Evacuating Ukrainian Personnel and Managing Fixed Asset Risk in a War Zone

Our client is a major international Dutch manufacturing company with a well-established global footprint.

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Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 sent shockwaves through the West, presenting not only significant security concerns but economic ones as well. Many Western businesses based in Ukraine thought that a Russian invasion was a low-likelihood event despite the early warning signs and did not have any protocols in place to ensure the safety of their personnel and assets. Below is a case study of when Proximities was requested by one of its clients to help them build plans to ensure the integrity and safety of their people and assets based in Ukraine.

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Pre-Evacuation Phase:

Mainly due to the development of several future scenarios, it became increasingly clear to our client in an early stage that they needed to establish contingency plans to potentially evacuate its personnel at a moment’s notice in light of the growing Russian military build-up along Ukraine’s Donbas border region. As such, we at Proximities, during the pre-evacuation phase, helped them establish critical planning components. This included identifying evacuation areas and routes, alternative routes, establishing local emergency communication lines, and practical emergency travel packages, the so-called “grab-bags”. However, most importantly, we aided them in establishing a Crisis Management Team that would constantly monitor, liaise with, and aid key stakeholders in their decision-making processes.

During the Evacuation:

Once it became apparent via our proactive monitoring activity that maintaining active business operations in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, was no longer tenable, our client activated its CMT. We at Proximities assumed the lead coordinating role in the team. Via real-time and 24/7 coordination from the Netherlands with local stakeholders, we orchestrated the evacuation of our client’s 500 personnel, providing several options and calmly delivering clear, concise instructions for fleeing workers and their families. Together with our local stakeholders, we also decided which location in Ukraine was best for the firm’s personnel to evacuate. The city of Uzhhorod – which is over 1,000 km West of Mykolaiv - was ultimately chosen due to its strategic location along the Slovakian border and how the surrounding mountains provided heightened protection from Russian missile attacks.

Post Evacuation:

Once our client’s personnel—and some assets—were evacuated and relocated to Uzhhorod, we continued our regular Crisis Management Team (CMT) meetings with the client to keep them abreast of developments in the conflict. These meetings and our reporting form the continuous foundation for the client’s operational understanding of the conflict and its continuous strategic decision-making process. One of the key strategic questions we are currently aiding with is whether a return to their previous place of operation will be possible or if other options need to be decided upon.

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As a result of our comprehensive planning, identifying of roles and responsibilities within the client’s business structure, and calm delivery of our evacuation instructions, the client was able to safely evacuate their personnel and some key assets from a city that would later become briefly occupied by Russian forces and still experience regular drone and missile strikes to this day.

Has this Impact Study sparked similar concerns about your business continuity? Are you curious to see how we can help you? Do not hesitate to contact us via info@proximities.com, we will be happy to support you.

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