With the rapidly unfolding news re the new flu virus, it’s hard to plan anything.
 
Almost everyone I speak to is trying to second-guess developments, to decide whether to travel or not, or if they should carry on as usual even if they have returned from an area with a known outbreak. Yet if you didn’t listen to 24-hour news, you could be forgiven for wondering what all the fuss is. 
 
I travelled from Geneva airport on Saturday, landing at Glasgow, and can honestly say there was nothing visibly different to any other journey. It struck me afterwards that security queues and trays must be an obvious transmission threat, yet nothing had changed.
 
There seems to be a growing bank of experts being interviewed, but like any other aspect of life there are widely diverging opinions as to how to respond. These range from the cynical 'it’s no worse than normal flu – get a grip’, to ‘this is something very different and could seriously change our way of life’. I even heard a tongue in cheek, ‘Brexit’s gone AWOL; has anyone seen him recently?’ - a jibe at how quickly our news can shift focus. 
 
During times of uncertainty, every business must challenge themselves as to how they can be more helpful with the current situation customers find themselves in. 
 
At CCA, we have received a significant surge in enquiries from those seeking to implement better home working and alternative operating solutions. Who is doing it well and can we quickly find out the latest insights? Questions about contingency planning are routinely covered in the CCA Global Standard© process and there’s lots of learning that can be immediately shared.
 
We recognise that different member company policies are impacting (or not) on travel plans and things will continue to shift in the next month or so. For now, we are quickly converting case studies, learning packs and any additional advice and recommendations to be made available to members. That way we can all continue to serve existing customers better but can widen our reach to those who want to access our services. 
 
At the end of the day we don't know how all of this is going to turn out, but as with storms, heavy snow, and general emergencies, the area of business that is expected to absorb the shocks is customer operations across lots of channels.
 
We look forward to sharing the vast range of knowledge and experience that exists within our network as effectively as possible to make sure that for all our members get the best service possible – as for them, the show must go on.
 
Have a restful weekend everyone,

Anne Marie