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Extending Business Continuity to Your Employees

To those of you who have lived in a coastal area as an advancing hurricane takes aim at your community, you know the store shelves are bare 48 hours before the storm is set to arrive, people are lined up at service stations for fuel and the hardware store is sold out of plywood and tape. It’s inevitable, it always happens. Even people who live in hurricane-prone areas wait until they know the storm is coming to make preparations. We all know that bad things can happen, but for the most part, people–by nature–focus on issues at hand and do not invest time or money in making preparation for some unforeseen future risk. If unwilling to prepare exists for people living in areas that expect several hurricanes a year, then how true is the unwillingness to prepare for those of us who face much more rare risks such as earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires, and tornadoes?

Your employees are an important part of your business continuity plan

In business, we know to prepare for the unexpected and invest significant time and resources in developing detailed business continuity plans to make our businesses resilient to the risk of calamity. Your plan likely has contingencies for contacting employees through several mechanisms, plans to facilitate transportation and perhaps even has allowed for authorization for critical employees to cross police barricades. Your employees are an important part of that plan and without them, your business can’t operate. For most people, ensuring your home and family is safe takes priority over work and given a choice between work and family most will understandably pick family. A personally prepared employee is less likely to have to make that choice and through preparation at home, they will be more available to your business.

Extend the effectiveness of your plan

By helping your employees prepare their homes and families for an unexpected crisis, you essentially are extending the reach and effectiveness of your business continuity plan.  Readiness comes with effort and preparation. Consider establishing a workplace personal readiness awareness and educational program. Excellent resources are available through FEMA and can be found at www.ready.gov/emergency-planning-checklists.

Following are three things your employee readiness program should include:

• Encourage employees to understand their risks with a home assessment.
• Build a home readiness kit.
• Establish redundant methods of communications with their families.

Through education, ongoing awareness and your efforts in making resources available, your employees will be safer and more available to you in times of crisis.

Warm regards,

 

Kathy Leodler Chief Executive Officer Email:kathy.l@rampartgroup.com Phone: (360) 981-2703 PI License #3555

Paul Leodler Executive Vice President Email:paul.l@rampartgroup.com Phone: (360) 981-3397 PI License #4180

We at Rampart Group are committed to your security. Call 1-800 421-0614 or contact us today with your security or investigative needs.