Emergency Preparedness Matters! Take Steps to Ensure 72-Hour Readiness
Since the mid 80s, the emergency management community has preached a clear and consistent message: Prepare businesses, schools and homes to be self sufficient for 3 days. Way back then, some even suggested 7 days! [...]
Publisher Celebrates 35th Anniversary as Pioneer in Resilience Industry
The Journey Began in December 1985 As a resident of Southern California, Kathy Rainey had firsthand experience with earthquakes, but the Mexico City quake of 1985 was stunning in its devastation. The extended shaking destroyed [...]
Tell a Story: Stop Spewing Data
Let's talk about storytelling and why it's important for leaders, especially in this pandemic crisis. In an earlier article blog, I shared Accenture's tips for what to do in this COVID time. Telling a story [...]
I Recovered From COVID-19. Here’s My Story.
It’s been an incredibly difficult couple of weeks. We’ve all witnessed incredible societal upheaval, and on a personal level (on March 16th) I learned that I tested positive for COVID-19. Thankfully, I have fully recovered, [...]
Thinking about Blame and Responsibility in our Current Crisis….
For the past 35 years, I have worked in the Emergency Management, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity industry (EM/DR/BC) – starting in 1985 as a provider of earthquake preparedness supplies for the west coast and [...]
Recovering: Social Networks Matter More Than Bottled Water and Batteries
Survivors leave Tohoku a day after the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami.Warren Antiola/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND Standard advice about preparing for disasters focuses on building shelters and stockpiling things like food, water and batteries. But [...]
The Impact of Sudden Earthquakes on Emotional Control
Recently the Central Coast of California and due south experienced a quake. In Santa Barbara itself, it was relatively mild, but for some including all the way down to Orange County, Calif., it was surprising [...]
How to Contain the Chaos and Empower Your Employees During a Crisis
When dealing with a crisis, a leader’s role is largely to guide others through it. Good leaders understand that everyone responds to crisis differently and know that they must be prepared for the myriad ways [...]
Human Concerns in Disaster Recovery – Part 3
This three-part blog addresses some of the human concerns of recovery: Part 1 What: What are Human Concerns Part 2 So What: The Risks Part 3 Now What: The Applications Now What: Applications for Meaning [...]
How to Develop a Contingent HR Policy for Disasters
Late on the evening of May 4, 1988, the First Interstate Bancorp building in California caught fire. Luckily, the fire was put out quickly and only two of the employees working at the time were [...]
10 Workplace Action Steps for Dealing with the Aftermath of a Suicide
(Adapted from A Manager’s Guide to Suicide Postvention in the Workplace: 10 Action Steps for Dealing with the Aftermath of a Suicide) Death powerfully jars our concept of the way life is supposed to be. [...]
Human Concerns in Disaster Recovery – Part 2
This three-part blog addresses some of the human concerns of recovery: Part 1 What: What are Human Concerns Part 2 So What: The Risks Part 3 Now What: The Applications Part 2 [...]