IQbusiness has partnered with Schindlers Attorneys and Engaged Business Turnaround to debut a pro bono crisis management centre called the COBRA (COVID-19 Business Rescue Assistance) War Room.
The COBRA War Room partners say they have combined their extensive legal, accounting, technology and business turnaround expertise to help businesses in financial distress.
According to IQbusiness, an independent management consulting firm, the COBRA initiative aims to assist and sustain local companies of all sizes through the COVID-19 crisis with free services to help them receive coordinated bank, government and stakeholder support through a structured business rescue process.
COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every facet of life and work, as local businesses of all sizes and across all industries face a nationwide, five-week lockdown. In addition, they have had to put drastic operational measures in place that are likely to have negative knock-on effects on their profitability, productivity and employability, says IQbusiness.
Moreoever, as lockdown alters the business landscape, it may also have catastrophic implications for the South African economy, considering the country is already in recession, which will be exacerbated by the situation.
It is crucial, the company says, for business leaders to respond proactively and take decisive action quickly to enable their companies to weather the storm. Business rescue is one option that can provide much-needed relief to financially distressed businesses.
According to Schindlers Attorneys, business rescue acts as a lifeline for distressed companies and those on the verge of insolvency. “When a company shuts down, the entire economy suffers as a result. However, when this business is successfully turned around through business rescue, creditors are paid, jobs are saved, and the company can continue to pay taxes and operate like normal."
There is a likelihood that there will be a tsunami of both SMEs and large enterprises in distress over the next three months, says IQbusiness. "Our COBRA War Room will support businesses with an agile response capability covering data assimilation, trend tracking, triage, decision support, communications, resource management, learning and development and change management disciplines.”
Beyond business rescue support, the initiative also encourages local companies to make use of collaborative platforms to ensure fluidity when working from home.
“We used Microsoft Teams to coordinate our COBRA set-up process across all partners and believe it is the ideal tool for communications, resource management and IP gathering and sharing. Zoom is another platform that has become a critical enabler of our ongoing business with our clients.
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