Office Crises—How to Handle

Q. Our office is worried that we don’t have a plan in place to handle an unexpected disaster or crisis. It’s not likely we’ll have a terrorist attack, but we probably should be prepared for a fire, burglary, vandalism, etc. Where do we start? —Donald V.

A. This is a really smart move. Steven Fink, author of the book, Crisis Management: Planning for the Inevitable, says “Companies are beginning to realize what can happen to them, whether they're big or small, publicly traded or privately held.” The worst part of a crisis is being unprepared. By removing the unexpected element, you can better control the crisis.

Check first with your company’s security department; there may be a system in place that you’re not aware of. If you need to create a one, Fink’s book can give you a workable plan that’s easy to follow. Start by creating a task force of employees and managers at several levels throughout the company to develop specific plans. Start with plans to protect the employees, then the data, then the computers and, finally, the facilities. Focus on the most likely disasters for your area—airline crash? blizzard? earthquake? hurricane? tornado? flood? explosion? fire? robbery? vandalism?—and compile emergency information in advance. Everyone should know how to get out of the building fast, regardless of the crisis. Practice drills are critical, and should be held regularly.

Got a Fast Exit Plan?

Top management should have up-to-date succession plans of who will take over at each level of management in every location. Especially in a crisis, good leaders who can make good decisions under pressure are critical. (One company located in Tower Two of the World Trade Center on that fateful day that was told that Tower One had been hit, and “Tower Two was safe,” and not to worry. The top manager of the company ignored the message and ordered everyone out immediately. Twenty minutes later the building was gone. That’s crisis leadership.)

Protect the Data

Your company’s business data and software is the technical lifeblood of the business. Only one out of four businesses have plans in place to deal with information loss caused by natural disasters—or even a power failure—notes Charlotte J. Hiatt, professor of information systems, at Fresno State University. She says a recent study found that 85% of businesses are totally or heavily dependent on information systems to stay in business, and that the loss of those systems would cost companies up to 40% of their daily revenues.

You need arrangements in place to have all data transferred automatically to a backup external source at the end of each day, so that no more than 24 hours of information is lost. Even data that’s considered lost or unreachable in damaged hard drives might be salvageable. A California company called DriveSavers averages 30 data recoveries daily. It works on all operating systems in all media and boasts a 90 percent success rate. Choose vendors who can immediately supply computer hardware that’s compatible with your software. Calling vendors frantically after a facility has burned to the ground is too late.

Inform/Involve Everyone

Write a battle plan and circulate it to everyone so they know they could be called on to help manage the crisis and what their role may be. Some key elements:

• Make sure all employees know they must phone in and/or come in during an

emergency, whether they are contacted or not. Set up a telephone tree that shows who

should be contacted in the event of an emergency, in what order, and by whom.

• Develop a wallet card of telephone numbers for key managers and employees. Create a map that marks the location of their homes so that if a disaster strikes, those nearest can be called to get to the scene quickly.

• Designate in advance who will play what role in the crisis. Who will stay in the office for coordination? Who will answer the phone? Who will monitor the TV, Internet and police scanner? Compile and maintain a complete list of contacts and telephone numbers of emergency services and public institutions you rely on in a crisis. For example: all hospitals, ambulance and fire services, police agencies, schools, government offices, public works, local utilities, AAA, weather forecasters.

• Inventory the equipment needed to run your business and make sure you have -- or know how to get -- what you’ll need in an emergency: cell phones, laptops, portable scanners, etc. Know their limitations. Cell phones may be unreliable during major emergencies: either the volume of calls may jam lines or transmission towers may be damaged. Have plenty of extra cell phone batteries on hand. Know where and how to get needed equipment from outside sources—fast.