A bridge over an interstate started "shedding concrete."
That is, concrete chunks were falling on the interstate. The overpass bridge had to be closed. No vibrations allowed.
Out of the blue.
The bridge was closed. Suddenly there was a six mile work around to get to several housing and business areas.
Really hard on the business and employees.
Latest scam?
Phony invoice scams are nothing new.
But......
Phony invoices generated by AI are like a plaque of locusts, lots and fast moving.
Also, email request for payment with bank links are lurking out there.
Business owners must tighten internal controls.
Professional firms must warn their clients AND tighten internal controls.
So two of the most likely disaster events for your location/s would be fire and flood.
What would be the possible outcomes?
* business shut down for (possible time period)
* inventory lost in the amount of $_____
difficult to replacement?
*equipment / furniture / fixture
what? lost or damaged?
replace or refurbish?
* employees in immediate jeopardy
*employees out of work for _______ period
employees moving to other employment? probability
* customers who move to other services or vendors?
* business records damaged or lost
*IT resources likely to be damaged or lost
This analysis is quite necessary and quite sobering.
Spend some time planning for a disaster.
Play the "what if" scenario.
What if fire, flood, blizzard, power outage (like Indiana this month) or other disaster kept you out of the office and/or without utilities for several days?
Or worse, what if your office is damaged so severely it must be abandoned?
What if?
What preparations can be done?
What would be the impact of?
... being flooded out of your office during tax season?
.... a blizzard that shut down your area for several days?
.... a fire in your office building? (water and smoke tend to travel far and fast)
.... an ice storm that cuts power for four days? internet for five days?
.... a fire in a commercial building two blocks away?
.... a chemical spill in a near by truck depot?
This analysis depends on your location, the type of structure, the type of neighbors (in the building and in the neighborhood), and your geography and topography.
Professional firms are subject to the same risks as other businesses.
Fire, flood, lightning strikes, power outages, tornadoes and hurricanes, the whole range.
What would happen if you lost access to your office for a few days, a week or more?
What if everyone had to work remote for an extended period of time?
What would happen if your Internet was out for an extended period of time?
What if another company in your office building did something to compromise the entire building?
What if a fire turned your paper records into a wet smoky blob?
What if a water pipe broke in the sprinkler system?
Anticipate and prepare!
What could go wrong?
Fire, flood, tornado, hurricane, water leaks, vehicle accidents **, earthquakes, forest fires, power surges, etc.
In our area there is a significant probability of tornados, a near 0 probability of hurricane damage, a tiny probability of an earthquake, and depending on the location a significant probability of flooding.
If you are in an office building or retail strip you need to worry about problems caused by neighbors.
Make a list of possible disasters, assign a probability to each, and think through your reaction (more on that later).
** Our city has regular episodes of vehicles driving into building lobbies or store fronts.
