Better secure than sorry: Protecting your business from catastrophe

With climate change making severe weather conditions more frequent and more intense, there are many reasons to be cautious about the threats to your business and your company. As you would take precautions to protect your home and family, there are important actions you can take to ensure that your business assets, employees, and personnel are secure and recover quickly in an emergency.

The saying goes that "if you fail to plan, you can only plan to fail"--with this in mind, here are some essential actions you can adopt to protect your company and assist it in recovering from the effects of a catastrophe:

Make a team

The first step in establishing the Business Emergency Preparedness Plan (BEPP) is to identify who should be involved in the process of planning. If your company is small and has only few employees, that could be you. However, for larger enterprises, it'll be beneficial to have an entire team who has a solid understanding of the entire business operation. A team of leaders on board in the initial process of planning is an excellent way to ensure that the top of the organization is committed to emergency preparation.

Be aware of the dangers

The diverse landscape of Canada lets us have unbeatable opportunities to enjoy recreation in the mountains, valleys, forests, rivers, oceans, lakes, and beaches, but it also implies that we are prone to various regional dangers. Wildfires, floods, earthquakes as well as landslides, tsunamis, and avalanches are just a few of the dangers you need to be aware of, and knowing which represent the greatest risk to your business is the first step in preparing to be ready. Utilize an interactive map to identify which risks pose the highest dangers to your business depending on the location you are in so that you can plan for them accordingly.

In addition, be sure to review your insurance policy and know the limitations of your coverage in the event that your business is not qualified to receive government financial aid for disasters when insurance is available for a specific loss, but you did not choose to apply for insurance.

Recognize the risks

When you are aware of the type of dangers your business faces, you can begin keeping a running list of threats posed by any possible impact and then begin to limit potential threats.

If your business is located at physical addresses, for instance, more than one storefront or office, it may be as simple as securing shelves, as well as other things that may fall during an earthquake or keeping paper or electrical items that might be damaged due to floodwaters off of the floors or ensuring that fire warnings are checked as well as extinguishing devices.