The LSU Stephenson Disaster Management Institute (LSU SDMI) is committed to promoting a cultural shift in the value of preparedness through a national initiative in small business preparedness. Currently, the field of preparedness studies lacks the baseline metrics and business benchmarks needed to promote the value of preparedness to small businesses.
LSU SDMI aims to implement preparedness and mitigation outreach and education projects geared toward small business owners and non-profit organizations about the risks to which they are vulnerable and ways in which those risks can be reduced through multiple preparedness and mitigation methods. LSU SDMI will partner with researchers, agencies, trade associations, chambers of commerce, existing service providers, and delivery networks across the nation to promote programs focused on small business preparedness and disasters. This initiative will integrate the principles of best practices of preparedness and the results of economic impact studies, surveys, and focus groups that will inform the content for mitigation and preparedness practices that small businesses can use.
Using the Private Sector Preparedness Accreditation and Certification Program (Title IX of PL 110-53) as a starting point, four areas were identified to provide an actionable framework for the initiative. These areas are research initiatives, messaging and marketing activities, communications and message delivery, and the development of a business justification for small business preparedness.
This initiative intends to achieve the following objectives:
- Promote regional and community resilience through better prepared businesses
- Promote public-private partnerships through workshops, seminars, and training
- Improve data collection, management, analysis, and dissemination capabilities related to the value of preparedness and mitigation
- Conduct, promote, and evaluate demonstrations by current providers of small business preparedness and mitigation services
- Improve interagency coordination as well as coordination with the private sector and association service providers to develop coordinated strategies
- Reduce economic interruption to businesses
SDMI is pleased bring you Ready to Resume. This newsletter will serve as your Louisiana resource center for small business preparedness. In it you will find tips to prepare your business for disaster, business continuity topics and trends, as well as private sector preparedness and response resources that are available to you. We encourage you to send this PDF to any colleagues or friends you feel could benefit from this information. They can choose to subscribe directly from the newsletter. SDMI is committed to building a more resilient small business community in Louisiana and welcomes your feedback and suggested topics for future issues. To subscribe, email sdmi@lsu.edu .
