There is always the possibility that some form of natural disaster threatens your operation no matter where you are located. Protecting your business against weather-related disasters goes beyond your business insurance program. It means considering the possibility that your most important suppliers or contractors won’t be able to operate as normal, thereby affecting your business.
The biggest problem in planning for catastrophes is the perception that it’s hard to imagine a massively scaled loss. What are the chances of this happening where you are? Could you really face a situation in which you cannot access or use any of the assets of your business (computers, customer records, etc.)?
This post is intended to help you move past that roadblock. Based on years of experience as an insurance agency, we find the old adage is true: anything that can go wrong will eventually.
The best way to get started is to imagine the catastrophe at your primary location. Assume your building is completely destroyed by any means you can imagine.
For yourself, think about which of the following would be applicable for this location:
- Production of ___% of company’s revenue.
- Storage of intellectual property, valuable papers, digitized records, back-up copies of main databases, including customer records.
- Operations such as:
- HR and Payroll
- Accounting, Finance, and Legal
- Customer Service
- Inventory, shipping, receiving
Now also make a quick note about critical suppliers and materials:
- Raw materials necessary to your processing.
- Equipment with a replacement time of 30 days or longer.
- Sole source vendors for your materials or processes.
- Unique telecomm connections or services that would take longer than 30 days to restore/replace.
Please read Part 2 of this blog on May 29th.