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Ensuring Sure Your Business Is Ready for Any Potential Disaster Situations | SERVPRO® of Kingston/New Paltz
5/9/2019 (Permalink)
It's never too early or late to create a plan for your Ulster County business in case of any type of emergency or disaster!
As a business owner, you shoulder many responsibilities where the business and your employees are concerned, but one of the most important responsibilities to consider is emergency preparedness. Kingston, Highland, Saugerties, Esopus and New Paltz businesses have dealt with plenty of emergencies in the past, so here's a little help going forward-
While putting an emergency preparedness plan in place does not give you a guarantee that a disaster will not happen, it can still give your business a leg up on the safety side, making sure that your employees know what to do if a disaster or emergency situation should occur.
Have you taken the time to sit down and work out this all-important emergency preparedness plan for various disaster situations? It's time to make it a priority!
There are numerous emergencies your business should have a preparedness plan in place for, including:
- Fire and Natural Gas emergencies
- Severe weather, including thunderstorms and winter storms
- Other natural hazards like floods, hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes
- Human-caused hazards, including accidents or acts of violence
- Technology-related issues like power outages and equipment failure
Hopefully, your business or employees never have to deal with either a man-made incident or a natural disaster, but if there is no emergency plan for your business, things could become extremely difficult quickly.
A good rule of thumb is to make sure that safety training and familiarization of emergency preparedness plans are included in the company on boarding process, team-building activities and continuing education opportunities. By helping employees familiarize themselves with proper safety protocol and emergency procedures, you’re not only giving them the tools to protect themselves, but you are also setting them up to help protect clients, guests, visitors, and the business itself.
When beginning to set up an emergency plan for your business, stop and do an evaluation about the possible scenarios that could most likely occur—and even those that are a long shot but could still happen. After all, it’s better to prepare for all the worst-case scenarios and not be caught off guard.
There are plenty of online resources to help guide you through this process, including Ready.gov, the American Red Cross, FEMA and the CDC. There are also private companies that specialize in these types of scenarios.
You should also do a business impact analysis (BIA) to help predict the potential effect a disaster may have on your business. This would include lost or delayed sales and income, increased expenses from repairs, and delayed implementation of business plans. Don’t forget to make sure a crisis communications plan is in place, too.
Practice makes perfect, so once you have come up with an emergency preparedness plan, be sure to go over it and practice with employees. Reviewing and rehearsing various scenarios can help ensure the process remains fresh in their minds and can help employees feel more empowered.
Disaster can strike when you least expect it, but by being prepared and having a plan in place, your business will be better suited to handle whatever Mother Nature has in store. If the worst should happen and your business is damaged, know that SERVPRO® of Kingston/New Paltz is here to help make it “Like it never even happened.” Call us 24/7 at (845)255-4334.