Planning for Disaster

Devastating meteorological events such as Hurricane Katrina, or the major earthquake long prophesied for the West Coast -- only reinforce that every employer should develop and be prepared to implement a disaster plan. The specifics of plans will be as varied as employers' businesses, as they should be tailored to the products or services the company provides, its location, the number of employees it has, and the type of business disruption the company may be likely to face. Whatever its specific contours, however, the cornerstone of any emergency management plan is ensuring that a business can continue to run, even when its usual mode of doing business is effectively shut down. Far from being a knee-jerk responses to sensational events, such preparations should be considered just another form of business contingency planning.