Written by Ted Uczen, FEI President & CEO

The other night, as I was completing a second round of shoveling after 24 hours of continuous snow, it struck me how prepared the community was for this storm and how accurate the weather forecasters were (for a change).

Throughout the previous four days, we were alerted multiple times to a storm that would start after 4:00pm on Saturday and continue nonstop through Sunday night. We all pulled out the winter coats, hats and gloves. Dragged out the snow blowers and shovels. Loaded up on salt and sand. We filled our cars with gas and, if the lines at the grocery store were any indication, all loaded up on food and drink so we could hunker down for the big storm.

How great was it to have advanced warning? We had time to plan, prepare and adjust schedules accordingly in order to stay safe, warm and ready to move on quickly.

Then I started thinking about how prepared we really are for any crisis. After all, how often do we actually get an early warning? The reality is hardly ever. Whether it’s a natural disaster or a man-made crisis, it usually happens and happens rapidly with little time to prepare. The last place you want to be during the middle of a crisis is attempting to put a plan together or thinking through a response for the first time—it’s virtually impossible.

So let’s not wait until the last minute to start preparing and practicing for how we will respond to various crises and crisis scenarios. Start now! Put the checklists together, create the communication plans, determine roles and responsibilities ahead of an event, and have people practicing roles, making decisions, and executing your company’s (and your customer’s) plans.

The more work you do on the front end, the better prepared you’ll be on the back end. We can’t plan for everything or test and drill for all eventualities, but not planning at all just isn’t an option. The more your organization can do prior to an event, the better off it will be during an event, making stronger and more sound decisions on the fly. This creates an organization that is more resilient when something does happen. (For more information on planning for this resiliency, see one of FEI’s latest white papers: The Resilient Whole: Crisis Support Throughout Your Organization.)

This holiday season, do more than make a New Year’s resolution to prepare your organization to be more resilient; make it part of your strategic plan. Start working on it now, and don’t rest until your whole organization understands its roles and is ready to take on the challenges that will likely come your way without any warning. Be prepared for that next “snowstorm,” and hopefully your “shoveling” will be far less painful than mine was this past weekend.

Have a peaceful and joyous holiday season, and a resilient 2017!