Vincent Miyoi

VINCENT MIYOI

No business, unfortunately, is totally immune from disaster. When a major weather storm threatens Hawaii, local residents scramble to the store in search of the essentials—it has become somewhat ritualistic. The reality is that a hurricane has not delivered a major catastrophic impact to our Hawaiian Islands since Hurricane Iniki in 1992.

In 2017, the high-rise fire at the Marco Polo killed four people and injured 13, causing millions of dollars in heat, smoke and water damage to 130 units. Only a year later, the Kilauea volcano eruption wreaked havoc as it flowed through neighborhoods and spilled into the ocean while causing lasting economic, social and physical damage.

So what do these events have in common? They certainly weren’t predictable. Even if they were, they all necessitated a plan in order to respond and recover. Disasters, whether natural or manmade, big or small, can strike at any time and without notice.

Fast forward to 2020 and the potential emergencies we are preparing for at this time of year are not only the hurricane season and the seasonal flu, but also a worldwide pandemic declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11. Whether it is preparing for a natural disaster, a fire in your building or a global pandemic, it is absolutely necessary to have a response plan.

Not only do we rely on our employers to safeguard our employees, we ask of them to do the same for clients and customers as well as the general public. As we are witnessing today, these events are not only limited to natural disasters. We face unprecedented work and life scenarios with the current pandemic emergency declaration and can no longer remain in the preparedness stage. We have been catapulted into the “response” phase. We no longer have the luxury of standing idle.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has provided a tremendous amount of information about coronaviruses, which typically cause mild to moderate upper-respiratory tract illness. Those affected exhibit flu-like symptoms. However, the most recent coronavirus is causing a more serious disease known as COVID-19. This is not the first time a coronavirus has been deadly—both the SARS and the MERS outbreaks were caused by coronaviruses. This disease continues to spread throughout the nation and the world at an astronomical rate.

Certainly, the current spread and number of COVID-19 cases in Hawaii makes the “response” step even more critical. Whatever happens, you and your employees may need to continue to serve your clients. In the event of business interruption or a work-fromhome scenario, here are a few key areas to consider for making sure your operations continue in the most seamless way possible: • Deploy the critical infrastructure necessary to maintain business operations. • Provide technological logistics such as Internet, phone service, laptops and/or tablets. • Ensure data access and accuracy on the website in order to maintain proper communication lines. • Employee considerations regarding necessary personnel and job tasks such as telecommuting. • Implement critical policies and procedures: IT, HR, security, facilities, supply chain, travel, risk management, legal and ethical issues, purchasing etc. • Review business insurance coverages in regard to infectious disease pandemics. • Expand or create ways to continue your business (e.g., online services, curb and delivery services, shorten hours etc.)

Implementing a communication strategy plan is key. Historically, communication failures have plagued organizations in their ability to respond to and minimize human, operational and financial impact of critical events and emergency incidents. So keep in contact with your employees, clients and your supply chain. Hopefully, you’ve created critical internal and external contact lists or communication trees to aid in updating stakeholders with current information. Your employees will need to know essential responsibilities and will need all of the support possible in dealing with this response as their lives are upended.

The goal is an emergency preparedness plan that allows you to focus on recovery and service, not piecing together critical data or scrambling at the last minute. ❖

Vincent Miyoi is Atlas Insurance Agency’s senior vice president of client consulting services and organizational management, responsible for the development and management of the agency’s strategic organizational development program. He has been with Atlas Insurance since 2000. Reach him at 533-3222 or vmiyoi@ atlasinsurance.com.