In 2020, the world was faced with a global pandemic, and like many organizations, AST had to adapt quickly to the changing environment to maintain business continuity and grow the organization.

• In January 2020, AST started communicating guidelines and safety recommendations to employees relating to the COVID-19 virus.
• By March 2020, AST closed all offices globally, executed work 100% remotely, and restricted international travel. AST worked with each customer to determine a plan of action that would ensure all safety while still meeting project dates and milestones.
• AST Leadership met once a day and committed to proactively leading our people through the crisis by focusing on the physical and mental health of the entire AST Team and business continuity planning.
• Communicated regularly to employees in practice meetings and town halls to answer questions and direct leadership lines. Establish an internal landing page for information and resources regarding COVID-19.
• To support our people adjusting to remote work, AST implemented flexible hours to allow employees to take control of their schedules and put their families first.
• AST granted employees a stipend to expense office materials to make work from home better. Mental and physical health resources such as employee assistance programs.
• As the second wave of COVID-19 hit the AST India Team, AST raised $30,000 internally and established a COVID-19 Support Committee to support any employee on the India Team in need of finical assistance.

AST regularly conducts surveys and outreach to employees to assess our COVID-19 return to work strategy. During remote work, 90% of employees reported having higher job satisfaction, so AST is currently looking to adopt full remote options and a hybrid model moving forward.

Teresa Stanula, VP Global HR