Under Water

2/10/2020 (Permalink)

Imagine this – it's Monday morning, and you’re late to work (I know, heavy imagination skills required). The barista at a certain coffee shop was feeling extra chipper today, and she absolutely had to fill you in on the goings-on of her new puppy. You show up to the office at 6:15 AM, and you were supposed to be there at 5:30 AM. You walk in expecting to get a swift chewing-out, and ready to apologize / explain why you decided you no longer want a new puppy, but those things don’t happen. In fact, there is nobody in the office at all.

The entire place is under a foot of water.

While this particular scenario is made up, very similar ones have taken place. What would you do in this situation?

Make a plan.

First, ask yourself some "what if?" scenarios. The one outlined above is a good example; how would you alter it to match your situation? Would your employees know what to do? How would you keep them safe? Once you’ve asked yourself these questions, brainstorm with other decision makers and formulate a strategy. The plan should include safety protocols, procedures to follow, and whether or not it’s possible to continue operating the business as usual. Many people depend on management not only to operate the business, but ensure their safety.

Here is a list of important things to consider in your plan:

• Emergency contacts that are accessible from onsite or remotely
• Emergency procedure and protocol (where to go in case of a fire, earthquake, how to safely exit the building, etc.)
• List of emergency contacts for the business as well as individual employees
• List of vendors and data backup to be alerted as soon as an event takes place.

Sometimes, things go wrong. SERVPRO of Chino / Chino Hills is on standby, and we are fully equipped to handle any size commercial loss event 24/7, 365 days a year.