We never saw this coming!!!!
This can happen in Crisis Management – but there are rarely events which cannot be prepared for.
Other than events such as 9/11 and Icelandic volcanoes (possibly), there are usually some signs which, if followed, can provide an inkling of future disruption.
This week’s events (w/c 4 Jan 2021) at Capitol Hill where protesters broke in to try and prevent Joe Biden being confirmed as the next US president may have not been high likelihood on your Risk Register of events, but if you have followed the past 4 years it can be argued that the signs were there.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-55568131
Indeed, COVID-19 which, when identified in China was originally rated as “Very Low” risk to the UK economy back in January 2020 has become the most impactful incident in over 100 years. Even though Pandemic was the top impact risk on the UK National Risk Register way back before 2008!!
There is a 2020 version of the National Risk Register at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-risk-register-2020, where, surprise, surprise, Pandemic is still the top impact risk.
Good horizon scanning by keeping an eye on the news and research can help you identify events early and start to make plans to cope with the impacts of disruption.
Tried and tested Crisis Management Planning can also help you respond effectively to events which can affect your business and home.
The worst thing you can do is sit back and hope it goes away. It may well do, but you will probably be caught by the next big event.
So. – Top Tips
- Keep an eye out for future threats
- Review your plans to make sure you have identified your response
- Exercise it. Work through a scenario and identify any gaps
O-BC Business Continuity 