Emergency notification systems are crucial when responding to a disaster and restoring operations after a disruption. For instance, if there was a fire outbreak in an office location where employees lack the necessary training and it wasn’t reported immediately to the fire department, the consequences could be grave. Business continuity would become impossible and enterprise owners would be faced with considerable damage to property, assets and resources.

Businesses can’t afford to not have an emergency notification system as it would deny them a very significant competitive advantage in terms of BCDR capabilities. Enteprises would do themselves a good turn if they invested in this mechanism as it would make them more resilient.

Designing and developing a carefully planned and comprehensive emergency notification system is the responsibility of the individual handling the BCDR plan.

An emergency notification system typically provides employees updates on the situation through the procedures detailed below:

• Contact 911. If there is a crisis at hand, inform them of the situation and request for immediate assistance
• Contain the situation by obtaining immediate assistance from official agencies such as emergency services, fire or medical departments etc.
• Keep the management teams and other deciding authorities updated on the situation and obtain their guidance
• Siren systems must be installed throughout the premises to emit the warning alarms automatically and alert the employees to evacuate the site immediately
• Make use of technology wherever possible to regularly send out text messages, voice mails etc. to employees with the latest updates on the disaster, assembly points, evacuation procedures and so on
• Ensure training programs are in place to equip employees with the skills and knowledge to execute various procedures and respond to the crisis situation
• Outline a strategy for communicating with stakeholders and establish the periodicity with which they have to be informed
• Outline standard procedures for communicating with the family members of employees who suffered injuries or lost their lives
• Procedures must be in place to inform staff members to resume their duties once normalcy has been restored
• The emergency notification system must always be up to date with the contact information of key personnel. It should also be regularly tested to ensure its effectiveness and efficiency
• The emergency notification system should have a simple and clutter free design that can be easily activated to avoid delays in response to the crisis
• Have an official spokesperson who is in charge of all external communications to be relayed to the public and media

The emergency notification system must be able to adapt to any conceivable crisis situation that could occur without prior notice. Businesses can ensure a quick response to a disaster when they have an emergency notification system in place. Incorporating an emergency notification system into the business continuity and disaster recovery plan can protect organization’s assets, resources and lives of employees.