Lack of Teamwork Could Be the Real Disaster - Page 4

4 D I SAS T E R R ECOVE RY TODAY.COM – Enforce financial management procedures Legal – Advise in matters concerning: • Employee relations • Insurance coverage • Policy revisions • Contentious issues Purchasing/Procurement – Develop list of preferred contractors and vendors – When possible, develop renewable task-order contracts prior to a disaster to ensure your organization has the necessary outside resources immediately available – Monitor contractor performance Risk Management – Acquire necessary insurance – Coordinate with teammembers concerning insured losses – Present settlement offers to team for discussion – Forward all settlement information to finance/accounting Technical Leads – Information Technology – Engineering – Design – Project Managers • Interact with recovery coordinator • Interact with finance/accounting to making tracking approach workable • Inform project managers of local, state and federal codes that may affect the repair process • Develop cost estimates and scopes of work • Document activities when performing the repair (clear, descriptive date-stamped photos; narrative regarding the specific repair, labor, material and equipment records) • Write descriptions of damages and justify repair solutions • Justify that the existing damage is directly attributed to the disaster • Manage contractors and consultants • Provide project status reports as requested • The technical team should also be familiar with and able to utilize FEMA’s Grants Manager and Grants Portal tools (see FEMA News on page 8) Understanding the Risk After a team is developed, the next step is to understand what is “at risk,” and to determine methods to minimize that risk. 1. The first step in this four-part process is to determine what your risk exposure is. What would threaten the survivability of your organization if a disaster occurred? You should attempt to quantify a loss before it happens by determining insurable values on your assets including buildings, inventory, stock and income. Once a value is determined it must then be measured against other factors such as seasonal influence, and the type and projected frequency of an event. 2. Next is the development of loss control measures and mitigation strategies to reduce the frequency and severity of losses. This can range from preventative maintenance on essential equipment to off-site backup of vital information.