HR on the frontline: How Israel’s tech sector is managing crisis
Iran's missile threat looms large, yet amid the terror and disruption, Startup Nation’s tech industry pushes forward thanks in large part to the HR leaders balancing emergency response, emotional support and business continuity under fire.
With Operation Rising Lion underway and the destructive threat of Iranian missile barrages an ongoing reality, Israel’s high-tech sector is operating under extraordinary pressure, on both personal and operational fronts.
And still, the industry has demonstrated remarkable resilience, thanks in no small part to the HR leaders orchestrating business continuity plans, while fielding the urgent personal needs of their workforce, from finding employees safe shelter to replacing clothing for those whose homes have been destroyed.
Companies are stepping in as lifelines for their employees, with Startup Nation’s people professionals toeing a delicate line: maintaining business momentum amid wartime crisis, while caring for a local and global workforce facing unimaginable circumstances.
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Hadas Hermon, Inbar Mark and Maya Blanc
(Credit: Diana Wolf, Shlomi Yossef, Rami Zarnegar,)
Another test of resilience
For many, the past few days have felt like an extension of years spent adapting to an unprecedented reality. After navigating COVID-19, recurring security threats, and the shock of October 7 and the subsequent war, Startup Nation has, in many ways, been conditioned to respond quickly and decisively to uncertainty.
“We're unfortunately quite used to operating under this kind of pressure,” said Uri Golan, COO of Prompt Security. “This isn't the first time we've had to pivot into emergency mode and shift to full remote work within hours”.
“It’s a continuum… that actually makes us be more creative and supportive,” added Maya Blanc, VP of HR at Evinced.
Others echoed the sentiment, noting that these past crises have, by necessity, made their teams more agile and resilient. “These events made us more able to do the switch pretty fast,” said Osnat Yarimi Magen, Chief People Officer at Sola Security.
Still, even with that experience, many argue that the current situation carries a more intense sense of uncertainty and personal strain, with HR leaders stressing that each new challenge demands its own approach and distinct forms of support.
“Yes, this reminds us about the situations back then,” said Inbar Mark, Head of HR at Amdocs Israel. “But still, it's very difficult, and I think it's even more… the personal aspect is combined with the professional aspect”.
“Every situation is super different,” agreed Hadas Hermon, VP People at Cyolo. “It’s not the same drill. For example, I didn’t have this kind of an open channel about finding safe rooms before. But right now, I do”.
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Roni Rokach, Uri Golan and and Osnat Yarimi Magen
(Credit: PR, Prompt Security, Omer HaCohen)
Extending support beyond the workplace
With schools remaining closed, most employees working remotely, and nights marked by drone threats and missile fire, HR leaders recognize the need to adjust expectations in tandem with daily operations.
“It’s responsibility and sensitivity,” said Blanc. “And it’s not a contradiction.”
From emotional support to practical aid, companies are stepping in as stabilizing forces for a stretched workforce. At Sola, A Slack channel was created to help parents (now full-time caretakers) keep their children busy during long days at home. “I prepared a doc with all kinds of schedules, activities, and links to things they can do with their kids, and then I encouraged them to share what's working for them,” said Yarimi Magen.
Meanwhile, Hermon made a point of destigmatizing the presence of children during work calls by setting the example herself. “They're joining me for the Zoom meetings because I want to normalize that it’s okay,” she said.
Mark described how her company booked hotel rooms for employees without sufficient access to safe rooms at home. “We understood this was the most important thing employees needed right now: to have a safe place to stay”.
For some, the call ran even deeper. “An employee’s house was totally ruined by a missile,” said Roni Rokach, HR Director at Lightrun. “She’s alone here in Israel… so Lightrun are the only people who can help. All the people are very much involved... We’re basically taking care of everything.”
Her colleagues, Rokach added, even opened a paybox to collect donations. “Everyone got involved,” she said.
Others shared similar stories of personal intervention. Yarimi Magen noted that some employees have loved ones undergoing medical treatment, so the company is covering taxi fares to ensure all appointments are met. At Cyolo, Hermon recounted offering to pay for babysitters in households where spouses are essential workers, “just to refresh”.
A clear throughline is that managers are in daily contact with employees, with companies remaining closely attuned to those with family members on reserve duty, those without support networks in Israel, and those living in high-target areas like Tel Aviv and Haifa. Speaking to the responsibility resting on HR’s shoulders, Hermon said: “We need to be a source of truth to manage this event”.
Blanc spoke to the emotional weight driving the motivation to lead with compassion during this time. “I can’t replace the soldier in Gaza,” she said. “But I can do the best I can to build the best company… and that the people that are part of this company have resilience and feel safe.”
Disruption and continuity
While Startup Nation’s HR leaders tend to the emotional and logistical needs of their employees, they are also steering their companies through complex continuity efforts.
At Prompt Security, Golan shared how early preparation paid off. “We have in our storage home office gear that we can supply to employees,” he said. “Once the operation in Iran started… we supplied them with everything needed”.
At Lightrun, a consistent presence from senior leadership has helped anchor the team. Rokach shared how daily communication has played a central role in keeping operations going: “The CEO sends a daily message to all the employees, saying we're with you, and we support you… we're here and we don't expect you to work normally during this time, because basically, people are not sleeping during the night.”
Blanc, too, spoke to the importance of a quick and coordinated response. She recalled meeting on the Friday after Iran’s retaliation began to align on a plan for employees. “We do what’s needed to support the people, the resilience of the employees, the organization and the continuity,” she said.
Golan also recalled the management team convening to help guide team leads on tone and expectations. “To explain to them how they should talk to employees, maybe adjust the pressure,” he said. “We want us all to go through it together and get out of it even stronger.”
For smaller companies like Sola, their scale has enabled highly personal support. Meanwhile, global firms are leaning on distributed teams to maintain operations and extend help where needed. This has provided critical opportunities for business continuity, particularly for employees stranded abroad, many of whom continue to work remotely.
At Amdocs, Mark highlighted the value of leveraging its international footprint to keep operations watertight. “We have backups outside of Israel, and we have the list of the successors for each one of the key roles that need to make sure that all the business will continue.”
Naturally, for these companies, international travel plans are on hold, including scheduled offsites and company trips, while contingency plans involving partners in the US and other countries remain active.
For Golan, the tech sector’s resilience is best reflected in its ability not just to stay afloat amid the crisis, but to thrive. “One of the things that I'm most proud of is that we're a global company, and we have several employees in the US… the international team continues to step in and support colleagues and customers,” he said. “We’re not only surviving, there's really a measurable success. We've outperformed many of our global competitors.”
Communication and trust
Against the backdrop of ongoing conflict, HR leaders agree that open communication and a foundation of trust have been the bedrock of a successful approach.
From the earliest hours of the crisis, many companies made direct, personal contact their first priority.
“The first thing that we did was every manager contacted their direct reports to find out how they were doing, if they had a safe space… and monitor their mental state to see if they were even capable of working,” said Yarimi Magen.
Hermon recalled immediately opening a WhatsApp group with the company’s managers, “asking everyone to be in touch, in person, with every employee in the company, to let me know if someone (or their close family) is on reserve duty,” she said. “Then we are supporting that.”
In this environment, many companies have oriented their culture around emotional awareness and safety. “We really changed the whole attitude,” said Uri Golan. “Now we're also focused on feeling more like family, because we need to really support each other mentally.”
Blanc, too, captured the necessity of flexibility and empathy. “We are trying to build or enforce their resilience, to really communicate openness and admit that it's not a normal situation… We are flexible,” she said. “When you trust, and your relationships are based on trust, you don't need to do much because you trust… you trust your people, you trust their judgment.”
At Prompt Security, HR has taken a proactive and highly personal approach. “Our HR, Amit [Guelmann], is spending hours to maintain close contact with every employee and ensure continuity and minimize any disruption,” said Golan. “She’s making sure their needs are met.”
And for smaller companies, proximity and scale have helped foster personal connections during this time. “We’re a company of 44 people, so we can still definitely give the personal touch to each and every one of our employees,” said Yarimi Magen.
At the same time, while many HR efforts have focused on employees inside Israel, leaders say the emotional toll extends far beyond the country’s borders. Hermon observed that her global team, watching events unfold from afar, has absorbed some of the tension as well. “They are feeling that everything is on fire,” she said. “We arranged a 15-minute coffee chat so they could support us. People see that we are managing… that we have resilience here in Israel.”
But as Hermon reflected, “The plan is still evolving. We’re trying to be agile and respond quickly.”
