Recently, one of our customers was not so fortunate and had to face a fire loss. Particularly in this situation, it was apparent how important the preparatory work within the framework of BCM was, and how ongoing risk management has a significant positive influence on such a crisis.
Unfortunately, statistics show that damage events in an industrial company are more a question of WHEN, and not a question of WHAT.
If one finds oneself in the middle of a damage, the events come thick and fast. And this is where it becomes clear that good preparation and clear BCM structures are the ace up your sleeve that can avert further damage and avoid miscommunication.
The highest priority, of course, is to prevent further immediate damage to buildings, machinery, or people. Then the focus shifts to the future. Damage must be cleaned up, shareholders informed, insurance issues clarified, and repair work commissioned.
In this step, and so also in the case of our unfortunate customer, the series of visits by experts now begins. Damages must be analyzed, reports must be written, and information must be forwarded to the appropriate parties.
Coordination – expertise – communication are the three crucial keywords here. Because pulling together internally and proceeding in an orderly manner gives a company important room for maneuver. This is because, unfortunately, not all of a company’s shareholders are primarily interested in protecting the company. Rather, they are interested in protecting their own advantage and investments. But having an accurate understanding of where to get the right information, and who to inform, brings order into the chaos.
This was exactly the situation our customer found himself in. Fortunately, this company decided several years ago to strengthen its BCM system. This meant that a clear process for this type of situation was already in place before the incident began. Who gets called, what work needs to be done, and where can problems possibly be expected? Having this overall view of the situation made it easier for our client to act quickly and correctly, preventing damage, disruption, and confusion.
A suitable BCM system is not trivial. Having a good risk manager at your side, who acts in the economic interest of a company and brings the relevant expert knowledge, gives you exactly this head start. Risk managers have a wealth of knowledge about internal company structures, e.g., buildings, machines, as well as other insurance-relevant information, and they have the experience to plan such a process appropriately and to support its implementation in case of application.
As a risk manager, it is our task to get the best out of a loss, to work out technically and economically reasonable solutions, and to act as a link between the company and other shareholders.
Sensible risk management strengthens companies by minimizing sources of danger, thus preventing greater damage before it occurs. It also brings awareness to existing risks and enables the development of economically sensible strategies that avoid unnecessary damages in the event of an emergency. This foresight gives companies additional security and room for maneuver and gets insurance companies and other shareholders on board before a loss occurs, so that in the event of an emergency everyone can pull together.
