Meetings & Events

October 30, 2019 - As meeting planners, you are constantly planning for everything, but we hope you don't forget to plan for unexpected disturbances and crises. Especially in this day and age, we all need to have plans and strategies for dealing with terrorists, active shooters, strikes, and other disruptions. These articles may help you develop those emergency and crisis plans.

"Woulda-coulda-shoulda" regrets are never more painful than when we must admit, in retrospect, we didn't have a contingency plan in place. (Item #1)

The reality is that while you can't foresee and prevent many crises, there are steps that every planner should take to ensure they are prepared to handle any issue that comes along, as part of their "duty of care." (Item #2)

A strong and up-to-date plan should be in place to ensure the safety and security of attendees regardless of where a meeting is held. (Item #3)

No matter the size or location of the area you are trying to protect, following these steps will help you have a safe and enjoyable event for your attendees and staff. (Item #4)

These resources may be helpful when developing your emergency/crisis plan for meetings. (Item #5)


For the full issue, click here.

Fire Preparedness and Prevention

September 25, 2019 - October is fire prevention month, so we need to start thinking about what steps we need to take both to prevent and prepare to respond to fires. You probably do occasional fire drills but do you to any training for employees on how to prevent or escape from a fire? Is there some sort of annual review of the office to identify fire hazards? If not, some of these articles should be helpful to you.

Here are some useful tips for you to avoid a fire in your workplace. (Item #1)

Here's how to create a business continuity plan that gives your business the best chance of surviving such a disaster.  (Item #2)

Can you answer these fire safety questions? (Item #3)

Sure you have fire extinguishers at work; but does anyone know how to use them? Or IF they should use them? (Item #4) 

Here are five of the most common office fire safety issues and how you can take steps to protect your business. (Item #5)


For the full issue, click here.

Business Continuity Planning -- Whether It's Weather Related or Not

September 11, 2019 - Business continuity planning requires knowledge of all the risks you could encounter, especially -- at this time of year -- hurricanes. This week's articles can help you better prepare to be able to mitigate the risks and recover from weather-related and other disasters.



Facilities also need to have a comprehensive plan in place that outlines what they'll do after the fire trucks, hazmat team, utility companies or camera crews leave. (Item #1)   The Disaster Recovery Institute's 2019 Predictions Report included the following disasters and major disruptions. (Item #2)   Here's how to create a business continuity plan that gives your business the best chance of surviving such a disaster. (Item #3)


 The best way to do mitigate hurricane disaster? Have a plan. Here are our five best business continuity tips for hurricane season. (Item #4)   There are several resources freely available to help organizations adapt to climate change, such as those listed in the references of this guide and in  the further reading sections of each chapter. (Item #5)   Here's what to know about hurricanes to create a preparedness plan. (Item #6)

For the full issue, click here.

Are You Prepared for an Active Shooter Event?

August 28, 2019 - An active shooter in your workplace? It may never happen, but you just can't be sure. For this reason, you need to be sure that you and your employees know what to do in the event such an event occurs. The articles below can provide some help as will the DHS video in #6. May you never need to put any of these actions to use.

The three things that DHS emphasizes over and over is either get out, hide out or, if necessary, take the shooter out. (Item #1)   Hiding under a desk might be a natural response to an active shooter in your building, but it may actually increase your chances of being shot. (Item #2)   Because active shooter situations are often over within 10 to 15 minutes, before law enforcement arrives on the scene, individuals must be prepared both mentally and physically to deal with an active shooter situation. (Item #3)

Technology can assist in your effort to detect and respond to an active shooter. (Item #4)  To recover from an active shooter event, restore business operations, and retain employees, experts say that business continuity planning, communication strategies, and personnel issues should be among the top priorities for organizations. (Item #5)   This Homeland Security video can help everyone determine what to do in the event of an active shooter event. (Item #6)

For the full issue, click here.

Testing... Are you doing it?

August 7, 2019 - If you're not, you should be planning to do so. Once you have your plan, you need to see if it will work as you think it will. Better to find out now that someone in a key role will freak out than wait until that individual does so in a crisis. Or, if there are a couple of steps missing, wouldn't it be better to find out now that in a critical situation? Silly question, right? Testing/exercising your plan will help you determine if your plan might be successful, but even any failures will teach you something.

How will your business respond if faced with a natural disaster, a cyberthreat or an active shooter scenario? (Item #1)   It's only through a failover that you'll shake out the bugs and ensure that your alternate facility or alternate processing capability accounts for all the actual interdependencies. (Item #2)   You need to thoroughly scrutinize how well your plan performs and allow enough time to resolve any issues before they impact the ability to restore operations in case of an emergency. (Item #3)

Exercising is, to this author, about enhancing capabilities, your people and the resources they need to have to respond effectively and confidently in situations they have never fully experienced before. (Item #4)   This article attempts to provide some guidelines for developing and administering employee awareness training programs in organizations. (Item #5)    Regardless of whether you call it a test or a drill, these lessons learned, tips and recommendations will enable you to develop and facilitate value-adding business continuity exercises. (Item #6)


For the full issue, click here.

Safety and Security in the Workplace

July 24, 2019 - It's not just your premises and your data, but your most important asset - your employees - that you have to ensure remain safe and secure. This week's articles discuss the benefits of a safe workplace as well as ways to determine the health of your workplace through an assessment. If you don't do everything you can to ensure safety and security, you could risk lawsuits or even the reputation of your business.

Learn about what comprises workplace security, why is security important and how you should go about creating a safe and secure workplace. (Item #1)   Healthy employees who feel safe and comfortable in their work environment will work more productively than employees who become injured or sick in the workplace. (Item #2)   Risk management-based interventions are common in most workplaces. They are central to effective occupational health and safety prevention and response. (Item #3)

Employees should be trained to respond appropriately to each scenario that is applicable to their workplace. (Item #4)   Here are a few questions from OSHA's Evacuations Plans and Procedures eTool, a checklist for designing and analyzing EAPs that is dedicated to producing the best EAP for work possible. (Item #5)   As a leader, you are responsible not only for your own safety, but for the security and safety of those you lead. (Item #6)

For the full issue, click here.

Avoiding Meeting and Event Disasters

June 12, 2019 - When it comes to events, Murphy's Law is always at work. All of us have no doubt been victims of it at one time or another. This week we are focused on avoiding those disasters that Murphy can cause, from natural disasters to technical ones to faulty marketing messages. We hope you'll find some helpful tips in these articles.

Chances are you won't avoid any and all problems that come up during your event but following this guide will certainly help you avoid the biggest disasters, even including dinosaurs running rampant and eating your guests. (Item #1)    Here are 10 painful moments every event manager will have experienced at one time or another and how to tackle them. (Item #2)    Learn from some of the industry's experienced individuals and consider the best ways to prepare for and tackle the unforeseen. (Item #3)

In this EventTalk, Dr. Gleb Tsipursky, known as the Disaster Avoidance Expert, talks about using a scientific approach to avoiding event disasters. (Item #4)    Prospects are getting smarter. They'll avoid you and your marketing messages unless you also are smart about them and know how to build value and trust so they convert into attendees. (Item #5)    Chances are if you are in the events industry you have used AV at your events. Chances are you've also run into an AV disaster...or two...or three. (Item #6)


For the full issue, click here.

Weathering the Weather in Hurricane Season

May 15, 2019 - We just observed hurricane preparedness week, and hurricane season will begin June 1. What's the status of your preparedness for the coming storms? As we have seen with recent weather, lack of preparedness can spell disaster, so take some cues from this week's articles and ramp up your plans in advance of the storms ahead.

While there's no way to stop the storm, we're here to tell you that you can ease hurricane-related burdens with a little help from your friends. (Item #1)   As another hurricane season ramps up, here's a rundown of what businesses should know about business continuity and disaster recovery planning. (Item #2)   Here is a sample emergency preparedness checklist to have on hand during storm season. (Item #3)

During the recovery period after a hurricane, organizations should focus on these areas. (Item #4)    Here are four steps to take to maintain technology business continuity during a disaster and when to act -- starting now. (Item #5)   The impact of a storm on the workforce often is not adequately considered, thus downplaying the importance -- and central role -- of the human contribution to an organization's recovery.  (Item #6)


For the full issue, click here.

Business Continuity Planning

April 17, 2019 - If you have a business continuity plan, that's terrific. Obviously, you know how important it is to have a plan. But have you updated it lately? Considered any new risks for which you should plan? Made necessary changes in personnel? And if you don't have one, perhaps it's time you got started on one. This week's articles can be helpful regardless of your situation.

Keep in mind these types of risk as you develop or refine your business continuity plan. (Item #1)   The more things change, the more they stay the same. What will 2019 bring for the world of BCM and IT/DR? (Item #2)   What will be the most efficient ways to put the pieces of your business back together, following an emergency? (Item #3)

Business disasters come in all shapes and sizes. Prepare yourself and avoid the worse. (Item #4)   The importance of business continuity planning is most strongly reflected in the 10 ways listed in this article. (Item #5)   Identifying the benefits of a business continuity program helps you define benchmarks and see the light at the end of the proverbial BCM tunnel.  (Item #6)


For the full issue, click here.

Testing and Training

March 6, 2019 - A recent survey indicated that about 2/3 of the businesses that have continuity plans do not test them. Are you one of these businesses? If you don't test the plan, you will never be sure it will work as expected. There don't have to be elaborate scenarios or schemes; even simple tabletop testing will help you determine if things will go as planned. This week's articles provide some help with testing and training.

How will your business respond if faced with a natural disaster, a cyberthreat or an active shooter scenario? (Item #1)    There are a variety of methods you can utilize to test the usability and effectiveness of your Business Continuity Plan. (Item #2)    This article looks at the objectives, format, and scenario of business continuity exercises, and explains why scenarios are not the most important factor when planning an exercise. (Item #3)

Business continuity planning must be a process---not a one-time task. (Item #4)    This article addresses several issues in an attempt to provide some guidelines for developing and administering employee awareness training programs in organizations. (Item #5)   Without training, employees cannot be expected to know what is written in your plans, which hazards they could face, or how to respond to emergency situations. (Item #6)


For the full issue, click here.

Workplace Violence

February 20, 2019 - Just one year and a day after the anniversary of the Parkland shooting, another workplace active shooter took five lives in Illinois. Such violence has become so commonplace that it's critical we know what to do in the event of an active shooter or other violence -- and also how to recognize potential trouble and what to do about it. This issue can be helpful in determining your policies with regard to workplace violence.

This article about workplace violence answers these questions for the health and safety of your employees. (Item #1)   For some occupations, violence is the 3rd leading cause of death. (Item #2)   Where there is awareness of workplace violence, there is prevention. (Item #3)

Workplace violence prevention policies must be carefully crafted and legally balanced to offer support for victims and consequences for perpetrators. (Item #4)   With mass shootings on the rise, experts share best practices for training employees how to react in an active shooter situation at work. (Item #5)   You're at work and suddenly you think you hear a gunshot. What do you do? (Item #6)


For the full issue, click here.

How to Deploy an Emergency Response Plan for Your Meetings & Events

February 14, 2019 - Event-Aware is a mobile application from Attainium Corp that simplifies building and deploying emergency response plans for meetings and events by putting the information literally at your fingertips. The service is the first of its kind, combining hands-on guidance with an easy-to-use consumer-style app that makes meeting and event emergency response plans actionable and visible.

Users of the Event-Aware app can retrieve all relevant plan components through an interface that is simple, powerful and intuitive. Whenever on-site event staff launch the app, it downloads the latest updates to plans, contact lists, schedules, and links to emergency services, venue staff, and local authorities. This ensures that event personnel on the ground have access to the current version of the plan whenever and wherever they need it, especially in a crisis situation.

“Every event organizer knows the importance of having an emergency response plan, but making that plan available to everyone who needs it and keeping it updated has always been an issue,“ said Bob Mellinger, Attainium CEO. “Event-Aware gives all users access to vital information even when their mobile devices are not connected to wireless or cell networks.”

The app, which is available for both Android and iOS devices, is supported by the Event-Aware team, who create tailored and relevant emergency response plans based on industry best practices. The team is available to assist users throughout the development and deployment process, incorporating the unique issues of various events.

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If your next meeting/event needs:

- an Emergency Response Plan -
- a more prepared on-site team -
- venue, hotel, and local resources -
- immediate access to response procedures -

then check out Event-Aware.

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