In order to get back to work fast after a disaster, you need to have a plan before one can ever strike. When you and your team know what to do before, during and after a flood, fire or storm, you can keep work going with very little interruption.

Communication is one of the most crucial parts of creating a disaster plan. You and your team should be regularly going over your emergency response plan so that it can be enacted simply by saying “go.”

Regularly walk through your building with your employees in order to identify the best escape routes, fire extinguisher location and where the water shut-off valves are. Make sure several people know how to work emergency equipment, and go over the plan to secure your building when a storm is predicted to hit.

In order to get back to work once the major threat is over, ensure your staff knows how and when they are expected to check in. If you are going remote, distribute and check equipment early. If you are utilizing an alternate location, distribute security information and keys in order to eliminate any confusion as work gets started again.

Plan to use several forms of communication in order to keep up with everyone. Some disasters can knock out networks long-term, so be prepared to share information multiple times.