Bad weather can do a lot more than ruin outdoor plans. Natural disasters, such as floods, hurricanes, wildfires, and tornadoes can cause devastation and be both deadly and costly. According to the National Weather Service, tornadoes were the leading cause of weather-related fatalities in 2020. Often, people don’t consider preparing in advance for tornadoes and other severe weather, but being prepared and having a plan ahead of time is crucial. Critical event management software automates and streamlines manual processes allowing for an organization to:
The Benefits of Using Critical Event Management Software for Weather Emergencies
Bad weather can do a lot more than ruin outdoor plans. Natural disasters, such as floods, hurricanes, wildfires, and tornadoes can cause devastation and be both deadly and costly. According to the National Weather Service, tornadoes were the leading cause of weather-related fatalities in 2020. Often, people don’t consider preparing in advance for tornadoes and other severe weather, but being prepared and having a plan ahead of time is crucial. Critical event management software automates and streamlines manual processes allowing for an organization to:
- Monitor the weather threat as it unfolds
- Communicate weather updates with the entire company
- Inform all staff about threats and how to prepare for them
- Asses their risk portfolio in regard to their response
- Recover operations more quickly
The Nature of Weather is Unpredictable
While meteorologists can predict the weather pretty well, it is impossible for them to get everything right. They are also limited to about a seven-day forecast, only allowing us insight of weather patterns one week into the future. Storms can come out of nowhere, and short notice obviously makes it hard to prepare. This is why critical event management technology is important to effectively communicate with employees in emergencies.
As a Dynamic Risk, Weather can have a Big Impact on Your Business
As a dynamic risk, the impact that weather threats can have on your business might be more than you would expect. There can be a domino effect that happens when storms hit and you do not have a critical communication system in place.
Imagine this situation: A blizzard is expected so you notify your staff to work from home. However, the piling snow on electrical lines from the blizzard causes power outages where many of your staff members are located. As a result, you are understaffed without being prepared for it and you are not able to communicate with everyone on your team effectively. This can potentially lead to bad experiences for your customers and have a negative impact on your organization as a whole.
A Business is Responsible for the Safety of its Employees
According to OSHA, it is the responsibility of an employer to provide employees with a safe workspace. If inclement weather causes a workplace, or travel to that workplace, to become unsafe, then an employer cannot expect an employee to travel or work in those hazardous conditions. Critical event notification systems are a powerful tool that can help employers to keep their workers safe during weather emergencies. A crucial part of that, however, is ensuring that the employees see the alerts that they are receiving. It is important for organizations to prioritize alert messages for employees that could be experiencing “alert fatigue” to help prevent them from missing the important ones that are being sent to keep them safe.
Don’t Wait for Bad Weather to Strike
Preparedness is the best defense against severe weather emergencies. Effective critical event management software can help your organization safely and effectively respond to a weather threat and handle communications. To learn more about how the right critical event management tools can protect your company and your staff, call HipLink Software at (800) 524-7503 or fill out our quick contact form and someone from our team will reach out to you as soon as possible.
Together, we can stay prepared and weather any storm.