including from home) is a familiar practice for the Sci-Net Team – as such, Sci-Net staff are permanently equipped with laptops, chargers and headsets to ensure they can continue to work effectively wherever they are. Sci-Net does not currently anticipate any disruption in service levels of response times as a result of COVID-19. Our “remote office” policy enables us to continue to service our client base without interruption.
Digital collaboration.
- We passionately believe in and practise digital collaboration, regularly using video/tele-conference facilities and instant messaging technology to work effectively together and with our clients. We will leverage these technologies to maintain both staff and client isolation going forward. These are tried and tested procedures at Sci-Net. As an extra precaution, we have a variety of channels should one system fail.
Security.
- We have policies in place which cover the appropriate way to work securely when out of the office to ensure confidentiality and the protection of data. We are 100% UK cloud hosted utilising multi layered secure Azure technology and IP telephony.
Team Member Planning.
- We are monitoring staffing levels to enable us to maintain service levels. Sci-Net has taken steps to ensure all team members’ personal information is up-to-date so we can quickly contact people outside working hours if required. Currently there is no impact, and no anticipated impact, to service levels. We have plans in place to ensure we can operate with a reduced workforce should this become necessary.
Customer communications.
- Any customer communications in relation to COVID-19 will be made through the usual Sci-Net incident communication channels, run by the helpdesk, service management, marketing and product management teams.
Business continuity
- Sci-Net are acting on the advice of the government, PHE and the World Health Organisation.
- We have undertaken full business impact assessments across our business to identify potential risks and prepare for the continuation of services under a worse case scenario.
- There is sufficient skill set overlap within our business that individual team members can be replaced should the need arise.
Vendor Risk Management and continuity of our supply chain
- Sci-Net carries out regular due diligence on all our key suppliers, and therefore does not currently anticipate disruption to service levels.
- We can maintain our core technology and other products essential to running our operations.
We want to wish our customers and their families all the best at this difficult time.
If you would like any further information please contact us.
Email – info@sci-net.co.uk
Telephone – 01869 349 949
We will keep this page updated of any further company changes as this situation continues to develop.
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