Businesses urged to put disaster plans in place

Companies are being advised to be more proactive in their disaster reduction planning while paying closer attention to the potential impact of disasters on their employees and customers.

In fact, pointing to the current COVID-19 pandemic, Acting Deputy Executive Director of the Caribbean Disaster Management Agency (CDEMA) Andria Grosvenor has warned local and regional firms that they should start planning for “future” disasters – both natural and man-made.

“Risk is complex and really and truly, a lot of what we need to plan for are things that we have never seen in our lifetime or probably in the lifetime of our parents and grandparents . . . . The only way to treat with that uncertainty, therefore, is to make sure we are looking at our imagination of what could happen,” said Grosvenor.

She issued the sobering reminder during the Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) webinar series on Friday, which examined the theme Understanding Risk in an Evolving World.

With the country facing devastating impacts from the unexpected COVID-19 pandemic and the possibility of severe weather systems associated with an annual hurricane season, Grosvenor reminded the business community of the importance of having a continuity plan in place in the event of a disaster.

Speaking on the topic of Improving our Odds Dramatically – Risk Reduction Strategy, she said that over the last two decades, the increase in natural and man-made catastrophes proved that the Caribbean was even more prone to disasters than estimated, and warned that more could be expected in coming years.

“Climate change is really a risk amplifier. We are expecting even hotter times and dryer conditions. It will amplify risks related to hurricanes, drought, floods and various events associated with meteorological hazards,” Grosvenor said.

“We must not forget we live in a region where we have a number of earthquakes and volcanoes that can threaten the region as well, so we do have to give due cognisance of this. We are also dealing with hazards such as the pandemic outbreak.”

Calling on the private sector to start undertaking “radical transformation” as it relates to risk management, Grosvenor warned that if not managed carefully at the organisational level, risks could lead to disasters that wipe out businesses.

She also called for “effective coping strategies” to be put in place.

“One of the things we often do not consider sufficiently is the potential human impact of the disaster on the business as it relates to the personnel who will need to be available to be able to carry forward the business processes, or whether your customer base will be significantly impacted,” Grosvenor said.

“We want to talk about people because most business continuity plans do not consider people enough. They might consider IT, the other things, but not sufficiently people, and they are central to most of your business processes. We often fail to analyse that potential human impact – will that person be available to work and will your customer base be affected?

“All organisations can reduce their risks by preparing in advance, and there are two basic choices that we have – pay a small price to plan and prepare and mitigate now, or wait to react after the fact and pay a large price. Business continuity plan is important for your workplace to be successful,” she added. (MM)