Disaster can strike a business at any time, making it critical that a company have the right insurance.
But you can’t just buy a policy and forget about it. You need to stay on top of your policies and make sure that you know them inside and out, says Anthony V. Palumbo, Director, Client Services at Aon Risk Services Central Inc.
“When it comes to the insurance policies you have on your business, you should review them carefully and understand exactly what is covered and what is not in the event of a disaster,” says Palumbo. “This is important because, if a loss should occur, you will need to know whether or not you can make a successful claim. It may be a good idea to re-evaluate your current coverage to make sure that you have adequate protection.”
Smart Business spoke with Palumbo about how to implement a business continuity plan and how having the right insurance in place can help minimize the damage to your business in a disaster.
In case of a disaster, how can a business avoid interruption and stay up and running?
You can greatly diminish the possibility of an extended business interruption event by having a comprehensive and tested business continuity plan. Such a plan can encompass an entire company or just one critical location or aspect of the business.
This allows an organization to proactively respond to a loss event, prioritizing and directing internal and external resources to ensure quick recovery and continued operations.
When a company is faced with a catastrophic event such as a hurricane or a widespread flood, a rush to secure resources typically follows. Having a comprehensive business continuity plan in place can provide a competitive and strategic advantage that places your company in a position of strength, well ahead of other companies, at a time when everyone is clamoring for limited resources.
By having a strategic plan in place, you have already identified and quantified potential vulnerabilities to your operations, completed an impact analysis, analyzed your potential supply chain and logistic weaknesses, and completed business interruption assessments, both upstream and downstream. This head start will help conserve your client base as well as your market share.
