COVID-19 Business Continuity Planning Pulse – September 2020

Customer Colleagues,

At Syneos Health, our priorities continue to be protecting our employees’ health and safety, and partnering with our customers, sponsors and investigators to deliver life-saving medicines to patients worldwide. As part of our commitment to continuous communication, following our initial Business Continuity Planning (BCP) update and weekly updates, we’re now issuing a monthly BCP PULSE to keep you aware of our efforts. 

MAINTAINING RESOLVE & FOCUS AS THE PANDEMIC CONTINUES

Our Syneos Health office reactivation plans are focused on enabling safe and productive environments – today and tomorrow – for employees, customers and patients. While our office reactivation strategy and operations are managed at the Corporate level, each office plan is managed at the local level to allow for nuanced approaches. At the moment, many of our offices are accessible for essential staff or for those with business-essential reasons and permission to visit the office.

Every employee, office and function is different, so we are focused on issuing global guidance, while engaging local Office Activation Teams given the complexities of a 25,000-employee, multi-country organization. Additional investments in Business Technology and virtual capabilities are keeping employees connected, collaborative and productive with their colleagues and customers.

As many employees face fall transition dynamics with family returning to schools and workplaces, in addition to the anticipation of the upcoming influenza and cold season, Syneos Health is focused on maintaining resolve and flexibility for its global workforce.

BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLANNING REACTIVATION SUMMARY

Our Business Continuity Planning Transition Management Office (TMO), in alignment with FDA, CDC, WHO and other local and international health authority guidance, includes multiple workstreams. In each BCP PULSE, we’re including select workstream updates to keep you aware of our learnings and efforts.

• Regulatory Guidance: Aggregating and synthesizing EMA and FDA guidance, updating regulations and restrictions in order to provide direction to our employees and customers on when – or when not – to pivot and/or reactivate.
• Change Management: Working internally and with customers on change management activities to ensure preparedness as dynamics shift.
• Field Team Connections: Monitoring company-by-company redeployment activities, hosting Field Team Town Halls and focus groups, compiling lessons learned for in-person activities, and benchmarking remote versus in-person detailing metrics.
• Sponsor Connections: Working collaboratively with sponsors in the “now normal” to press forward with studies underway while activating new trials.
• Resurgence Preparedness Planning: Preparing for a potential fall COVID-19 resurgence, coupled with the annual influenza surge, by developing scenario plans and sharing best practice learnings to withstand another wave.

BEST PRACTICES – BEING AGILE TO ADAPT TO OUR EVOLVED ENVIRONMENT

Working hand in hand with hundreds of companies – and our 25,000 employees worldwide – we’re designing clinical and commercial solutions every day. Each challenge presents the opportunity to apply key learnings to build better approaches and resiliency.

• MOTIVATING & EDUCATING EMPLOYEES: At Syneos Health, we hosted “BAM Camp,” a five-week, four-track virtual learning and development curriculum including classes, lectures, Fireside Chats, and Insights Insider sessions for outside-the-industry topical conversations. Playing off our Biopharmaceutical Acceleration Model known as BAM, the program delivered live and on-demand education sessions to leaders across the organization. The 30+ sessions activated an adult learning, self-directed experience where employees selected topics delivered by 40 internal subject matter experts, customers, patients, and special guests from outside the industry. The program, designed for our customer-facing leaders, is now being offered to the entire workforce through our learning platform, and elements will be incorporated into onboarding and orientation.

REAL-TIME RESOURCES

We’re regularly updating our COVID-19 Resource Center with capabilities and perspectives to navigate, deliver and learn together. We’re looking to exchange your learnings and experiences too.  Should you have ideas, comments or concerns, please contact us.

Thank you for your partnership.