Expecting the Unexpected: What We Can Learn From a Crisis

Any business leader worthy of the title knows surviving a crisis depends on having an emergency plan in case of disaster. That said, the COVID-19 pandemic in which we’re currently stuck is an unprecedented situation.

I’m looking around today as many business leaders discover their definition of “disaster” wasn’t nearly broad enough. It’s not that these companies had no strategies in place. I’ll use my company as an example; we have our corporate headquarters located between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, where a third of every year is labeled “Hurricane Season.” As you’d expect, we have a detailed plan for securing information, keeping our people safe, and maintaining operations in the event of a hurricane.

We also have formalized blueprints in case of a major fire, a long-term internet disruption, and even an advanced cyber-attack. But a pandemic that requires us to maintain social distance for weeks? I will admit…I didn’t anticipate that.

Fortunately, many elements of our continuity plans were dynamic enough to work under current circumstances. We had to deal with some challenges on the fly, but we weren’t starting from scratch. And that’s the point I’d like to make today: when it comes to creating a functional preparedness strategy, adaptability is the single most important element.

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