Published on 07/04/2017 by Punchmedia

Fire, Flood, Emergencies and Your Business

In Australia, the reality of natural disasters such as flood, fire and even earthquakes can strike without warning and this has been no more evident than in the past couple of weeks with the devastation caused by Tropical Cyclone Debbie in Queensland. Your business is critical to your financial wellbeing and could also be a necessary service to your community, so naturally you want to protect what you can. For example, a business may be affected by flood, with damage to information systems and most of its assets. Regardless of the damage, the impact of this disaster on business operations would be similar to that of a robbery and the same systems and assets were lost. Planning for the impact of an emergency rather than the emergency itself will give your business a greater chance of survival. Emergency management planning can help you identify risks to your business, critical areas of your business and how to best protect them. It also covers continuity and recovery planning to help your business prepare for and survive any emergency situation. A good emergency management plan protects your livelihood by preparing you for unexpected disruptions to your business. The business.gov.au emergency management & recovery plan steps you through the process of creating a solid, well-structured plan tailored to your business. Check out some of the key strategies to help your business survive an emergency below.

Research your business

  • Research your business and identify the critical areas or functions of your business that you cannot do without.
  • Complete a critical business area analysis and include each critical business area, the impact to your business if they fail and your current protection strategies.
  • Develop a scenario based on your top three critical business areas.
  • Consider adopting business continuity standards and obligations that could help your business achieve best practice.

Develop your emergency action plan

  • Develop your emergency contacts list and include local state emergency, police, fire and ambulance services.
  • Develop your recovery contacts list and include details of your insurance company, bank, employees, suppliers and any other key people.
  • Review your evacuation plan and ensure you have covered any additional procedures required under likely emergency scenarios.
  • Create an emergency kit and include things like key documents, phone numbers, torch, first aid kit, portable radio, plastic bags, spare batteries and water.
  • Place emergency procedures, contacts, kits and equipment in a prominent location and advise staff.
  • Set up an emergency action team, set clear roles and responsibilities and organise appropriate training.
  • Rehearse your action plan regularly.
  • Keep your action plan up to date.

Protect your business

  • Take out insurance or check your existing insurance covers your risks.
  • Store your registration, financial, customer data and other important business documents in a safe location.
  • Perform regular backups of your digital data and store the backup in a secure offsite location.
  • If you have data protection devices (such as fire proof safes) check you are using them appropriately.
  • Check you have proper up-to-date virus protection, secure networks and firewalls, and secure password protection procedures.
  • Check that your property and infrastructure is appropriate for the area, e.g. is it secure or is there a way you can make it more fire/flood proof?
  • Regularly maintain your property to help prevent emergencies, e.g. in fire prone areas, ensure you maintain the surrounding areas of leaf litter and grasses and clear gutters regularly.
  • Organise a backup for essential services (local telecommunications, electricity, gas, water and fuel) in more disaster-prone areas.
  • Research temporary office locations (such as a temporary business centre, hotel, someone's home or an office provided by a service provider).
  • Research the virtual office services that could be useful in an emergency (such as a telephone answering service, mail forwarding, or a remote secretarial service).
  • If appropriate, research and set up alternative ways of selling your products online for use during a recovery period (including setting up an e-commerce website or online auction account).
  • Cross-train employees in as many areas of the business as possible to help avoid key person risk.
  • Choose more energy efficient ways of running your business.
 

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Curtis is a leading expert in the business-for-sale industry, serving as a senior content creator at anybusiness.com.au.

With a career spanning over fifteen years, Curtis has accumulated extensive knowledge in the domain of business sales, acquisitions, and valuations. His deep understanding of market dynamics and his ability to translate complex industry jargon into accessible insights make him a trusted resource for entrepreneurs and business owners looking to buy or sell businesses.

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