Written by Denise Beaver
Emergencies of all kinds may affect your business – fire, weather disasters, cybersecurity breaches, health concerns like the recent pandemic, or countless other events that can quickly disrupt normal business operations. The most important thing to do now is to anticipate and prepare for these business disruptions. Fortunately, there are many government resources to help you plan, prepare, and address these situations before they happen.
Ready.gov/business has toolkits, how-to guides, and videos that lead you through a business risk assessment and hazard and business impact analyses. The goal is to develop plans to guide you and your employees through a business continuity and recovery plan to handle any disaster that comes your way. It is important to identify key business operations, equipment, and IT hardware and software that needs to be maintained. Emergency communications should always be a key part of your plan. Employees, customers, and vendors all need to be informed about what is happening with your business during an emergency. Frequent updates will assure everyone that the business will resume operations and survive the disruption.
Cybersecurity breaches are at an all-time high, especially those targeting small businesses. An IT disaster recovery plan is another critical part of your overall business continuity plan. Luckily we have many cybersecurity organizations and companies located nearby. One that provides free resources for Small Business Cybersecurity planning is the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). You may also be able to access cybersecurity resources from your existing IT services provider or insurance company, especially if you have cybersecurity insurance.
Know where to go for help when needed. Establish rapport with community agencies that can help you recover quickly from a disaster. Get to know community leaders, emergency management personnel (police/fire and emergency medical services), other key government staff, and utility company personnel, who can provide timely information.
Carroll County Emergency Management Division of the Department of Public Safety is responsible for the overall coordination of the response to emergencies and disasters that affect Carroll County. Valerie Hawkins is the Emergency Management Manager. The Carroll County Small Business Development Center also provides no-cost counseling and connections to key federal Small Business Administration resources.
A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) mobile app gives you the latest alerts. A disaster declaration may be made by FEMA when requested by state authorities. If a disaster is declared there may be federal assistance provided to the affected communities. For the latest weather alerts subscribe online at www.weather.gov .
The Maryland Department of Emergency Management (MDEM) is also working to increase information sharing between the private and public sectors and to provide a voice to the business community during emergencies. MDEM has built the Private Sector Integration Program (PSIP) to achieve this goal.
You can face any future business emergency by staying informed and connected with a solid business recovery plan in place that keeps your business open and running smoothly.
