Illinois family thanks employees with surprise bonuses

This has nothing to do with emergency management - or does it?

CHICAGO – Even though employees at the Peer Bearing Co. no longer work for the Spungen family that recently sold the Waukegan-based ball bearings maker, they still received a turkey each this Thanksgiving in keeping with tradition.

But even better was the gift that came in mid-September, when the Spungens threw a party to celebrate the company's acquisition by a Swedish company.

They gave away $6.6 million in year-end bonuses to Peer's 230 employees, decided by a formula based on each worker's years of service.

The 211-Emergency Management Nexus

211 is the national abbreviated dialing code for access to health and human services information and referral. 211 is a free, confidential service with universal social value, accessible to the entire population and national in scope. Calling 211 will help anyone get information and access to vital community services.

Emergency Management should closely collaborate with 211 to expand the benefits of this service. Many of the issues facing emergency management can be solved by 211.

One example is the use of 211 for community outreach and input. Most communities can not maintain the infrastructure necessary to handle incoming calls from the public during emergency situations. 211, especially in those states that are connecting the individual 211 systems together to provide surge capacity, can provide the ability to communicate with the public on a large scale. The 211 system can not only answer the phone and distribute public information, they can provide call analysis to emergency management to help focus public information efforts.

Another example is using 211 for volunteer management. The 211 system could take the incoming call, provide initial screening, and give preliminary directions to emergency volunteers. The information can then be forwarded to emergency management for action.

Another example is the development of a special needs registry. For most emergency management agencies, this is a daunting task, yet this is exactly what 211 can provide. Emergency management can work with 211 on scripts for incoming requests for assistance to include special needs. When you think about how many people 211 talks to in the average day, it is far more than even the best emergency agency agency could manage.

This is a win-win for everyone. It is especially important for 211, as these partnerships help increase the visibility of a vital community service. If you have not already done so, contact your local emergency management or 211 agency to schedule a strategy meeting to discuss how you can help each other.

Emergency Management and Innovation

An interesting book for emergency managers is The Medici Effect by Frans Johansson. To paraphrase the idea behind the book: find the intersection of fields, disciplines and cultures to combine existing concepts into extraordinary ideas in new ways.

This book brings out an important idea at this time in history. Emergency management has been on the forefront of innovative ideas in the past. The changes in the White House, Congress and across the country provide a fertile ground for stepping back and looking at the emergency management profession anew. Emergency management is all about collaboration, communication and coordination, some of the very same principles needed to find the new intersections of ideas.

TECHNOLOGY TIPS: Redundancy, Redundancy, Redundancy

Your entire emergency management system must be redundant - after all, it is supposed to be as disaster proof as possible.

If you have one of the emergency management information/incident management software programs, that's great. But what if it fails? Step back to basic word processing and spreadsheets. But what if that fails? Step back to paper-based management. All your forms should be usable at all these levels. All forms used in the software system should be printed and number of copies set aside for manual use. Your training and exercise program should include scenarios where the systems fail and you have to fall back on redundant methods.

Communications systems are another key area for redundancy. Do not rely on one or even two methods of communication. You may have to fall back all the way to runners, people physically running messages by hand. Yes, be concerned about information overload, but if it is a choice of too many or not getting through, go for too many. This can be an issue when members of your emergency response team complain that they get too many of the same messages. Your training must clearly explain the redundancy concept and the need to ensure that the message gets through.

These principles are equally applicable to the general public. Family emergency preparedness teaches concepts such as redundant communications among family members. Another example - while digital copies of important documents are good to have, it can be just as important to squirrel away that paper backup copy.

In the world of real estate, location is everything. In the world of emergency management, redundancy is the same. Ensure that redundancy is a key part of your planning.

TECHNOLOGY TIPS: Mapping, GIS and USNG

Many times, it is easier to understand a situation when the data is changed from words to pictures. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are software used to capture, store, manage, analyze and display geospatial data resources. GIS software can perform a wide array of functions, including use as an emergency management tool.

For example, combining natural disaster damage field reports with land tract and property assessment information can produce damage assessment reports showing property loss in less time and with greater accuracy than manually combining paper lists. This could result in reduced recovery time and cost, which improves the economic recovery.

Software is not the only answer, however. Even a paper map on the wall can be helpful. Laminate the map and use non-permanent markers to display the information. Another idea is to use clear overlays over the paper map for different information - a low tech way to simulate GIS software. Multiple maps can be used, but it is more difficult for the average brain to combine the multiple information into one visualization.

A final point is using a mapping standard. A key point of NIMS is all emergency responders speaking a common language. There are many types of ways to read locations on maps (street addresses, Public Land Survey System, State Plane Coordinate System, three types of latitude/longitude). Organizations should seriously consider following the recommendations to move to the US National Grid (USNG) as the mapping standard.

NY Times Editorial: Fixing FEMA

The train is moving down the tracks.

TECHNOLOGY TIPS: Network your copiers

Many offices have one of the large, high speed, high capacity, multiple function copiers set up for manual use. Features might include duplex printing, hole punch, stapling and the like.

Most offices use the copier by having someone walk up the machine to make the copies, using a document printed out somewhere else, say at the workers desk. There is another way - network the copier and print directly.

Networked workgroup printers are being used all the time. The same principle applies to the copier. Networked copiers allow users to access all the functions right from their desk, and eliminates the middle step of printing out a document to take to the copier. Cutting out the middle step is more efficient and effective. Functions such as user tracking for cost assignment and remote copier system status checks are also available.

Modern copiers either have the network option built in or available as an option. Contact your copier vendor or IT staff for assistance.

Obama to Nominate Daschle as HHS Secretary

While the immediate focus on the Daschle nomination has been on health care, it should also be interesting for emergency managers to understand the Daschle-emergency management connection and the potential impacts on public health preparedness.

ARTICLE: Daschle Criticizes Disaster Relief, Calls for Leadership at FEMA

Article by Sarah Mellott: Former Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle and former Federal Emergency Management Agency Director James Lee Witt criticized the government’s response to Hurricane Katrina during the first of a series of discussions hosted by Daschle Wednesday at the Center for American Progress.


http://www.thehoya.com/node/6780

VIDEO: Conversations With Daschle: Disaster Response in the Wake of Katrina

Video includes comments from Tom Daschle and James Lee Witt. (As you will recall, Sen. Dashchle's office was one of the targets of the Oct 2001 anthrax letters.)

http://www.campusprogress.org/features/657/conversations-with-daschle-disaster-response-in-the-wake-of-katrina

A Napolitano Nomination Could Signal Shift in Focus at Homeland Security

Multiple news sources are reporting Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano has been selected by the Obama team as the next DHS Secretary.

Rugged Wrist-Wearable Computer for Homeland Defense and First Responders

I love saving these articles, then looking back in a few years to see the evolution. Dick Tracy is coming, Dick Tracy is coming!

McCain backer Lieberman keeps Homeland Security committee chair

EMERCON: The Russian FEMA?

Some interesting information on EMERCON. EMERCON is somewhat equivalent to FEMA.

EMERCOM or The Ministry of the Emergency Situations (Russian: Министерство по чрезвычайным ситуациям - МЧС России) was established on January 10, 1994 by President Boris Yeltsin. The complete official designation is Ministry of the Russian Federation for Affairs of Civil Defence, Emergencies and Disaster Relief (Russian: Министерство России по делам гражданской обороны, чрезвычайным ситуациям и ликвидации последствий стихийных бедствий). Some consider the real date of birth of the agency as December 27, 1990, when the Russian Rescue Corps was established and assigned the mission of rapid response in the case of emergencies. (From Wikipedia)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMERCOM

http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/russia/agency/rusert.htm

http://www.mchs.gov.ru/ (Official site in Russian)

Mitigation - making a comeback?

New administration, new people, and new priorities in the nation's capitol could spell a comeback for mitigation. Mitigation not only reduces emergency impacts and recovery costs, it also provides a focal point for community preparedness activity. Several calls have already gone out for the new administration to bring back mitigation as a priority.

The Government Technology article below, written by Eric Holdeman and Ann Patton, discusses Project Impact. Project Impact was one of the victims of the change in administration back in 2000, even though it was a success story after only a few short years. Check out the article.


http://www.govtech.com/gt/articles/428900?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=link

Hazard Hazard Mitigation Association blog

The organization goals, as stated on the blog:

- To create a forum for professionals working in hazard mitigation to share their ideas and experiences

- To establish Hazard Mitigation as a profession in its own right.

- To serve as a source of training and technical information to those working in the field.

- To function as a professional and unified voice from hazard mitigation managers in the public marketplace of ideas and the political arena.

- To promote greater awareness of the social component of hazard mitigation decisions.


http://nhma.info/

TECHNOLOGY TIPS: Cutting edge can bleed you to death

Emergency management needs to be on the forefront of technology, the so-called cutting edge. There is a danger, however, that you can be too far in front. Knowing the pros and cons of new technology will not only keep your agency out front, but will also ensure that you can still operate under emergency conditions.

When considering new technology, you should consider several points:

1. Do we really need this technology, or is it just really cool?
   
2. Will this technology improve emergency capabilities?
3. If this technology fails, will this reduce my capabilities?
4. Is this technology proven reliable?
5. How much will this technology cost now vs. the future?
6. How much upkeep/maintenance is required for this technology?
   

For example, almost all emergency agencies have cell phones. Many are using the standard cell phone and service to do the basics, i.e. make a phone call. Adding services (email, internet, maps, etc.) and upgrading phones (PDA, smart phone, iPhone) will probably improve emergency capabilities. However, if you can not make a simple phone call because the additional services or equipment is having problems or does not work, then capability is affected. Make sure that you the new technology actually helps, not just that it is the hot new thing.

Cell phones are constantly improving, but like all technology, it takes a while to sort out the bugs. Problems with new equipment or service that may be acceptable when you are trying to find the restaurant for dinner tonight are probably not acceptable when you are trying to save lives. Consider keeping the older technology during a specified transition period.

Almost all new technology costs more in the beginning. Cell phones that cost hundreds of dollars now could be free in the near future. New cell service features that are expensive now almost always go down in price as more users come on line and improvements are made to the service. Just because technology came out last year does not mean that it is obsolete.

Finally, your basic cell phone requires a lot less upkeep than the more advanced technology. Adding data service, internet access, organizational email connectivity and the like requires personnel and time to keep the advanced stuff working. Make sure you know the support needed for the new technology.

Good emergency managers always want to be out in front of the technology curve. We always want to improve emergency management technology - ultimately it may save lives. Just make sure when you go cutting edge, you know the pros and cons, and keep the band-aids handy.

Where did it go wrong?

In doing research for a future article, the issue arose about why an emergency manager is not successful. It seems that there is a lot of information about how to do it right, but not a lot of lessons learned when it goes wrong.

We all know the characteristics of a successful emergency manager. We also know emergency managers who seem to have those characteristics but things still seem to go wrong. Why is that? Is it the emergency manager, the organization, the profession? What do you think?

"Readiness to Do Right" column

The Governing.com Management Insights column for November 12, 2008 "Readiness to Do Right" is about ethics. The article contains 6 actions to strengthen ethical readiness.

• Embrace your purpose

• Test your excuses

• Harness your moods

• Insist on integrity

• Cultivate trust

• Self-differentiate

http://www.governing.com/mgmt_insight.aspx

FEMA back to the Cabinet?

There is a lot of talk about the incoming President-Elect Obama's priorities for emergency management. A lot of the comments actually talk about the homeland security priorities when they are actually talking about emergency management. This is, of course, a result of the homeland security takeover that occurred after 9/11. One of the first casualties of that takeover was FEMA.

In the Clinton Administration, with James Lee Witt at the helm, FEMA went from worst to first, a Cabinet level independent agency that concentrated on emergency management issues with the full support of the President. FEMA should be returned to that status as soon as possible.

Yes, it is true that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for emergency management agencies in this country. However, one of the principles of emergency management is collaboration. An effective emergency management agency, at any level of government, is able to build relationships and consensus. As noted in ICMA Emergency Management: Principles and Practices for Local Government, as well as many other publications, an effective emergency management agency is more focused on coordination and collaboration, and less on command and control.

Another of the principles is to be comprehensive. Again, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but most emergency managers will tell you that the agency responsible for emergency management needs to be in direct connection with the Chief Executive, and not buried in another agency with a more singular focus and multiple levels of bureaucracy in the way.

With the direct support of the Chief Executive, and with a good emergency manager who focuses on finding the win-win situations and spending just as much time on mitigation and recovery as on preparedness and response, the end result is an effective and efficient organization that sees the big picture and the long term. Improving government efficiency and effectiveness is a solution that fits all sizes.

Lessons in the Elections for Emergency Management

I voted today, and from all indications, so did the vast majority of the rest of the country. No matter who you voted for, I hope you were able to vote. In Michigan, for example, the prediction is currently at 70%! The potentially record-breaking voter turnout shows, in part, that voter apathy was overcome.

How does that matter to emergency management?

First, it shows that apathy can be overcome. There is apathy in the public, the natural human instinct to ignore all the warnings, to tell yourself "it will never happen to me." I just finished reading "The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - and Why" by Amanda Ripley. (This is an excellent book, I highly recommend.) It helps explain why people think the way they do about personal emergency preparedness. Your local Joe Emergency Manager needs to understand how the political campaigns work (and don't work) and apply those lessons to areas such as public education on emergency management.

Second, it also has lessons for organizational education. There are many an emergency manager out there who has fought the battle with their leadership over the priotity of the emergency management program. (Free plug for EM Forum: Leadership Challenges in Emergency Management - A Moderated Panel Discussion is the topic of the day tomorrow at noon ET, go to www.emforum.org for more information.) How someone goes about getting elected has direct application to how an emergency manager gains support for their program.

Finally, it leads to the discussion of politics and the emergency manager. I would argue that a good emergency manager is apolitical, i.e., politically neutral. Of course politics affects us and how we do our job. The politics of the organization definitely affect the program. Some of the emergency management program goals could be aligned with a political viewpoint. Certainly we have our own political viewpoints. Still, you need to be politically neutral to be truly effective. After all, the point is to take care of ALL of the organization and ultimately ALL of the public.
To be clear, you need to be aware and engaged, and you need to deal with the politics, but the minute you align yourself with a political viewpoint, you have boxed yourself into a corner. (Check out Disaster Policy and Politics: Emergency Management and Homeland Security by Richard Sylves, University of Delaware for another viewpoint.)

Homeland Security is really part of Emergency Management

We continue to move back to where we were before the big Homeland Security tidal wave rolled through the nation. Homeland Security is just another part of the bigger Emergency Management picture. Yes, it is an important segment, but it is just one of many important segments. You hear it more and more how another government agency is changing the name back to emergency management, or how they are combining the separate homeland security function back into emergency management. It seems like we have been in the desert for quite a few years, and have finally found the way out.