One of the most critical components of business continuity planning is emergency response preparation and operations. Any number of emergencies can strike a business; this was demonstrated in dramatic fashion a few months ago when thousands of businesses were shut down because of massive power blackouts in the northeastern United States and again more recently in a high-rise fire in Chicago.
In the case of the blackouts, those that had effective business continuity plans were better able to handle this unexpected situation, which continued for several days in some areas. In Chicago and numerous other big cities, building owners and managers are reevaluating their emergency response.