Disaster comes in many forms for businesses, natural, man-made, and economic.  This blog is meant to provide some of the key items (food for thought).  Think about recent events that have hit many businesses, the down-turn in the economy,  the events of Huricane Katrina, the California wild fires, and devastation of areas by flooding in the midwest.  Clearly there are other events of the past that dictate awareness to their potential as well,  such as the events of  9/11, the industrial espionage that was discovered at Boeing, and other man-made domestic threats that impact companies ability to operate or even to continue to exist.

Think about the aspects of your business that are key to your operations.  For most companies the basics are communications, banking (access to funds), records (both finacial and customer), necessary supplies, your workforce, and a base of operations (where you work).

Now that I have you thinking about these recent events I will address natural and some man-made events in this posting with a few simple steps to develop a plan.

• Most companies records are on computers. They should be backed up regularly and  information storage should be securely on and off-site (this can be as simple as a secure FTP storage site, or cross backups between geographically disparate locations)
• Copy important documents (client lists, contracts, accounting records) on paper and digitally then store them in a secure location or off site in a secure container (Have a method to update these routinely).
• Cross-train employees and make them aware of the plan to continue operations in the event of disaster.   Allow multiple key or responsible employees to know where key elements of the corporate information is kept and how the plan allows access in the event of disaster.
• Prepare secondary work locations in the event of disaster and allow employees the ability to telecommute or  work remotely from home via computer. 
• Keep additional supplies (water, food, blakets, medical supplies, flashlights, batteries, portable radios, etc.) on hand in case of a shelter in place disaster.
• Plan to simplify operations and downsize for periods of time without full operation or the use of, electricity, computers,water, facilities, etc.
• Have a communication chain and notification tree to keep track of your workforce in the event of disaster.

The key to this message in its simplest form is this: Have a plan, be prepared to modify your plan, practice your plan, have your workforce (especially key employees) know the plan, and be aware of the potential of threats by keeping informed (this gives you time to prepare and implement your plan).

More information is available on the web from the US Small Business Administration at the following link: http://www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance/disasterpreparedness/index.html

This blog content is an excerpt from my article Disaster Preparedness for Business. 

Frank Davies, President, Aella Consulting Group, Inc. www.aellagroup.com