Industry View

By Eric White, Wren

As hurricane season approaches, it’s a great time for retailers to take stock of their emergency preparedness. This may seem like an overwhelming task, and certainly the more sophisticated the plans and training, the greater the effort required. However, the foundations of a strong emergency preparedness plan begin with a few, simple tenets, which are relatively easy for any retail organization to put in place, with the enormous payoff of being better prepared. This top-three list is a great place to start.

Communicate the priorities
The top priorities should be two to four simple statements, in order of priority, that reflect the directive of the company and can be a basis for sound decision-making from anyone from the CEO all the way down to the part-time cashier. These simple messages may seem obvious to some, but by ingraining them in every single employee, the retailer sets clear expectations and provides a basis for every associate to gut-check their decisions against the company’s message.

The top three list may look something like this:
1) The safety of people ALWAYS comes first
2) Return to operations as quickly as possible
3) Promote welfare of the community

There may be some variation to this list, depending on the corporate culture and priorities. However, safety of employees and customers should always come first. These primary messages will guide every decision made. For example, if a local store manager is questioning how he should respond to employees contacting him after the hurricane asking when they are expected to report to work, he will think back to the priority list and provide an answer based on: “the safety of people always comes first.” He will notify associates that they need only report to work if it is safe to do so. Or, judging the situation on-site to be too dangerous, he might make the call not to open the store at all. And he can feel confident in the decision, knowing that life safety is always the priority.

Plan in Advance
Loss prevention professionals are extremely good at planning. And nowhere is planning more critical than prior to an emergency. Contingency planning, specifically, is needed because by definition, an emergency will result in disruptions to all normal operations, processes and circumstances. However, the specific nature and extent of disruption is unknown until after the fact. Think about the situation following a hurricane – power lines, communications and other technologies are down, greatly hindering communications. With some advanced planning, the loss prevention team can help the retailer get on their feet as quickly as possible. Every aspect of the business will be impacted and should be involved in planning prior to the hurricane to secure the best possible outcome and speediest possible recovery. Procurement can predict the types of goods that will be most needed after a hurricane and order extra provisions to be stored in local area warehouses for quick and easy access following the emergency. Human resources can set up support networks and communication lines for employees in the impacted areas to report their condition and communicate needs for them and their families following the disaster. Loss prevention can contact local law enforcement and discuss collaboration after the disaster and how they can exchange information. Corporate can establish fund-raisers to support the devastated area. This planning can help the retailer return to operations as quickly as possible.

Empower people
Empowering people goes hand-in-hand with good communications and planning, but it also relies on good management, training and good corporate culture. Normal decision-making processes are turned on their head in an emergency. There is neither the time nor the means for those on the ground in a hurricane-hit area to communicate with corporate to make split decisions on how to get the store up and operating, how to respond to urgent local needs, or how to guide the efforts of local employees. Retailers that empower their people with confidence and training have the best results.

Following Katrina, Walmart employees demonstrated the impact of empowered employees. A Kenner, Louisiana employee used a forklift to knock open a warehouse door to get water for a local retirement home. In Marrero, Louisiana employees allowed local police officers to use the store as a headquarters and a sleeping place as many had lost their homes. These are just two examples of retailers’ associates responding effectively when directed and empowered to do so prior to the event.

By taking steps to put these three small efforts in place, retailers can ensure their organization is better prepared to deal with a hurricane or other disaster. With so many unexpected events marking our time, this effort should be a priority as opposed to an afterthought. It can happen to you.

Eric White serves as director of retail strategy for Wren, providers of physical security solutions used by some of the world’s most innovative and respected retailers including Walmart, The Home Depot and Target.  White has 20 years of experience in loss prevention, asset protection and physical security.