Are You Disaster Ready?

Mother nature has not been shy in recent years about reminding Granite Staters of her force. Remember the back-to-back floods in 2005, 2006 and 2007? Then there was the tornado in 2008. But business owners have more than Mother Nature to worry about: A burst pipe or a car through a storefront window can be equally crippling.

That's why business owners need detailed disaster recovery plans for the common crises that may occur at businesses. While it may be more enjoyable to write a marketing or growth plan, businesses without a disaster recovery plan may one day find themselves out of business due to a situation that could have been foreseen and overcome.

Disaster Strikes

Say the night shift cook leaves a pan of food on the hot stove all night, and the whole restaurant fills with smoke. The next day, every square inch of the space is covered with sticky, smelly soot.

Or a car loses control and crashes through the glass storefront of a legal office at 3:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning, and during a fierce rainstorm. The whole front office is now wide open with files, books and computers exposed to the elements. The police reach the office secretary, but the lead attorney is unreachable and the secretary is not authorized to make any purchases or decisions.

These are just a few examples of what can happen. What would you do in these situations? Most people would exclaim, Call the landlord or, Call my insurance company

These calls are necessary and should be included in your plan. However, they should not be the first or the only step. Your landlord and insurance company do have some obligations to you, but no one will care about getting your business up and running as much as you will. Many otherwise successful businesses have been ruined by a fire or flood because it took them too long to recover.

Preparing for the Worst

Business owners can't prevent most disasters from happening, but they can be prepared. A disaster recovery plan does not have to be complicated to be effective, but it does have to be tested and reviewed periodically. A small investment in time and energy can mean the difference between your business experiencing a setback and being out of business. Below are key elements to consider:

Have a written plan in hard copy that is given to key personnel and stored off site in a waterproof location. Electronic copies are fine, but having hard copies is important in case of a widespread power outage or loss of computer hardware. Make sure numerous staff know how to implement it.

The plan should be put together by a committee that reviews and updates it annually. It should include how you would contact staff when they are not at work, where you would run your business from if you needed to vacate your current location for repairs, and the amount and way to access financial reserves or lines of credit to cover repairs before claims are settled.

All contractors considered for repair work should be preselected, and their contact information included in the plan. At a minimum, you should have a disaster clean-up company, an electrician, a plumber and a roofer ready to work. Contact your contractors to find out if they can implement emergency services and resupply materials should you need it.

Hold war games where you come up with different scenarios and test them against your disaster plan, taking steps according to your plans. After the game, debrief and find out what worked and what didn't. If there are problems with your plan, this is the time to find out and fix them. This is how emergency responders prepare for major disasters.

There is an old adage that says, We don't plan to fail, we fail to plan. Don't become one of those business people, or you may be planning to find your next job. n

Michael Hoiriis is the owner of Paul Davis Emergency Services of Monadnock, which provides clean up, restoration services, and mold removal due to fire, water and other manmade and natural disasters for residential and commercial properties. He can be reached at 603-588-7337 or by visiting www.firefloodandmold.com.