What happens to Ukrainian companies during war?

Did Ukrainian companies ever expect to be caught in the middle of the war zone? We bet no one has, but what we see now is the strongest confrontation and flexibility in times of great calamity.

February 2022 changed the way Ukrainian people lived and worked. Since the beginning of the war, every company in the country knows what it’s like to work under shelling and bombing. The devastating sounds of air raid sirens make our hearts stop and tense, but we keep moving.

This article shows you how the IT industry manages to stay afloat. To discuss the topic of what happened to Ukrainian companies during the war, the Serpstat team interviewed 998 digital specialists and spoke with representatives of such IT companies: eSputnik, Stripo, Serpstat, Ardas, Depositphotos, Choice31, Inweb, Netpeak Software, YouScan and Netpeak.

How Ukrainian companies are rearranging their workflows

This is how some companies reorganize processes under such extreme conditions as instructed TechRound:

“The eSputnik team continues to provide high-quality service to its customers. We no longer work in departments, as we used to do, but concentrate on projects in teams. Everyone puts in as much time as possible. We support each other and solve work problems quickly.”

Valeriia Shudryk, content marketer eSputnik

“Serpstat is the go-to platform to accelerate the achievement of search marketing goals. We have lost significant profits from Ukrainian customers, but fortunately some companies are returning to regular workflows.

These circumstances forced us to quickly review our plans to expand new markets. We have shifted our focus to Europe and the US.

After the suspension of business activities in the Russian Federation, we had to deal with a lot of hateful words and our customer service guys had to communicate with not very nice users. We have also launched a support program for Ukrainian customers.”

Kateryna Kabakova, CEO Serpstat

Where are the company’s employees currently working and where are the offices located?

One of the most important questions in the lives of Ukrainians was the decision to move to safer places or stay at home. Almost half of the respondents moved to safer areas in Ukraine or abroad – 46%. 54% of the respondents stay in their city.

According to other companies, many employees had to leave their homes. Some of them moved to another region of the country, while others moved abroad.

“100% of our employees come from Ukraine. Since the outbreak of the war, half of our employees have remained in Ukraine. The majority of them are located in western Ukraine and Odessa. Another half moved temporarily to European countries such as Poland, Bulgaria, Germany, France and Spain. Unfortunately, some people are now occupied in Kherson, we are in constant contact with them, believing that sooner or later they will be in complete safety.”

Vitalii Todorov, CCO at Inweb

“Almost all Choice31 employees are based in Ukraine. Some of them moved to other countries after February 24: Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Turkey.”

Yevheniia Hlizer, СЕО Choice31

“YouScan’s headquarters in Ukraine is located in Kiev. Most workers (75%) have moved to safer cities and now work in the center and west of the country. 25% of employees have moved to Europe.”

Galina Marchuk, СPО YouScan

“The Depositphotos and VistaCreate offices are located in Kiev. All the while we help our employees with evictions at home and abroad. We have been working remotely for a long time. Our team worked from different parts of Ukraine (63%) and countries like Cyprus, Germany, Poland and Hungary (37%). And now most of the team is based in Ukraine.”

Anastasiia Fed-Titova, PR Manager Depositphotos

What do workers do in wartime and how do you support those who can’t work now?

More than 5 million Ukrainians have been forced to leave the country, according to UN data. We decided to find out how our respondents work in these drastic circumstances. The first thing we asked was if they managed to get back to work. 73% of respondents work full-time or part-time. 27% are unfortunately forced to look for a job.

Many companies have had to adjust their key operational strategies along with relocations. Plus, we learned how our internet marketers help protect our country and our economy. 37% donate money to the armed forces, 20% have started volunteering. 15% – in the ranks of defenders of the armed forces and the territorial defense force.

“The YouScan team always helps the military and refugees financially. The company itself contributed a large sum of money to the military and provided free access to its social media monitoring system to Ukrainian government agencies, activists and various volunteer organizations.”

Galina Marchuk, СPО at YouScan

“Certainly, with the onset of the war, the life of the company and its employees has changed significantly. Like all Ukrainians, the Serpstat team combines work and volunteerism, despite air strike warnings. Some of us joined the armed forces of Ukraine or the territorial forces, others coordinated volunteer work and spread the truth about this terrible war as part of Netpeak Group Initiatives.”

Kateryna Kabakova, CEO Serpstat

Many of us started volunteering actively during the early days of the war. Everyone got together and started helping the army and the city. Some of our people defend Ukraine as part of various military units.

This is how Ardas contributes to supporting the country and its citizens:

preserves employment and rewards those who defend our country; coordinates eviction procedures and assists in the search for temporary housing; donates and provides voluntary assistance to the armed forces of Ukraine.

Our company prefers to stay in the country and support it during this difficult time, but also after the victory.

Yana Hvozdetska, HR Director Ardas

Was the company ready for such drastic changes?

Risk management is a strong point of any large company. Experts need to come up with backup plans for a hypothetical but not far-fetched situation. Some representatives shared their strategies for dealing with major emergencies in advance.

“Our company had a plan in case of war. We have mapped out all necessary security measures in the event of hostilities in advance. Together with the global Vista team, we developed an initial plan to minimize the impact of the war on VistaCreate and Depositphotos. Our number one priority is the safety of every team member.”

Anastasiia Fed-Titova, PR Manager Depositphotos

“We can say that the pandemic has prepared us in advance for such an extreme situation, because most of our employees have been working remotely for 2 years. The real challenge was solving financial and strategic issues. We do not panic, but work and concentrate on the main tasks.”

Alex Wise, CEO Netpeak Software

How do companies run a business to keep the economy of the country stable?

The war has changed the usual workflow of Ukrainian companies, but each of us understands that Ukrainian companies are struggling right now, so it is important for us not only to continue working in this new reality, but also to help others cope. water conservation and the economy of Ukraine.

“We fully understand that we are a global product and we cannot disappoint our customers. For this reason, we have relocated many members of our team to other countries so that they can continue to work safely. To help our customers help Ukraine, we also launched a charity fundraising project.”

Dmytro Kulaksyz, PM Stripo

Conclusion

This war has brought us a great setback and has turned our lives completely upside down. However, we are all connected by our love for the motherland and our desire to move on and live a normal life in a peaceful country. So now we are doing our best to help our employees and customers, help the country’s economy and contribute to our victory. Everything will definitely change for the better!

Daria Ahieeva

Daria Ahiieva is an outgoing and incoming editor in Serpstat. Daria engages in content collaborations with influencers, blogs and media in SEO niche. As an experienced content creator, Daria works with all possible content formats: from interviews and case studies to analytical studies based on Serpstat data.