[Click here to download the webinar slides as a PDF.]
The ability of businesses to withstand natural disasters is essential for the recovery and resilience of communities and regional economies as a whole. When businesses get back up and running quickly after severe weather events, residents are able to work and obtain access to the goods and services they need, making them more likely to return to their homes. The ripple effects of business closures on interdependent businesses within a supply chain can also be avoided. More broadly, strong business resilience can mitigate the longer-term economic impacts of disasters, such as increased unemployment, reduced tax revenues, disinvestment, and recession.
The practice of business continuity planning can ensure that businesses survive natural disasters and other disruptions, providing a roadmap for ongoing operations under adverse conditions. Regional development organizations (RDOs), local governments, Chambers of Commerce, and other public and private entities can build the resilience of their communities by promoting and facilitating business continuity planning.
On June 17, 2014, the NADO Research Foundation hosted a webinar titled “Strengthening Regional Economic Resilience through Business Continuity Planning.” Gail Moraton, Business Resiliency Manager at the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS), provided a comprehensive overview of business continuity planning, discussed how RDOs and local leaders can support it in their regions, and shared free tools available from IBHS. Timothy Malone of the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency described his work to coordinate a wide array of public and private partners and raise awareness of emergency preparedness and business continuity approaches for small and medium-sized businesses in central Connecticut.
Presenters:
- Gail Moraton, Business Resiliency Manager, Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety, Tampa, FL
- Timothy Malone, Senior Planner & Economic Development Program Manager, Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency, Bristol, CT
Moderator:
- Megan McConville, Program Manager, NADO Research Foundation
Click here to download the webinar slides as a PDF.
Resources from IBHS:
- Open for Business business continuity planning program
- Open for Business (OFB)-EZ Toolkit
- OFB-EZ Fillable Forms
Click here for the materials from the Central Connecticut Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Recovery Workshop.
The webinar was supported by the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Contact Megan McConville at [email protected] with any questions.