The Binomial Bookstore

AVOIDING DISASTER:
How to Keep Your Business Going When Catastrophe Strikes
John Laye

“Avoiding Disaster is comprehensive, accurate, and exceptionally useful. It is
written for the
corporate manager/executive tasked with developing and/or managing the strategic
function
the author calls ‘disaster avoidance.’ This book provides the best description I have
seen of
what should be done, and what skills and knowledge are required to do it. I
designed and
teach the graduate-level course in Corporate Crisis Management and Business
Continuity in
the George Washington University’s Crisis, Emergency, and Risk Management
degree
program. I intend to use John Laye’s book as a text.”
- John R. Harrald, Director, Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk
Management,
The George Washington University

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“If anyone can teach you how to avoid disaster, it is John Laye. His book, which is
aptly titled
Avoiding Disaster, is written in a straightforward, easy-to-understand, and yet
technically
accurate manner. John brings his lifelong hands-on experience to the general
corporate
environment in the same easygoing way that he teaches a class. The examples
and theory
are clear and all you have to do is follow the process and you are on your way to
minimizing
your corporate liability . . . in most cases actually avoiding disaster. I highly
recommend this
book to business continuity professionals, risk managers, corporate safety and
security staff,
and executives at every organization that is forward-thinking and needs to survive
those
crises that are facing our society today.”
- Johnathan Tal, President and CEO, Tal Global Corporation

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“John Laye’s Avoiding Disaster: How to Keep Your Business Going When
Catastrophe
Strikes is an important text that will be found in college classrooms and libraries
and on the
desks of business continuity professionals. Laye grounds his book with solid
business
principles while also highlighting how disaster planning can be central to a
company’s
survival. He combines firsthand and practical knowledge with key regulations and
case
studies. Both veterans and people new to the field will find his examples and
resources
beneficial. Although written primarily for the private sector, people in the public
sector of
disaster management will find his segments on the media and communication,
strategic
planning, hazard analysis, and many other topics useful and educational. I know
this is a
book that will be on my reference bookshelf.”
- David M. Neal, PhD, Professor and Associate Director, Institute for
Emergency
Preparedness, Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama

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“Avoiding Disaster is a must-read for everyone who wants to ensure the protection
and the
continuity of their business.”
- Ian I. Mitroff, Harold Quinton Distinguished Professor of Business Policy,
Professor of Journalism, Annenberg School for Communication

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“Following September 11, organizations have renewed their interest in building
resilience to
avoid distress. No one knows what the next catastrophe will be or when it will
occur. It is
therefore important to take on board the philosophy of ‘being prepared.’ Business
Continuity
Management (BCM) is an important management discipline that enables
organizations to
build effective response mechanisms. John Laye’s book provides an excellent
grounding in
the principles behind BCM and will greatly assist those planning to avoid disasters
in the
future.”
- John Sharp, Chief Executive, The Business Continuity Institute,
www.thebci.org

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“Earthquakes, fires, mainframe crashes, hacker attacks, terrorism . . . Whether
you operate
in the private sector or the public sector, failure to prepare for disruptive events can
cripple
your organization when disaster strikes and even endanger its very survival.
Avoiding
Disaster provides the contingency planning methods managers must have to cope
with
catastrophes–natural disasters, man-made events, or technological calamities
alike.

“In these uncertain times, it’s especially important that you be ready for whatever
comes. In
the event of a disaster, managers must engage policy directives that are clear,
unequivocal,
and directed for maximum beneficial effect. As case studies within the book
illustrate, quick,
decisive, and well-reasoned management is the single most important ingredient
for survival
in a crisis. This valuable resource offers expert guidance and thoughtful advice
about
planning for and dealing with worst-case scenarios, ensuring that your business or
organization will survive no matter what happens.

“You might think that your organization–especially if you manage a large
company–could not
be significantly affected by any one event. But often, a disaster spirals out of
control to bring
down an organization that would have survived if it had been ready. In fact, any
organization
can be undone by a catastrophe if the proper steps aren’t taken in advance. And if
everything
falls apart, it’s managers who’ll ultimately pay the price. So in order to protect your
organization and your job, you must assess threats, prepare for them, and move
quickly
when the worst case scenarios start to play.

“Whether you manage a Fortune 500 company, a government agency, or a
not-for-profit,
Avoiding Disaster offers the tips, tools, and techniques you need in times of
duress. You’ll
develop the plans you’ll need for any contingency and know which events you
should be
prepared for, what training your employees need, and which supplies you should
have on
hand before the event. You’ll learn how to limit the damage done to employee,
consumer,
and stockholder confidence when things go wrong, and know that you can lead
effectively
when leaders are needed most.

“During a crisis, the worst thing a manager can do is not know what to do. You
won’t have
time to debate, but you will have time to act if you’re already prepared. With
Avoiding
Disaster on your bookshelf, you’ll find the peace of mind that comes with knowing
you’re
ready for anything.”

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“Contingency planning has been around at least since the Egyptian pharaohs
stored grain for
the great famine, and for years, modern practitioners like John Laye, an instructor
for
FEMA's Emergency Management Institute, have been showing corporations the
way.
Fortunately, many took heed.

While the media announced that the Sept. 11 , 2001, attack on the World Trade
Center
rewrote the book on emergency planning, many of the affected corporations had
already
planned ahead, and planned well. They were back up and running within a few
days, and
even the stock exchange was near normal within a week.

“In his new book, Laye breaks contingency planning down into the basics. As he
takes his
readers through a step-by-step approach to disaster avoidance, he explains that
“...
'disaster' really refers to a disruptive event that has a severe impact on us humans
and our
creations. This includes our ongoing business services.” Thus, if an organization
can control
an expanding crisis and keep it from becoming a catastrophe, it has avoided
disaster.

“Whether you agree that this actually avoids disaster, or you define it as
“weathering the
storm,” the losses due to interruption of business caused by anything from fire and
earthquakes to terrorism can be staggering. It's estimated that 90% of medium to
large
businesses that can’t resume near-normal operations within five days of an
emergency are
out of business within a year.

“Laye shows managers how to plan a course of action before an emergency
strikes by
analyzing their vulnerabilities and includes an eye-opening list of crisis scenarios
and
strategies to avoid the devastating consequences.

“His emergency recovery plan is based on 10 principles that define the process
and greatly
reduce the risks for the corporations and government agencies using them. These
principles
take the reader from project initiation and risk assessment to strategies,
responses and
avoidance of the disaster itself. His techniques will help readers plan, act efficiently
and think
clearly in those chaotic times when lives and businesses are at risk.

“The book is packed with checklists, training scenarios and procedures that will
help any
organization minimize a crisis and restore normal operations as quickly as
possible. It’s a
must-read for anyone involved in emergency response and recovery planning.”

- Neal Rawls, security columnist and author

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EXCERPT FROM THE FOREWORD

“John Laye has produced a well-written book on a subject of intense current
interest-how to
avoid disasters and how to keep your business going even if a disaster occurs. It is
applicable worldwide-to natural disasters such as earthquakes and windstorms, to
terrorist
action and to other disasters caused by people, their activities, and their
technologies.

“The recent events in New York and Washington, D.C., have shown us that
terrorism can
strike practically anywhere and can take many forms. Perhaps that was a surprise
to many of
us. It should not have been. It was little surprise to those few New Yorkers who
were
concerned enough to prepare, their people and businesses. It was an even smaller
surprise
in Europe, where companies have been affected by terrorism for decades and
many
companies have taken actions to reduce the potential impacts.

“Throughout the United States, we are vulnerable to natural disasters, no matter
where we
live or conduct business. The Northeast coast and the entire North of the country
is subject to
severe winter storms. The rest of the East Coast and the Gulf Coast are subject to
hurricanes. All of the West coast is subject to very large earthquakes. Those areas
account
for about two thirds of the population and business activity of the country. In
addition, the rest
of the country is subject to tornados, flooding, and draught, and some regions,
such as the
Mississippi River Valley, are exposed to infrequent but very large earthquakes.

“Events that lead to disasters are inevitable. But with proper foresight and
management, the
resulting losses can be greatly reduced; sometimes they can be nearly eliminated.
For
example, we do not have the technology to prevent earthquakes (we do not even
have the
technology to predict them yet), but we have the technology to prevent the damage
that
earthquakes cause. That is the case with all hazards-we possess the
management skills and
the technologies to reduce their effects dramatically.

“An excellent example is the Anheuser Busch Company. Their brewery in the San
Fernando
Valley of Southern California sat astride the epicenter of the 1994 Northridge earth
quake,
the costliest in U.S. history. Barely three months before the earthquake,
management in Van
Nuys and in the distant headquarters in St. Louis had completed a strengthening
program to
reduce potential earthquake damage in that facility. Anheuser Busch spent about
$10 million
strengthening buildings and equipment and training its people, which saved the
company
more than $1 billion in direct damage and business interruptions, and probably a
number of
lives. in the midst of a disaster area, the company was able to resume business in
four days.
Some of their neighboring companies went bankrupt because of the earthquake.
After the
event, no one questioned the need for the expenditures, but it took considerable
foresight
and business acumen to procure the funds and to complete the work in light of all
other
demands on expenditures and time.

“The main reason that disasters occur today is the widespread lack of the
necessary
management skills to bring forth the organization and the technologies that avoid
disasters.
John Laye describes vividly this problem and then systematically lays out the
solution, which
involves upper as well as middle management while organizing and training. Few
people are
as well equipped as John Lave to address these issues because disaster
management is
relatively new and only a few people have his extensive background. Fewer still
bridge the
gap among field response, research, planning, and management. John Laye has
been part
of the evolution of disaster management from its nearly exclusive emphasis on
response to
the current emphasis on scenario-based mitigation, planning, recovery, and
training. He is
also a fervent advocate of the emerging, but not yet widely implemented, advanced
management concept of close government-corporate coordination.

“This book presents what is needed to establish and maintain a successful
business
continuity program. It addresses how to survive disasters and how to avoid them by
contain
ing an event-preventing it from becoming a crisis, then evolving into a disaster, or
worse.
Formal training opportunities are too few to accommodate the many managers who
need
this information. John Laye has provided it admirably.”

- Peter Yanev
Orinda, California

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CONTENTS

Foreword
Introduction
1: Getting Started: Answering the Whys.
2: Basic Stuff.
3: Manage It or . . ..
4: The Senior Manager’s Primer: A Chapter of Observations and Advice Uniquely
for Senior
Managers.
5: Good Work! Tell Everyone! A Chapter about Communicating.
6: Today, Business Is Different.
7: Recovery Is Really Different.
8: They Can Help You, or . . ..
9: Rules, Regulations, and Standards.
10: FAQs . . . and Common Sense.
11: Help beyond These Covers.
Notes
Index

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

“JOHN LAYE, FBCI, is a specialist in contingency and business continuity
planning and a
frequent lecturer for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency
Management Institute. He is Director Emeritus of the University of California’s
Continuing
Education in Business and Management Program for managers developing
emergency
plans. He is also the former president of the California Emergency Services
Association.”

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2002, 272 pages. Order #DR719.
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The Binomial Bookstore

Disaster Prevention & Avoidance

Rothstein Associates Inc.