Prepare for the Worst, Plan for the Best: Disaster Preparedness and Recovery for Small Businesses

by Donna R. Childs

Overview

Improve business efficiency, eliminate day-to-day mishaps, and prepare for the worst-with effective disaster contingency planning

Now in a Second Edition, Prepare for the Worst, Plan for the Best: Disaster Preparedness and Recovery for Small Businesses presents you with proven guidelines for your small or midsized business to effectively prepare for catastrophes, including

• Rebuilding an IT infrastructure
• Setting up your insurance to expedite claims payments
• Assisting your employees and their families
• Getting your business up and running again
• Contacting third parties
• Handling insurance claims
• What to do if your main office location is not accessible
• Adequate insurance for property, business interruption losses, and workers' compensation

Successful planning not only can limit the damage of an unforeseen disaster but also can minimize daily mishaps–such as the mistaken deletion of files–and increase a business's overall efficiency. This essential, must-have guide is the only contingency guide you will need to ensure your company's continued success.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780470556177
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	07/27/2009
Edition description:	2nd ed.
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.70(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

DONNA R. CHILDS is a former senior executive at the world's largest reinsurance company, which required her to deal with major and minor disasters on a daily basis. This experience proved critical when she established her own small business in Lower Manhattan. Her company, located on Wall Street, was directly impacted by the events of September 11, 2001, and that experience gave her firsthand knowledge of what small businesses must do to ensure that they are protected from future disasters. In 2007, the National Association of Women Business Owners named her its Woman Business Owner of the Year.

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Table of Contents

Foreword.

Acknowledgments.

Preface.

Crisis and Leviathan.

Chapter 1 Yes, You Should Sweat the Small Stuff!

Chapter 2 Our Roadmap.

Part One PREPARE.

Chapter 3 Preparing Your IT Strategy.

Chapter 4 Ensuring Financial Liquidity.

Chapter 5 Basic Safety Practices.

Chapter 6 Business Mail Procedures.

Chapter 7 Special Needs of the Disabled and the Elderly.

Chapter 8 Give Some Thought To Your Pets.

Chapter 9 Take Five.

Part Two RESPOND.

Chapter 10 IT Strategy.

Chapter 11 Financial Liquidity.

Part Three RECOVER.

Chapter 12 IT Strategy.

Chapter 13 Financial Liquidity.

Epilogue.

Resources.

Glossary.

Index.

Editorial Reviews

"Childs, who has written "Prepare for the Worst, Plan for the Best", a guide to disaster planning for small business, noted that many of the problems that occur in a disaster are also ones that could happen in the best of times." (Associated Press, April 17th, 2009)

"….serves as a handbook to help businesses prepare for and respond to events ranging from natural disasters like fires, hurricanes, and floods, to human errors…" (Arizona State University, 9/10/08)

From the Publisher