It feels like a lifetime ago, but really it was only mid-January. I was slated to speak at an HR conference in Singapore in February, and also attend global HR meetings with customers in Hong Kong and China. It promised to be an amazing trip.That was when the phrase “novel coronavirus” and news of its devastating impact in China began to circulate. In fact, January 20 was the day the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was reported in the United States.
When I made the decision to cancel my trip, it was with the full support of a leadership team I had come to truly trust. As the situation unfolded, the cadence of our company-wide COVID-19 communications ramped up. We used the acronym SEAT—speed, empathy, accuracy, and transparency—as a North Star for our messaging. on ServiceNow’s Workflow site, HR expert Josh Bersin shared his thoughts on how HR can lead during the COVID-19 crisis. “Truly empathetic communication is badly needed,” says Bersin.