In 2018, natural disasters caused nearly $160 billion worth of damage in the United States alone. As a business owner, your main goal needs to be creating a plan regarding how to deal with the impact of one of these disasters. Failing to have a comprehensive continuity plan in place can bring your business to a standstill, which will lead to lots of lost revenue.
As any business owner knows, abiding by the “hope for the best, plan for the worst” philosophy is important. While your business may never experience the negative effects of a natural disaster, having a plan in place can give you peace of mind.
In some cases, your business may still lose revenue as a result of a natural disaster. When faced with this problem, reaching out to legal professionals like the Skikos Law Group may be a good idea. They can give you information on how you may be able to recoup these losses via a class-action or individual lawsuit.
Read below to find out more about how to limit the negative impact a natural disaster can have on your business.
Create Backups of Important Documents and Records
During a natural disaster, the building your business is housed in may be without power for days on end. The best way to limit the negative impact this can have on your business is by creating cloud-based backups of all of your important documents. By doing this, you can easily access these documents from any device with an Internet connection.
If you are unsure about what type of documents you need to put into your cloud-based backup, consider these suggestions.
- The deed or lease to your commercial building
- All of your insurance papers and documents
- State and federal licenses
- Important banking information and records
Once you have all of these documents on a cloud-based backup, be sure to make an actual hard copy of your business continuity plan. Providing key members of management with copies of this plan can be helpful in the event of a natural disaster.
Focus on Making Communication Easy
The cornerstone of any successful business is communication. When a natural disaster strikes, it may make communicating via telephone nearly impossible. Instead of being unable to get in touch with your team, you need to set up some backup forms of communication in the event of a natural disaster.
Many companies use the power of social media and instant messaging apps to reach out to their team during natural disasters. You may also want to think about setting up a special webpage where your team can check in and let you know they are safe.
Often times, you will have a bit of time to get alternate forms of communications established before a disaster strikes. Using your time wisely and talking with key members of your staff can reduce the stress associated with keeping channels of communication open during these times.
Constantly Reviewing and Updating Your Disaster Plan
The biggest mistake you can make when it comes to planning for a disaster is failing to test and alter your plan over time. Plans that were made a year ago may not be relevant now. Rather than waiting until an actual disaster happens to discover these errors, you need to work on updating your plan regularly.
If you are unsure about how to make these updates, be sure to involve your team. Often times, getting an objective point of view can be extremely helpful.
While creating a disaster plan is complicated and time-consuming, it is worth the effort you put in. Having this plan in place can help you keep your business going even in the event of a natural disaster.