What Motivates People to Prepare, or Not Prepare, for Natural Disasters?
May 20, 2011An article published May 11, 2011 in Knowledge@Wharton, an online resource from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Business School, looks at the question "what motivates individuals to listen to warnings and act" using the virtual world as a laboratory. Robert Meyer, a Wharton marketing professor who is co-director of the Risk Management and Decision Processes Center, developed an "interactive simulation to study such factors as news media reports, storm warnings and the level of concern expressed by friends and neighbors" motivate people to act before an impending disaster.
Read MoreAmerican Red Cross Launches National Ready Rating™ Program
May 20, 2011The American Red Cross (ARC) launched a newly designed website, ReadyRating.org, to help businesses, schools and other organizations better prepare for emergencies. The announcement was made at an event involving business, education and government leaders at Red Cross national headquarters in Washington DC. Ready Rating™ is a free, self-paced, web-based membership program that helps a business or school measure how ready they are to deal with emergencies, and gives customized feedback on how they can improve their efforts. Schools and businesses may face a number of emergencies that could disrupt their operations, ranging from natural disasters such as hurricanes and floods to outbreaks of illness such as the flu. The Ready Rating Program can help them feel more confident about the safety of their employees or students. See the ARC press release for more information.
Read MoreBusiness Continuity-- Free Technical Disaster Recovery Videos
May 20, 2011A few handy videos are available on this topic courtesy of TechSoup. While oriented to nonprofits, many of the lessons also apply to small businesses:
Read More