London General Insurance's business continuity plan pays off during the freeze
A major success was achieved by London General Insurance (LGI) Company's business continuity plan when staff at Mitcheldean maintained high levels of customer service throughout the severe weather conditions in February. LGI employees were issued with phones, headsets and software, which enabled them to work from home, and in some areas even exceed their normal working targets for leading national clients, such as Comet and AIB.
In anticipation of extreme weather conditions over the winter period, Dannii Christian, one of the key members of the business continuity project team, had already briefed staff members, and issued them with a phone, headset, secure log-in and a user manual, so they could work successfully from home. Before the blizzard like conditions struck, everyone at LGI had already been issued with a Business Continuity guide, which included details of the dedicated number to call in the event of bad weather. This safeguarded staff by ensuring that they had early warning in time to avoid travelling in hazardous conditions, if they were unable to walk to work.
"We had been planning our business continuity project for many months," said Alison Pollecutt, LGI general manager, special projects, "and when the temperature dropped in January and we were faced with a 'heavy snow' forecast, this gave us the first real opportunity to run the full-scale business continuity system - with very positive results."
As part of the business continuity plan, LGI's information technology team had already sourced a secure software system so that staff working from home can access the LGI network. The software allows staff to receive calls on telephone sets at home direct from the routing system at Mitcheldean, and then access data over secure Internet links from home computers.
When put to the test, the technology worked well, and all the team members working from home were supported by a core team at Mitcheldean and, when logged on, were able to maintain normal contact with their line managers and other support staff.
"We were really pleased with the staff who worked from home," commented Martin Scrivens, general manager, learning and development. "With the support of our core team here we were able to maintain an effective service for our clients. In fact, for most of our calls the service ran so smoothly that customers did not realise our staff were speaking to them from their own homes."
The 25 staff able to walk to work at Mitcheldean supported the teams working from home by routing and allocating resources, with some working normally and others carrying out different job functions. "We had allowed for these changes in the design of the continuity plan," added Martin, "and while the pressure was high at peak periods, all our staff worked really effectively, often above and beyond the call of duty in order to meet the needs of the business, and above all else, the customers."
Alison continued, "There's no doubt the February weather was a real challenge. Not only did the many staff members who took on new responsibilities perform really well, but the home-based staff also gave their best, even to the point of exceeding normal service levels in some areas. This really impressed our national clients and we are confident with what we have learnt that we are even better equipped for next time."
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More press information from:
Ewart Woolley
CMPR
Tel: 01594 516079
Fax: 01594 510698
Website:
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E-mail: ewart@cmpr.co.uk
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