Your Guide to Preparing an Emergency Response Plan
Preparing an emergency response plan is an essential task for every business in Australia. These plans will guide and assist your team during any type of emergency that could occur. COVID-19 may have affected your emergency response plan if your workplace has changed in any way, so even if you had one set up before, it may need tailoring post-2020.
This article will talk you through preparing your emergency response plan to help you feel at ease. For personalised advice, contact the Resilient Services team.
What’s in an Emergency Response Plan?
An emergency response plan includes an easy to understand set of instructions to follow in the event of an emergency. It is tailored to your workplace so each and every detail is taken into account. It will consider every individual factor you can think of, including the layout of your workspace, what hazards could potentially occur, and where the emergency exits are. It will also consider the number of people likely to be present, and the size and location of the workplace.
What Information Do I Need to Provide?
To create a tailored emergency response plan, you should tell us what procedures you currently have in place, and how frequently you test them. We’ll chat with you about the nature of work that happens at the premises so we can understand the likelihood of each risk and plan accordingly.
Why do Businesses Need an Emergency Plan?
Emergencies can happen at any place and any time. While most business owners think it won’t happen to them, the pandemic showed that failing to prepare can be costly and have long-term consequences. A tailored emergency response plan accounts for different scenarios that apply to your unique location, team, and industry. It is important to create a plan for several reasons, including:
- Emergency plans allow risks to be eliminated or minimised.
- They are relevant to your unique team and industry.
- Plans limit disruption in the event of an emergency.
- They provide a clear path of action during an emergency, reducing the chance of panic or poor decisions.
- They also layout post-emergency recommendations to keep your business afloat after the immediate threat has passed.
- Emergency response plans protect your people, premises, and business.
- They provide stakeholders with the confidence that your business understands how to manage and react to risk.
What Documents Will I Need to Create an Emergency Response Plan?
If you have the layout of your building that is always helpful, but not necessary as we can help you source it. Please have handy things like the emergency contact details of your employees and where those workers are likely to be throughout the work day, even if that is at home or out on site.
It’s also convenient to have details of any employee (or your own) medical issues included so that if, for example, a fire started in your board room, anybody who needs mobility assistance will know who to turn to for help.
What Other Things Do I Need to Take Into Account?
Even after considering yourself and your employees, there are other people that may be present in your workplace in the event of an emergency. If your business trades to the public, for example a store or a café, we’ll need to discuss how many additional people may be on the premises.
This factor also applies to private offices— you may have maintenance workers on site, or be hosting a training session for new employees who will be working at a different location. In addition to these we will need to consider neighbouring businesses in case of incidents like hazardous chemical spills or bushfires.
Industries that are offered emergency response plans
Resilient Services provides a range of emergency response plans to a variety of industries. These industries include, but are not limited to:
I Need An Emergency Response Plan. What Now?
If this article has helped you realise your plan isn’t up to scratch, or that you didn’t have one at all, we’re here to help. At Resilient Services, we offer both corporate and operational emergency response plans to ensure that in the event of any emergency, you can respond as quickly and effectively as possible to minimise disruptions.
Call us on 0439 005 271 or fill out an enquiry form and our friendly and helpful team will contact you at your convenience.
Resilient Services – Stronger, Smarter, More Secure
What is Strategic Business Planning?
Strategic Business Planning is an ongoing organisational process that allows companies and employees to define goals, prioritise work towards said goals, and allocate resources towards achieving them. With an average of 95% of employees not understanding their company’s strategy and overall goals, and with over 90% of businesses failing to meet their strategic targets, it’s more important than ever to take the time to re-evaluate your targets and educate your employees.
How Would Strategic Business Planning Benefit My Business?
Strategic business planning serves five main functions:
1. It will help you prepare for your business’ future.
‘The future’ is a broad term, and could refer to weeks, years or decades down the track. Looking beyond the short-term is crucial when reminding yourself of where you’re going, and for helping you stay on track to get there. Assessing your business’ day-to-day procedures and practices is vital, but without considering the future, how can you prepare for what is ahead? Strategic business planning can help you see the bigger picture and work more effectively towards your vision – even if you’re currently off track.
2. It helps you stand out amongst your competitors
Implementing a core strategy will help all team members focus on your company’s unique ideas and values. Keeping these in mind will keep you in your customer’s minds, where they will see you as reliable and trustworthy.
3. It showcases your stability.
Having a clear plan in place makes it easier to stay on-course as you will always have it to fall back. This stability ensures that your business can stay true to your foundations, which can transform your audience into a tight-knit community who will remain loyal to you for remaining loyal to yourself. When your business is stable and consistent, not only do you customers and key stakeholders benefit, your staff and leadership team benefit from feeling secure and on track.
4. It supports internal and external alignment.
Managerial strategy allows a team to bond together and shows customers that you’re on the same team. This in turn enhances internal morale and external satisfaction. Crises disrupt alignment and instability, and while some are unavoidable, there are measures you can take to prepare for the unexpected. Strategic planning helps steady your alignment and keep your business on track even when a crisis occurs, leading to better outcomes in all aspects of the business.
5. It guides your organisational action.
If a crisis or emergency does occur, how would your business act? Having a strategic plan ready to implement into your day-to-day means that you are prepared for whatever occurs. Your plan pre-emptively makes key decisions about how to act, what to do, and how to respond, giving you greater opportunity to respond well. Strategy guides direction, so all actions taken are well sewn together and align well.
How Can Strategic Business Planning Help in a Crisis or Emergency?
Whether it’s security, economic, or disaster-related, an unexpected negative event can turn your life— and your business— upside down. A strategic business plan can help to mitigate those risks and ensure your business’ longevity.
It pays to be proactive rather than reactive, and having a clearly defined business strategy and direction will help keep your business on track and working towards your vision. Proactivity allows you to carry on with your day-to-day, knowing that if the worst happens, you have a concrete plan in your hands.
Schedule regular meetings with your team to discuss and brainstorm ideas. Ensure that all team members are aware of what potential crises are most likely to occur, and what to do if they, or less likely emergencies, do occur.
Need Help With Strategic Business Planning?
If you don’t have a strategic business plan in place, we hope this article has helped you understand the importance of doing so. If you need help amending your strategic business plan or need to create a new one from scratch, our friendly and helpful team at Resilient Services is more than happy to assist. Get in contact with us on 0439 005 271 to initiate the Strategic Business Planning process today.
