Until your business has dealt with an emergency, it can be difficult to imagine the kinds of things that could happen. But a crisis could happen at any time, and if you haven’t got a plan in place to deal with emergency situations, things could get serious very quickly.

So what kind of situations could befall a business? From severe weather to a data breach, to the death of an employee, the list of possibilities is vast. Being able to cope with emergency situations can help your business become more robust, so that you can get back to normal quickly.

Need to work on your emergency planning strategy? Use the following tips to help you develop a strategy for dealing with business emergencies.

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Identify your business risks

A business emergency can mean different things to different people. Some issues could be wide-ranging, with the COVID-19 being a recent example. Others could be business-specific, such as having high levels of absence among employees or a data breach. Regular building maintenance can help identify risks, and ensure many common office emergencies (such as fires) are avoided.

Maintaining a risk register is a good way to ensure your business knows the possible risks it’s facing. Having mitigations in place for the avoidable risks can help you deal with the smaller risks, while larger risks will need a more detailed plan for how to deal with them.

Create a response team

When an emergency breaks, you need to know who you can contact to carry out the action required. Having a team who are happy to be contacted out of hours, and are responsible for different business areas will help. The main contacts are typically at the higher end of the business structure, who then filter down through their teams. Maintain your contact list regularly and agree on appropriate methods of contact so that everyone can be reached in an emergency. 

Put all of your emergency contacts in place

It’s not just your internal employees that could need contacting in an emergency. If you work with contractors or outsourced services, they will also need to be contacted to help out where needed. Building management may need to be contacted in the event of a building emergency, while your legal teams will also need to be on standby for any legal emergencies. 

An IT emergency can floor your business, especially if you conduct most of your activity online. Having a reliable IT company that can respond quickly in an emergency can help you get your business back up and running in no time. Click here for emergency IT repairs and servicing. Having 24-hour cover can provide assurance, knowing that any disruption can be dealt with quickly.

Pull together an action plan

In emergency situations, there should be a chain of events that happens to help you get back on track. Having a series of pre-defined actions can cover you in a range of emergencies, such as needing to freeze all of your social media posts or evacuate people from the premises. Creating emergency action plans can take some time, but it will be worth it to set a clear direction in the event of a crisis. 

Conduct tests regularly

Testing your action plan will make a big difference to your company’s response to a crisis. Regular business continuity testing keeps everyone up to speed on emergency procedures, and ensures that new employees are kept aware of plans. A quarterly run through ensures procedures stay fresh, and build confidence amongst your teams too.

Draw up lessons learned to prevent future problems

In the event of an emergency, it’s useful to evaluate the response procedure to help identify areas for improvement and to put in additional actions where needed. It’s normal that things are a little frantic during the crisis, but taking a step back once it’s over will help you strengthen your plans even further. There will always be lessons to learn, but your processes will continue to improve as a result of detailed evaluation.

While no business wants to face an emergency situation, it’s always good to be prepared. The right approach to your emergency planning will ease some of the stress of dealing with a crisis, allowing your business to recover quickly and confidently. Spend time working on your business continuity plans to make sure your business is prepared in an emergency.