Hands-On Emergency Planning Is Integral to Business Continuity

Deb Pyznarski, BOMA's International Preparedness Committee Chair and Senior General Manager at Lincoln Property Company, is a guest blog author for Allied Universal.

Business preparedness is a continuous cycle of planning, organizing, training, equipping, exercising and evaluating to ensure the effective prevention, response and recovery from natural or man-made disasters.

In the planning phase, business leaders must work with management and security teams to develop strategies to counter all possible risks. Bringing these emergency response plans to life is essential to your overall business preparedness plan. It helps to ensure employees, tenants, vendors, visitors and first responders know their roles and responsibilities when an emergency occurs.

• Tabletop exercises help to identify weak points in a response plan. They are used to promote cooperative thinking, and allow employees to practice and prepare for emergency situations. They help personnel work together, and familiarize workplaces with technology, response agencies and the protocol for disaster situations.

• Drills are functional exercises that allow personnel to validate plans by performing their duties in a simulated emergency environment. Activities can be scenario-driven, and are designed to practice procedures and implement resources, including communications, notifications and technology.

• Full-scale exercises take place at your location using the equipment and personnel that would be called upon in a real event. Full-scale exercises are often conducted with public agencies and can include additional participation from surrounding businesses.

Exercises should be designed to engage team members and get them working together to manage incident response. This enhances knowledge, allows employees to improve their own performance and identifies opportunities to advance the overall safety of the workplace. How does your organization prepare for the unexpected? 

Take time during National Preparedness Month to have your organization focus on the Federal Government’s theme of “Don't Wait. Communicate. Make Your Emergency Plan Today.” 

 

  About the Author
  Deb Pyznarski is the Chair of BOMA's International Preparedness Committee and the Senior General Manager at Lincoln Property Company.