Disaster Planning; Lessons Learned
Issue #32
November 16, 2007
My father taught at a junior high school for many years, and I was amazed at his depth of knowledge on certain subjects. When I would comment on this, he would remind me that there was no better way to learn a subject than to teach it. That always made sense to me.
My curiosity about disaster planning led me to research the subject, resulting in the development of a workshop to help businesses create and implement their own plans. Now, having facilitated numerous workshops with many business people, I would like to share a couple of things that I learned along the way.
Wake Up Call
In 1998, while driving to work early one morning, there appeared to be flashing red lights reflecting off the buildings on the street where our office was located. As I approached the intersection, I saw water running down the street, and the hoses hooked up to the fire hydrant on the corner were leading in the direction of our office.
Yet unable to see around the corner, the seriousness of the situation began to unfold. In the next five seconds, some of the following thoughts went through my head:
- Are there records we will not be able to reproduce?
- How are we going to serve our customers?
- How long will it take to relocate?
- What equipment are we going to need?
- How will we communicate?
- What about my employees?
- What about their families?
- Am I going to have a business?
It is amazing what the mind can come up with in such a short time. Then, as I turned the corner, our office building came into view, and it was just fine. It turns out that all the activity was over a chemical spill that the fire department was cleaning up on the street. Nonetheless, I was pretty scared, and committed to doing something about it.
Creating the Plan
The first plan we created took six months and a committee of four people, including myself. We used a fairly simple template that was modified for our purposes, and followed the instructions that were included. Each member of the committee kept a binder at their home containing the plan and continuously updated records.
Subsequent plans were created as we moved to a new location. Now we used a software program to help create the plan, however it still took a fair amount of time, and left some questions unanswered. Yet, it was certainly comforting to know that we had a plan.
Helping Others
The idea behind our business continuation workshop was to provide others with a framework to follow for developing a disaster plan at their company. It was heartening to see the level of interaction as we reviewed typical core functions that a company would need to continue in the event of a disaster.
Individuals contributed real life stories when we conducted a sample vulnerability analysis, which helped open everyone’s eyes as to the types of things that can happen. We reviewed how to test the plan, as well as the type of training that would be required to implement it. We even offered a complete written outline that could be customized for a particular company, and offered to send an electronic version to make it easier to implement.
Many people thanked me and said that they were going to go back to their respective companies and begin the process. I was feeling good about sharing information that would help others have the same level of comfort in their plans as we had in ours.
The Reality
To my knowledge, none of the workshops participants have completed their business continuation plans. And, when I consider how many risk management audits we have conducted; disaster planning is consistently an area that needs attention.
Having been involved in creating a plan for my company, I understand that it takes time and resources. I sympathize with those who want to get started and cannot get others to devote the time necessary to make it work.
Perhaps we are just optimists, and believe that it will never happen to us. The reality is, it does happen, and many companies are not prepared.
Now, A Better Way
Recently, I was introduced to a company that provides online consulting to help develop business continuation plans, plus guarantees 48 hour response time to deliver power, technology, space, and connectivity. I read the success stories, talked to other users, and finally decided to give it a try.
Within two days, our secure site was set up on the internet, and we followed the instructions to load the critical information that we could now access 24/7 from anywhere. This was followed by a couple of telephone conferences with their consultant that helped us establish the other components of our plan. By the end of the first week, we had accomplished more than we did in six months when developing our initial plan. I now carry a card in my wallet with a toll free number that can be called anytime to declare a disaster and set the process in motion. That is a pretty nice feeling.
I am still available to share the business continuation planning process, including the template and facilitating its development. However, I would urge you to consider this internet based plan as it goes far beyond a binder full of information. Give me a call at (888) 536-7539 and I will be happy to discuss our experience. Or, email me at ed@kempkey.com and I will send you a link where you can learn more.
Thanks, Dad
I am now researching a couple of other subjects in order to create new workshops aimed at helping businesses manage risk. It is amazing how much one learns by doing this. My father was a pretty smart man.