IFMA Publishes Emergency Preparedness/Business Continuity Guide
Its report, produced with RLE Technologies, says 19 percent of surveyed organizations lack an up-to-date plan.
The International Facility Management Association and RLE Technologies have produced a report about facility management perspectives on emergency preparedness and business continuity in North America. The report, "High Stakes Business: People, Property and Services," draws on data gathered at IFMA Emergency Planning and Business Continuity research forums and the IFMA 2014 Business Continuity Survey; it includes a step-by-step guide to practicing emergency preparedness/business continuity planning effectively.
"When people think of business emergency preparedness plans, they tend to imagine massive newsworthy catastrophes like hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes, bombings, and shootings," said IFMA President and CEO Tony Keane. "These events are certainly significant in their scope, but for most organizations the bulk of business interruption risk actually comes from more mundane threats like a leaking or bursting pipe, an Internet access outage, or a power outage caused by an external event. The difference between bouncing back with minimal disruption or costly, long-term damage is often the plan that was in place long before the disaster occurred."
The report (priced at $90 for IFMA members and $180 for non-members) says 19 percent of surveyed organizations did not have an up-to-date emergency preparedness/business continuity plan.
"Emergency preparedness and business continuity is an organization's lifeline," said Mark Sekula, an IFMA Fellow who is president of Facility Futures Inc. "Without it, a successful company can collapse in a heartbeat."