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The disruptions caused by severe weather often can stretch on for days. Here in Colorado, heavy wet snowfall last week caused thousands to be without power for several days because of downed tree limbs. And in some areas, people are still cleaning up from Hurricane Irene in August.
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The latest nor'easter just a few days ago is being blamed for knocking out power to more than 3 million in the Northeast – including the corporate offices of Kaman Industrial Technologies, Windsor, CT. But thanks to some advance planning on the company's part, they aren't missing a beat when it comes to customer service, and they're making sure employees in the area stay warm as well.
Although not the normal policy, employees affected by the storm will be compensated for the week, says Steve Smidler, president of KIT. "It's not just for themselves and work, but it's about family," he says. "We're telling them to take care of your family first."
Kaman is also purchasing generators at low negotiated rates to resell to employees "at cost based on a signature," Smidler says.
As for customer impact, the company is up and running even while the headquarters is without power. In June, the company rolled out a voice-over-internet-protocol (VOIP) system that allows for incoming calls to be rerouted to unaffected locations with no break in service. The system was put to the test shortly after implementation when Hurricane Irene disrupted business on the East Coast.
"We were able to field 1,300 calls per day after Irene without missing a single call," said Arti Patel, manager of marketing projects for KIT.
The system also allows people to work remotely from anywhere with all the functionality of being in the office, says Patel, who is working from Rhode Island in the aftermath of the nor'easter. She is normally based in Windsor.
One server did have to be relocated from the headquarters, Smidler says, and a "war room" has been set up at a secondary location in Hartford, CT, to make sure necessary corporate functions are still taking place. But for the customer? "It's business as usual," he says. And for the employee? "We're doing everything we can for them."
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