As the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic surged across the globe in early 2020, businesses of all sizes and their employees were adversely impacted by this swiftly spreading virus. How can workplaces be better prepared for the next pandemic, natural, or manmade disaster?

The goal of The IBM Covid-19 Compendium is to share the experience and lessons learned from a large multi-national company in protecting and preserving the health, safety, and well-being of employees around the world throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. A secondary goal is to provide a resource for small and medium sized companies who need a quick reference guide of policies and practices to help them prepare for the next pandemic or disaster.

The book is divided into two parts. Part I covers technical safety guidance and considerations around designing workplace policies, administrative controls, and protecting the individual employee; Part II covers COVID-19 surges and outbreak support and response, vaccination campaign efforts, and reflections and lessons learned from IBM’s Global Medical Team. Forty-eight contributors across eighteen countries document the diversity of their on-the-ground experiences throughout the pandemic.

The book has been organized into chapters that can be referenced or considered individually as opposed to needing to be read successively. Each chapter opens with specific learning objectives and concludes with questions that assess the reader’s comprehension and mastery of key chapter concepts.

Whether you are responsible for the health and safety of workers at a large multi-national organization or part of a team at a medium or small-sized company, The IBM Covid-19 Compendium provides a truly global, hands-on perspective of how the pandemic unfolded across the world. IBM’s experience can provide a template for companies, large or small, to quickly and flexibly manage the next large-scale global emergency or disaster.