Anger Management Seminar Planning, Organisation and Structure

Anyone can arrange an anger management seminar with a bit of organisation and planning. You will need to get a group together who all want to deal with their feelings of rage. These people will need to be identified because they share rage in common. All these people will want to control rage in their lives.
In order for any seminar to be effective then it needs to convey a clear message. The message an anger management seminar would be putting across is how to deal with extremely furious emotions effectively. It will have ways and means of how to cope living with furious emotions.
The seminar will be specifically catered for each individuals needs. It will be centred to cater for each person that has problems with angriness. There will probably be a welcome pack with leaflets in about controlling fury.
There might actually be free gifts given away. Also there might be certain organisations that deal with irritability management attending the event. The seminar provides a chance in person to describe the results that happen when irritability is left to get out of control.
There might be different presentations centred around temper management. Key individuals will have the chance to speak about their organisation and what they do to help people cope with temper. There might be counsellors there and other health care professionals. There might be people who have actually experienced what anger can do and have been the victims of rage. There might also be people who have temper problems. Videos might be played to demonstrate the effects of uncontrolled irritability.
There will be a chance to talk and ask questions. Goods could be sold that are all based on rage control. Books or videos might be on sale and there might even be authors prepared to sign the books. As long as seminars are managed effectively then a good idea of what the user groups needs are can be assessed.
A seminar should be structured well to have the impact desired on those attending. There should be a beginning, middle and end to the event. When people first enter they should write their names and addresses down so that if there are any more seminars they can be contacted. You should have a list of objectives so that you can measure the success of the event afterwards.
You should think about what you want to help people attending the seminar to do. Do you want to teach them different rage control techniques? Educate them to learn that fury is not the only way? Show them what temper is capable of? Or maybe you want to do a combination of all these things. It can be helpful in evaluating how effective the day has been by asking people to fill out a survey with questions that will determine how well the event has gone. Organising a seminar is never easy and you will need to plan ahead but it can be a lot of fun and education if approached in the right way. It can bring the message to people in a very effective way.

Event Planning - How to Plan the Perfect Event

In order to plan an event, you need to establish dates and alternate dates, budgeting, choosing and reserving venue location, obtaining permits and coordinating transportation and parking, along with event registration procedures and systems.
Some other tasks of event planning, depending on your type of event, may include interior design, choosing rooms, tables and chair design, contracting electric and lighting crews, audio/visual, etc.
For an outdoor event, security, parking, portable toilets, emergency and health professionals and clean up and sanitation are all things to plan for.
Event Planning Tools
There are event planning companies that provide meeting and event planning solutions, as well as online software tools that include multiple sub-programs like email blasts, invitations and reminders, and online help tips and suggestions as you go along the process.
If you are doing it on your own, there are some very important event planning tools you will need to help you, such as guideline sheets and checklists, forms such as Registration Forms, Budget Analysis Worksheets, Safety Guideline Checklists, Meeting Space Calculators and Meeting Supply Lists, etc.
Event Budgeting
In order to keep organized and prevent you from going over budget, use a spreadsheet with categories like Projected Expenses, Actual Expenses, Notes, etc. Track venue rental costs, catering costs, decoration and design expenses, transportation charges, etc.
Event Venues
Take a checklist with you so no important details are forgotten. Get phone numbers of venue management staff to communicate details for any reason. When selecting a venue, get familiar with the management team so they can help you determine if the venue meets your event's needs.
Event Design
Speak to venue managers to learn what options exist to help resolve possible design difficulties. If there is room in your budget to hire a design company, they are expert at coordinating design with event theme and guest needs.
If you are doing it yourself, and trying to make it on a smaller scale, then ask yourself if your event will be ceremonial or laid-back. Whether it's lighting, audio/video, or invitation printing, you need to know how thrifty you need to be. Many venues have ready-to-go props, lighting and podiums available since they host of all sorts of meetings and events often.
Event Supplies
Once you decide what type of event you want to make, this will determine what sort of supplies you will need. If it will be of a festive nature, you'll need a compressed air tank and some balloons, maybe rope, tape or cable, some paper towels, etc.
If you are having a business meeting, then pens, pads, bottled water and a white board maybe in order. If it's a party you're throwing, then gifts, party favors, food, drink and napkins would be on your list.
Event Catering
If you are throwing a fully catered event, taking the dietary requirements of your guests into consideration is a priority. There may be religious requirements such as Halal, Kosher, etc. Perhaps medical needs must be provided for those with Diabetic or Vegan diets, etc.
If your event will last more than two hours, you should have a variety of snacks available. If meals are in your plan, then make sure to have low-fat and vegetarian foods available.
Make sure your budget can afford the quantity and quality of food you are providing.
Some venues will have in-house caterers that can help out with all or some services like tables and chairs, decorations and waiting staff, even if they don't accommodate the desired menus.
If all you had in mind was a short meeting, have at least coffee and water available.
Event Registration
There are companies which provide these services online and onsite as well as software you can use to do it yourself. Important factors to consider when mapping out your registration process are: will it be online/offline, free or fee based, onsite automated or manual registration, how will tracking in/out traffic be done, etc.
Event Lighting
Depending on what type of event you are having will determine what type of lighting, power requirements and ease of access you will need. Once the type of event you have chosen is determined, you would make an accurate layout plan that complies with local ordinances.
You may want to light any areas that people usually take note of, such as floral arrangements or bar areas. Be careful to place ample lighting, setting a warm glow in which people and food can be seen.
A room can be altered by adding different colors on the walls and ceiling. Spot lighting and color effects can be added to emphasize performers and speakers on stage areas.
On a dance floor, adequate lighting allows the guests to feel like an important part of the event. Most likely, your event will have some sort of video projection.
In the future, lighting fixtures that double as video projections will become the norm. Lighting, landscaping, or decorating the exterior of the facility can have a dramatic affect on arriving and departing guests.
After all is said and done, the event planning job has been done well when all the pieces to the puzzle flow seamlessly together. Equipment and supplies arrive on time and in place, people are safely and soundly delivered to appropriate destinations, and everyone got what they came for. It seems overwhelming, but successful evens happen on a daily basis, and you can do it too!

Personal Financial Planning - Risk Management

Risk management in financial planning is the systematic approach to the discovery and treatment of risk. The objective is to minimize worry by dealing with the possible losses before they happen.
The process involves:
Step 1: Identification
Step 2: Measurement
Step 3: Method
Step 4: Administration
Risk Identification
The process begins by identifying all potential losses that can cause serious financial problems.
(1) Property Losses - The direct loss that requires replacement or repair and indirect loss that requires additional expenses as a result of the loss.
(For example, the damage of the car incurs repair cost and additional expenses to rent another car while the car is being repaired.)
(2) Liability Losses - It arises from the damage of other' property or personal injury to others.
(For example, the damage to public property as a result of a car accident.)
(3) Personal Losses - The loss of earning power due to death, disability, sickness or unemployment and the extra expenses incurred as a result of injury or illness.
(For example, the loss of employment due to cancer and the required treatment cost in addition to normal living expenses.)
Risk Measurement
Subsequently, the maximum possible loss (i.e. the severity) associated with the event as well as the probability of occurrence (i.e. the frequency) is quantified.
(1) Property Risk - The replacement cost necessary to replace or repair the damaged asset is estimated by a comparable asset at the current price. Indirect expenses for alternative arrangements like accommodation, food, transport, etc, needs to be taken into account.
(2) Liability Risk - This is considered to be unlimited as it will depend upon the severity of the event and the amount the court awards to the aggrieved party.
(3) Personal Risk - Estimate the present value of the required living expenses and additional expenses per year and computing it over a predetermined number of years at some assumed interest rate and inflation.
Methods Of Treating Risk
A combination of all or several techniques are used together to treat the risk.
(1) Avoidance - The complete elimination of the activity.
This is the most powerful technique, but also the most difficult and may sometimes be impractical. In addition, care must be taken that avoidance of one risk does not create another.
(For example, to avoid the risk associated with flying, never take a flight on the plane.)
(2) Segregation - Separating the risk.
This is a simple technique that involves not putting all your eggs in one basket.
(For example, to avoid both parents dying in a car crash together, travel in separate vehicles.)
(3) Duplication - Have more than one.
This technique requires preparation of additional back up(s).
(For example, to avoid the loss of use of a car, have 2 or more cars.)
(4) Prevention - Forestall the risk from happening.
This technique aims to reduce the frequency of the loss occurring.
(For example, to prevent fires, keep matches away from children.)
(5) Reduction - Minimize the magnitude of loss.
This technique aims to reduce loss severity and can be used before, during or after the loss has occurred.
(For example, to reduce losses as a result of a fire, install smoke detectors, sprinklers and fire extinguishers.)
(6) Retention - Self assumption of risk.
This technique involves retaining the risk consciously or more dangerous as unconsciously to finance one's own loss.
(For example, having 6 months of income in savings to protect against the risk of unemployment.)
(7) Transfer - Insurance.
This technique transfers the financial consequences to another party.
(This will be covered in more detail as a topic.)
Administration Of Method
The selected methods must be implemented.
And finally to close the loop for the process, new risks must be continually identified and all risks needs to be re-measured when required. Treatment alternatives should also be reviewed.

Aaron Lau is an independent financial adviser in Singapore. He shares his awareness of good personal financial planning in areas of:
1. Financial Goals
2. Risk Management
3. Insurance
4. Retirement Planning
5. Tax Planning
6. Estate Planning
7. Investment
8. Reviewing

Succession Planning For Better Management

Most companies make it their policy of "hiring from within", which is one way of saying that an individual could begin his/her way from the ground floor of the company or organization or as they say, "climbing the corporate ladder and rose from the ranks" type and gradually work their way up and probably become the Chief Executive Officer of the company one day.
One way of making this process possible is through a method or technique also known as "Succession Planning". Succession planning is the style a company or organization both develops or promotes its employees and making sure that it does not caught in a snap, with a big hole in the entire system.
The Advantages of Succession Planning - this is a method or course of action which normally occurs in the higher levels of management and is very significant because the whole effort and time which goes into grooming and training a successor could take so long-like, years. Holes or gaps in the hierarchy could create and lead to detrimental effects in the productivity of the entire company. And this is why it is always a good idea to hire from one of their own, so that the only abrupt openings or spaces are in the lower ranks or positions which could often be easily filled.
One of the features of succession planning includes looking over every position once in a while and assessing the individual that holds it and someone who is perceived to be "next in line", and being sure that everything is running well-like a well-oiled machine, so to speak; that both the individual presently occupying the post is working competently and that the person most likely to take over can transition smoothly, hence, diminishing disturbance and disorientation.
Succession Planning Retains Strategic Leadership and Supervision. Yet another feature of this is making sure that the higher powered bosses or executives in the organization know and understand what are the goals and vision of the company, and being certain that everyone is updated on market trends and hiring policies in the industry. Succession planning is extremely essential to the general health and status of the organization and care must be taken during the hiring process to guarantee that all employees or staff recruited and hired could be trained and prepped up within the ranks of the company. In keeping and maintaining the business to be highly competitive, the executives will not have to worry regarding whether or not they are still pertinent.
By this method of hiring from within, the company provides individuals a catalyst of wanting to work there. It also guarantees that the public image of the company remains competitive and strongly unified. A company with a competitive environment is much more probable to be successful and profitable than one that does not make the effort to compete at all. An example of succession planning was the replacement of the former Chief Executive Officer of General Electric, Jack Welch. Before his retirement, the Board of Directors at General Electric went through a tedious process of assessing his probable successors.

Sales Management Planning - 5 Tips to Help You Plan

Working with many different sales organisations, teams and managers I have found that most of the problems that they face on a regular basis are due to the lack of planning by the sales manager. As the old adage states, "Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail". So why don't sales managers plan?
Well over the years of training, my students have given me many reasons why they don't plan and these are the most common:

• I don't know how to plan;
• I don't have the time to plan, I am way too busy;
• I prefer to be spontaneous and reactive and planning stops me from doing this;
• I spend so much time addressing problems, I don't have time to plan; and
• It isn't part of my job description so why should I do it.

Planning should not be a burden, as it will assist a sales manager become more effective and efficient. My experience has shown that when a sales manager does plan they solve a lot of issues that normally took up most of their time. So if you are failing to plan, here are a few tips that may help you begin or improve your planning. My students advocate these as the top 5 tips so I thought I should share them with you.Tip One - Allocate time in your schedule to plan. Commit yourself and block out time in your diary or calendar to planning. This may be every day, week and/or month. Whichever the case you must write in down in the schedule you use for your appointments so you don't use the time for something else.
Tip Two - Get your team involved in the planning. Your team should take part of some of your planning, as they may have to contribute to the goals you want to set. Get them involved as they will provide excellent ideas and they will take ownership of the plan ensuring its success.
Tip Three - Change the way you think about planning. Don't consider planning as a task you must undertake as a sales manager. You should consider it as a chance to think about issues, opportunities, staff and other areas in a creative way. If you consider it to be a mandatory task your chances of successful planning will be limited.
Tip Four - Set yourself and/or team some goals. A plan is only as good as the goals you set. Make the goals SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timeframe), as it will give them more substance.
Tip Five - Break down your goals into action plans. I have found that a 90-day action plan is a great way to help people achieve their goals. It allows the sales manager to write down the tasks required to complete the goal but also specify the due dates. The action plans that I teach are broken down into 30, 60 and 90-day tasks. Each task also has its own due date and reason why they should be completed.
Planning will help you solve the problems of the future so don't put it off. Give it try and let me know what happens. I am interested to hear your comments. Good luck.

Contingency Planning and Management - "Disaster Recovery"

If your company utilized a BIA (Business Impact Analysis) prior to a disaster, then the weeks following the disaster will actually assess the goals and objectives addressed by the BIA. The disaster has given your company an opportunity to test your Disaster Recovery plan, your Continuity Plan and allows you to identify what went ‘right’ and what went ‘wrong‘.
If your company hasn’t performed a Business Impact Analysis or doesn‘t have a Disaster Recovery plan in place, then you might find this article useful in its examination of the voice communications and general lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina.
Like many companies, the company I contract with has a Disaster Recovery plan. I’m going to approach this topic from the point-of-view of assuming your PBX/Telecommunications department has embraced a BIA or has non-tested Disaster Recovery Plan n place.
This article will be broken into several topics, with each topic providing a transitional phase to the next. The topics are;
Contingency Planning and Management - Disaster Recovery.
How to identify and rate risks.
Succession Planning.
ORA - Obvious Relationship Awareness.
An Overview: Contingency Planning and Management - “Disaster Recovery”. Voice Communication and General Lessons From Hurricane Katrina
Disaster Recovery can be defined as the identification of critical core component business functions and the processes designed to protect and/or recovery those functions in the event of a disaster. The strategy is to be prepared with a Disaster Recovery plan based on facts, not assumptions or opinions.
Disaster Recovery should certainly be addressed by your company. If your company isn’t prepared for a disaster and is the victim of a disaster, then the recovery process is going to be difficult, precious man-hours/money will be wasted and reactionary rather than proactive planning will be the norm.
I will not go over the BIA process or the actual preparation of a Disaster Recovery plan, as there are plenty of resources on the internet and books available on the subject. Links are available at the end of this article. I will however, discuss some items and real-life experiences that might prove useful when developing your BIA and Disaster Recovery.
Identifying Risks:
Identifying risk is a three is step process; Identify the risk, rate the risk and developing a constructive and practical action plan for the risk(s). I suggest taking the traditional risk identification process a step further and identify your risk(s) for each month of the year.
Step 1: Identification Phase.
Identify your risk. Risk are everywhere and abundant- consider the following:
A. Is your business in a flood zone?
B. Is your business in a tornado zone?
C. Is your business in a hurricane zone?
D. Is your business in an earthquake zone?
E. Is your business susceptible to forest fires?
F. Is your business susceptible to industrial fires?
G. Is your business near a rail station, airport or ship port?
H. Is your business near a government facility?
I. Is your business heavily dependent on outside/external companies?
J. Is your business limited by inbound/outbound roads/bridges?
Risks (A) through (E) are considered natural disasters and may effect entire communities.
Risk (F) may subject your company to mass evacuations and/or temporary shutdowns due to industrial fires or accidents.
Risk (G) may subject your company to mass evacuations and/or temporary shutdowns due to terrorist activities or Hazardous Material spills.
Risk (H) may subject your company to mass evacuations and/or temporary shutdowns due to terrorist activities or threats.
Risk (I) may subject your company to external financial and/or process problems. Imagine if one of your important suppliers suddenly claims bankruptcy or is the target of a hostile takeover or merger /acquisition by one of your competitors.
Risk (J) may subject your company to loss revenue if a main road/highway or bridge is damaged. Imagine if you company is on a peninsula and the main bridge or causeway is impassable.
Step 2. Rating the risk:
Use this Risk Assessment Card to identify risks and rate each one.
Risk Rating* for Each Month
Risk J F M A M J J A S O N D Total
Flooding
Tornados
Hurricanes
Earthquakes
Forest Fires
Industrial Fires/Accidents
Terrorist/Hazardous Materials
Government Imposed Shutdowns
External Processes
Roadways
* - Risks are rated by the probability of the risk occurring and it’s impact on the business. Probability of risk is 1=Low (none or very small chance of the risk occurring), 2=Medium (risk may occur), 3=High. (risk will most likely occur or is imminent) .
*- Impact on Business is a rating of loss of revenue and recovery costs. 1=Low (Loss of revenue and recovery cost is minimal ), 2=Medium (Loss of revenue and/or recovery cost are significant), 3=High (Loss of revenue and recovery cost are significant).
Have each member of your telecommunications department complete the Risk Assessment card and use it as a basis for a brainstorming session. Remember that rigidity can be counter-productive, be open to your employees opinions.
As an example, if your company is on the Gulf Coast, it will be subjected to Hurricane Season. A risk assessment for a Gulf Coast company may look like this:
Risk Rating* for Each Month
Risk J F M A M J J A S O N D Total
Flooding 1 1 1 1 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 1 26
Tornados 0 0 0 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 0 14
Hurricanes 0 0 0 0 0 6 6 6 6 6 6 0 36
Earthquakes 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Forest Fires 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Industrial Fires/Accidents 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Terrorist/Hazardous Materials 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 24
Government Imposed Shutdowns 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 24
External Processes 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Roadways 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 24
Flooding - The company is on the water but is physically elevated. History has shown that the area floods, but is usually caused by storm surge. This is why the risk rating increases during the Hurricane months.
Tornados - Tornados are known to accompany hurricanes and tropical depressions.
Hurricanes - During the months of April through November, the company is highly susceptible to hurricanes which can result in significant loss of revenue and recovery cost.
Earthquakes - The company isn’t in a known earthquake zone. This risk can be ignored.
Forest Fires - The company isn’t near a forest. This risk can be ignored.
Industrial/Accidents - The company isn’t near an industrial park. This risk can be ignored.
Terrorist/HazMat - The company isn’t a traditional target of terrorist activities and isn’t near a company that is a traditional target of terrorist activity. The company is near a railway and may be subject to evacuation caused by a HazMat spill.
Government Shutdowns - The company is near a military base and may be subject to shutdowns or curfews.
External Processes - The company manages many of its processes internally.
Roadways - The company is isolated between two bridges and a main highway. It is possible that an accident may render the bridge impassable, severely limiting employee and client travel.
Thus, according to the Risk Assessment card, the company should focus on Hurricane Disasters (36) before Flooding (26) or Tornado (14) disasters and the company can basically ignore earthquakes and forest fires.
You may also see a trend in May that suggest the company should be;
1. Concerned with Flooding and Tornados before Hurricanes, and
2. The company should be preparing themselves for Hurricane Season.
In addition, the company should be concerned and knowledgeable of alternate roadways and possibly lobbying state/federal agencies for improved access.
Step 3: Developing Constructive and practical action plans.
According to the assessment, hurricanes are the primary threat to the company. The company could use the assessment to establish a Hurricane Preparedness Program;
Promote Understanding of Hurricanes and Their Effects,
Work better to define Hurricane Risks to company functions,
Improve Hurricane-resistant and protection measures,
Encourage the use of Hurricane-Safe Policies and Planning.
Also, the company should also be prepared for flooding and tornados.
Succession Planning:
Succession is defined as:
(1.) series in time: a sequence of people or things coming one after the other in time
(2.) following: the following of one thing after another
(3.) taking up of title or position: the assumption of a position or title, the right to take it up, or the order in which it is taken up .
Succession planning, as used in this article and in the traditional business sense, is simply; identifying ‘who does what’ and ‘who can do it’ if that person isn’t available. You may recognize this as ‘Continuity Planning’ and it is that, plus two additional invaluable considerations - what tools are needed and can it be done remotely?
Succession planning is more that just pasting your organizational chart into a table and labeling it “Succession Plan”. Just as the company needs to identify and rate risk, it will need to identify personnel critical to core components of a company and if those activities can be done remotely, what tools are needed and who is the most practical back-up person.
I’ll use your companies PBX Manager as an example;
Your PBX Manager does much more than manage the telecommunications technicians, prioritizing service calls/work order request and managing a operator staff. He/she is most likely responsible for all of your telecommunication service contracts, your cellular contracts, your pager contracts and may even be responsible for your mobile radios.
He/she will know what your current systems are capable of and possesses insight to internal processes that don’t convey well in a written continuity plan. True continuity isn’t a snapshot of the company at a specific time, but a viable, ever-changing state of business circumstances that only your PBX Manager knows.
As an example, your PBX Manager may be the only person who knows that your pager bill was floating around in an inner-office envelope and is thirty days past due just before the company fell victim to the disaster.
This isn’t to say that Continuity planning should be ignored - quite the opposite. Those processes that can be mapped should be in written/printed format and easily portable. Succession planning is just an important add-on to this procedure, especially for those risk that have some forewarning.
In the risk assessment above, the company identified hurricanes as a primary risk to the company. Fortunately, hurricanes come with some warning. In this instance, a Succession Plan is an excellent way to mitigate the risk to the continuity of the companies voice communications.
Not only do hurricanes come with some forewarning, they are usually accompanied by mandatory evacuations. Lets assume that the company knows that a hurricane is heading their way. The company has prepared the property according to the Hurricane Preparedness program, has educated its employees and heeded the mandatory evacuations. What happens next?
In many cases, ‘What happens next?’ is a play-it-by-ear process, but with a Succession Plan in place - “What happens next - .” is an actionable item, a process - not a question. It’s a prepared process not a reactionary plan.
Suggestions to improve your Succession Plan.
Step 1: Follow the traditional guideline in creating a Succession Plan and Continuity Plan.
Step 2: Have a Succession meeting prior to the disaster, if possible.
Go over your latest Continuity plan and pen-correct those items that have changed.
Obtain the latest problems that haven’t been resolved.
Update important numbers and collect where all team members will be staying,
Step 3: Continuity planning + = An Improved Succession Plan.
Your PBX Manager should be leaving the area to conduct business from a pre-paid, pre-planned location. He/she should know where all the other critical members on the company will be located at (this should be pre-planned as well).
The location can be a hotel room safe from the hurricane or a sister property not in the danger area, or an Emergency Operations Center not in the danger area,
Your PBX Manager should have all the documents of the Continuity Plan,
Your PBX Manager should have a fax machine or access to a fax machine,
Your PBX Manager should forward all calls to his/her office phone to the remote locations number,
Your PBX Manager should be prepared to operate from the temporary location for at least several weeks.
How is this different that a normal Succession Plan? The answer: the pre-paid and pre-planned qualifiers. For those who’ve attempted an late-hour evacuation of an area, you know how hard it is to find a hotel room. You will spend valuable time calling area hotels that can be spent finalizing last minute company business and preparing your personal property.
When hurricane Katrina landed, we had key/critical personnel all over the United States and had to wait for them to check-in. It would’ve made the recovery process simpler had they all be in a central, pre-paid, pre-planned location.
Voice Communication Lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina.
Lesson 1: Your Hot Site/Emergency Operations Center.
The company I contract with has a designated EOC, with a small NorStar system for its voice communications. Two days after Hurricane Katrina - the company knew that the damage to the primary building was extensive and decided to upgrade to a BCM-400, an ISDN-PRI and a 100 DID Number Range at the EOC. The equipment and facilities were ordered from our Regional Bell and the company waited.
The Lesson: I knew that once an area is declared a natural disaster, the areas recovery is controlled by FEMA and Homeland Security. What I did not know is that once Homeland Security takes over that the Regional Bell, Regional Power and other public services follow priorities set by Homeland Security - thus we waited for several weeks before our phone service was turned up.
Lesson 2: Your Succession Plan should have a ‘return-rate-of-staffing‘.
In addition to the tips I offered above with respect to Succession Planning, you should also consider ‘Uncertainty’. Uncertainty is a terrible feeling. Do I still have a job? How did my home make out? What happens next? I’m not a social scientist, but I observed and had many of these feelings. What I noticed is people want some sense of normalcy - and being that we spend so much time at work - people want to return to work.
This is a good article on the Human Factor. ([http://www.ccep.ca/news0205.html])
The Lesson: Your EOC isn’t designed to support non-critical personnel. If personnel who don’t necessarily have to be at ground-zero start returning to work, it places a huge burden on the companies limited resources at the EOC, both data and voice. This burden, plus the fact that you may now need to order additional equipment and/or services to support the added staff - is once again subject to the priorities set forth by Homeland Security.
Return-rate-of-staffing is just a term I’m using to suggest that personnel shouldn’t return to the company just because there is a desk available. The return-rate should be controlled by;
A) There is a desk available,
B) It has a working phone/fax machine,
C) It has a working networked computer,
D) This job is best done from this location.
If there aren’t return-rate-of-staffing qualifiers, then people will return to a desk and start asking for ;
A) A working phone/fax machine,
B) A working networked computer.
This of course, places a burden on your technicians, your systems and the supply line.
Obvious Relationship Awareness (ORA):
ORA is a term I created in my fictional book, “Chaos Theorem” and it is meant to be a play on the word aura. ORA, “Obvious Relationship Awareness”, basically means ‘everything is related and the relational paths are connectors’. Everything is related in the big scheme of things and the connectors are often taken for granted.
The Lesson: Take account of those processes in your company that you can’t control. For example; the fact that we ordered an ISDN-PRI but had to wait until our Regional Bell fulfilled it’s responsibilities to Homeland Security.
Some other examples of ORA:
Take note of your supply lines feeding the company - In the days that followed Hurricane Katrina, the supply lines for any commodity (gas, food, ice, water, electronics, etc) were extremely limited. Shelves sat empty at Best Buy, WalMart, and Circuit City. I lost my home PC and laptop in the storm and had to buy a very expensive laptop (one of the only models left on the shelf) in order to program the new BCM-400 that was purchased.
Map your connectors - know what businesses your company relies heavily on and ‘connect’ beyond them. In effect, know your sources - sources. After a disaster, the company your company relies on might be out-of-business.
Expect water and sewage services to be interrupted. Do you have enough water at your EOC to support your staff? Also consider food and waste disposal.
Consider support materials that you would not normally consider. For example; diesel fuel to run generators and is the supply chain in-tact? Generators go through fuel a lot faster than you think. Is someone on the staff knowledgeable in maintaining diesel generators? Who is responsible for ensuring that it’s operational and has fuel on a 24/7 basis?
Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS) - are usually mounted in the lower portion of your communication racks and are an integral part of your voice/data systems. Are they susceptible to flooding? If the UPS’s have to be replaced do you have the manpower? (Some UPS systems are extremely heavy). And, if they can’t be replaced do you have enough multi-outlet extension cords to plug in all the switches and routers?
And finally, will your Regional Bell half-tap existing T1’s to an alternate location?
Article by Charles Carter

Business Continuity Management and Planning - The Key Processes

In order to implement and continually improve a healthy Business Continuity Management Program, the following program attributes and processes are essential:
Structure & Policy
All organizations should maintain a management structure that has clear and documented roles and responsibilities. The structure should support the development of a program that is aligned to the organizations Business Continuity Management Policy.
A common structure includes a Sponsor, a Business Continuity Manager, and a Crisis Management Team that consists of members of the organizations Senior Management.
Business Impact Analysis (BIA's)
BIA's should be conducted on all of the organizations business units or areas. This analysis will determine the level of planning that is required for each identified critical function, as well as define the maximum period of time the organization can tolerate the critical function not being performed. The BIA will provide the cost / impact justification necessary to support the implementation of the various continuity strategies.
Threat and Risk Assessment
The organization should undergo formal risk assessments of both Physical and Operational Risks on an on-going basis. Once identified, potential risk points are to be assessed for either mitigation or acceptance. Acceptance of risk points should occur at the Senior Executive level.
Continuity Strategies
Strategies should be developed which reflect the requirements identified in the BIA's. Strategies are to be reviewed on an on-going basis to ensure that they continue to remain effective in light of changing business requirements.
Business Continuity Plans
Plans are to be developed, documented and maintained to ensure that business continuity strategies can be readily actioned. The plans are to enable the resumption of critical business functions at an alternate location(s) within agreed time periods.
Testing & Exercising, Maintenance and Audit
Ongoing testing of the contingency capability should be carried out in order to prove its overall fitness for purpose as defined by the BIA process, as well as to identify errors and issues with existing plans, documentation, and procedures. It is generally accepted that a BCP should be tested at least annually.
Activate and Execution
The recovery capability is to be maintained in a constant state of readiness so as to provide the best possible means of recovering from a catastrophic incident affecting any of the organizations locations.