The question started to be on the top of my list recently after spending the past 23 years of my career in emergency preparedness and risk management. I have worked with a range of organizations spanning industries, size, and geography; still, the story of emergency management chaos I encounter tend to be reasonably similar. Many of the employees and senior management in these organizations say stuff like: “we have to be practical, not theoretical when it comes to managing emergencies, we need to focus on our core business, we are not national emergency responders, and so on.” These issues tend to be consistent regardless of the EM scope in the organization.
Organizational Issues
1- Lack of understanding
A Key reason that managing and planning for emergencies fails is a lack of understanding of the aims and the objectives of emergency management programs. For example, many high-risk organizations would emphasis on emergency response to HSE emergencies thinking that they address emergency management as a whole. The danger of this approach is that organizations do not merely understand the magnitude of the emergency management cycle, and responding to incidents is one component of this cycle. Therefore, the organization has a false sense of security, presuming that they got EM addressed.
2- Lack of leadership and support
One of the most common reasons emergency management efforts fail is that they do not possess the appropriate level of support from leadership. Although EM could be listed as one of the top management agenda items, words still do not translate into actions, this doesn’t just mean a lack of funding or prioritization, though this is critical. For emergency management planning to succeed, they need active support from leadership with executive modeling and reinforcing the behavior changes that must occur for emergency management efforts to work genuinely. Leadership support is also critical to remove project blockers resistors throughout the organization and across departments.
3- Desire to protect the status quo and avoid change
This becomes clear with middle management personnel across the organizations. Emergency planning is one of these activities that go beyond department boundaries and requires collaborations and coordination to succeed. These activities typically require introducing additional responsibilities, creating posts, and analyzing departmental business flow. As a result, some middle managers may become uncomfortable and start to protect the status quo. Introducing change always requires brave leadership to champion behavioral enhancements.
4- “Turf” battles
This is a principal reason that usually slows down the emergency planning process because it influences the heart of the planning process. Middle management personnel focuses their energy and efforts to challenge any change in their sections regardless of the long term aims and objectives. For example, section heads would question the need for internal emergency management audits and inspections to ensure the program is effectively working. This claim is grounded in the fact that these middle management personnel feels threatened by external staff checking on them. Moreover, the challenge includes emergency planning as a task in their sections, claiming that it is corporate or HSE division responsibilities.
Individual Issues
5- Lack of competency
Another common reason why emergency planning fails, the number of emergency management posts are filled with incompetent emergency planning staff. This is evident even in some high-risk organizations. This tactic has short and long term effects and can be contributed to management’s lack of understanding of the aims and activities involved to ensure adequate emergency management programs. For example, management might believe that an emergency planning post is a role that can be filled with HSE staff. Contrary to this belief, emergency planning requires different sets of skills, including operational and enterprise risk management experience, excellent communication, training, and stakeholder management skills.
6- Ignoring all warnings
Some organizations do not see the obvious by not investing in preliminary analysis and investigation of their incidents. These early warning signs show as a result of real experiences or come up after emergency exercises and drills. Unfortunately, many of these organizations do not realize the gaps until it is too late, and loss of life and property occur.
7- Move with crowd syndrome
This becomes evident during meetings and across departmental discussions impacting emergency planning activities and tasks. A meeting attendee would claim “other departments or organizations do it this way” why re-invent the wheel?. Emergency planners must resist this “move with the crowed attitude.” This attitude typically tries to avoid real and section-specific activities that would benefit the department and the organization as a whole.
8- Analysis paralysis
This is my top observed reason why some time emergency planning fails. It is used regularly by management members, namely, middle managers. This technique is used to delay emergency planning decisions or even not to take any relevant actions. This is evident by overanalyzing many of the details and scenarios for emergencies, which can be painted as over-complicated. This approach is transparent during all emergency management program cycles, including mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
9- Faulty assumptions
I have noticed this during emergency exercises and drills for some organizations; emergency planners would assume that all employees, emergency responders, and even the public would know what to do in case of emergency or “emergency response will work naturally.” Those people usually use the line” do not over complicate the procedure; things will be ok.” Again those type of people tries to avoid doing real emergency planning, training, educating, setting emergency policies and procedures
10 Lack of risk awareness
lack of adequate risk awareness is a common reason why emergency management efforts fail in some organizations. Staff and middle managers must be aware of the different risks and hazards that might impact them during work activities. This is critical to mitigate these risks and adequately respond to an emergency that might occur to protect lives, environment, and property.