Do You Have Safeguards in Place to Protect Your Small Business During an Emergency?

As a small business owner, you strive daily to make certain that you have anticipated everything necessary to create and maintain a successful business. You oversee every detail – from inventory availability to cash flow requirements, and you spend hours regularly updating business plans, budgets and financial proformas so that you are confident that your business in on solid ground. So, what happens to your business if you are one of the approximately 90 percent of Americans who will be disabled for some period of time during their lifetime due to illness, injury or some other unforeseen event?

I know about this topic firsthand, because I owned a successful investment company for over ten years when I was diagnosed with a brain tumor that required immediate surgery. Between hospitalization and recovery, my business was left without a rudder for a significant period of time and I almost lost everything I had worked so hard to build.
All of us can name friends, co-workers, or family members who have been put out of commission for some period of time from unexpected events, yet we never think that it will happen to us. We only become convinced of the importance of being prepared when the unexpected happens – and then it’s too late.

Steps Needed to Protect Your Business
If you were sick or hospitalized and unable to effectively communicate for some period of time, do you have the written information, directions and legal authorizations to keep your business running without you? The following is just some of the critical backups you must have in place for whomever you leave in charge as the guardian for your business.
1. They must be able to access your work and cell phone voice mail passwords so they can retrieve and return messages for you;
2. They must be able to access your computer passwords so they can read and return important e-mails;
3. They must know which bills are critical and must be paid in a timely manner and have the temporary authority to either pay those bills or have the contact information to communicate your situation to those parties;
4. They must have contact information for important customers or clients, business associates, vendors and others who might need to know of your situation;
5. They must know who to contact for legal, accounting and other professional services if a business emergency arises.
There may be a number of people ready and willing to help you in an emergency but, without written information, instructions and legal authorizations, they lack the ability to act as your guardian until you are once again able to take charge yourself.

How to Get Started
One comprehensive and inexpensive resource that will give you the tools to put these safeguards into place can be found at www.livingsmartguides.com. Take it from someone who learned the hard way, your business can’t survive long in your absence without a comprehensive backup system in place. If you fail to secure these safeguards, you risk everything you have worked so hard to create.