Worst-Case Scenario How would your business take a September 11-level tragedy? Only the best preparation can ensure it rises from the rubble.

When Flight 77 slammed into the Pentagon on September 11, the 37employees at Children's World Learning Center, thePentagon's day-care facility, knew exactly what to do. Theycalmly led the kids out of their building, situated near thePentagon, to a safe location. It turns out that these day-careemployees were just following the evacuation drill they practiceonce a month. Even though confusion was all around them, theyremained "pretty calm, as far as what to do," saysShirley Allen, the day-care center's director. "It helpeda lot in a real emergency."

As Allen knows, a little planning can save lives. But GartnerInc. estimates only 25 to 35 percent of small companies have adisaster management plan, compared to 85 percent of largebusinesses. Even worse, Gartner estimates that two out of fivecompanies that are hit by disaster go out of business within fiveyears. The following tips may save lives, as well as yourbusiness.

Get Out!
"No matter how good you are at [your] business, you can'tassume you'll deal in the best way with an unusualsituation," says Mayer Nudell, an adjunct professor ofemergency planning at Webster University's Bolling Air ForceBase campus in Washington, DC, and a security and terrorismconsultant to businesses and the government. "Think aboutthings ahead of time."

That means developing a plan with multiple evacuation scenariosand running monthly drills. "Confidence is the biggestadvantage," Allen says. "If we didn't have themonthly drill, it would have been chaos."

Start by assessing the risks of your workplace, listing thepotential disasters that can affect you based on your location andthe materials you deal with every day, and have an outsider take apractical look at your plan. Your local fire department or a safetyconsultant can offer advice.

One important point to ponder is how you'll evacuate thedisabled. Include employees in wheelchairs or on crutches, thedeaf, the blind, older workers-even pregnant employees-in yourplans. A number of disabled employees were trapped in the WorldTrade Center, and all employers must now face the challenge ofcreating crisis plans that help disabled employees leave buildings,not just enter them. "Making a plan without [the disabledperson's] input could be fatal," says Greg Fehribach, aboard member of the Easter Seals Society, which advocates for thedisabled, and an Indianapolis attorney who uses a wheelchairhimself. Easter Seals is working on a national education initiativefor evacuating the disabled and has released guidelines that can befound at www.easter-seals.org.

Have SomeBackup
Edward Moran is director of product innovation for the Technologyand Communications Group of Deloitte & Touche in New York City.He was standing outside Deloitte's offices at 2 World FinancialCenter when the second plane hit. Thanks to an evacuation plan thatdesignated alternate escape routes, all but one of his co-workersgot out safely. Deloitte's World Trade Center location wasdestroyed, but the company has been able to switch to alternateoffices to keep the company up and running.

Moran, who has created disaster recovery plans, warns that asmall company may not be so lucky, especially if all its eggs arein one basket. "You put your company at tremendous risk whenyou put all your assets in one place," he says. These assetsinclude files, customized computer applications, inventory and youremployees. Store backup copies of all documents at least a fewblocks away from your building, and consider telecommuting for youremployees. Some research predicts an increase in telecommutingfollowing the September 11 attacks, and Moran sees it as a goodoption. "Maybe you want to give people the ability to workfrom home to distribute your human capital," Moran says."Many people don't need to be in a certain place to dowhat they need to do." You may derive additional benefits:Studies show that telecommuting creates more loyalty in employeeswho appreciate the flexibility.

PlanningAhead
Here are more tips to help you handle the unexpected:

• Put it in writing. Add your emergency plan to youremployee handbook. The more training and communication you provide,the more it will protect you from potential liability, says MichaelDroke, an employment attorney with Dorsey & Whitney inSeattle.

• Create a communication plan. If disaster strikes, canyou account for every employee right away? Consider updating yourcontact list to a password-protected Web site a few times a day, oralways carrying an up-to-date list that contains employee phonenumbers and e-mail addresses for both work and home as well aspager numbers. Designate an off-site location where everyone willmeet and be accounted for.

• Improve your workplace security. Background checks,escorts, sign-in sheets and security cameras are all good measures.Planning not only makes perfect, but it can also save lives-andyour company in the process. Says Nudell, "By thinking aboutwhat can go wrong, you sometimes come across ways to maximize howthings will go right."

Chris Penttila is a freelance journalist in the Chapel Hill,North Carolina, area. Contact her at chris@sitting-duck.com orwww.sitting-duck.com.

Contact Sources

• Deloitte & Touche
  (212) 492-4552, www.deloitte.com
• Dorsey & Whitney LLP
  (206) 903-8800, www.dorseylaw.com
• Greg Fehribach
  (317)638-2400, gregory.fehribach@psinet.com
• Mayer Nudell
  (703) 524-6833, www.speconsult.com