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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Business Continuity, Human Resources, Risk Management, School Safety, Workplace Violence

  In my previous blog I suggested that building a successful preparedness campaign is like building a skyscraper…and in some cases it seems like building a skyscraper may actually be easier than building a successful campus-wide or organization-wide preparedness effort. I mentioned that building a skyscraper and building a campus-wide or organization-wide preparedness effort have a lot in common and one of those common items is blueprints. Blueprints can be a technical drawing, a mechanical drawing, an architectural plan, a model, a prototype, a detailed plan of action and etc.  Blueprints can also include programs, policies, procedures, processes, guidelines, checklists and etc. But blueprints areRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Business Continuity, Emergency Management, Risk Management, School Safety, Workplace Violence

  I attended the Virginia Governor’s Campus Preparedness conference last week and had an interesting discussion with one of the attendees.  We were talking about how building preparedness across an organization or an entire campus is becoming more complex and more difficult due to escalating challenges, regulations, obligations, liabilities and much more. As our discussion continued, we started talking about how important tools can be when building campus-wide preparedness programs.   In reference to whether tools can make a difference, I offered the following analogy: Could a skyscraper be built using a hammer, a saw and some nails? The attendee responded quickly, yes the skyscraper couldRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Information Privacy, Information Security, Risk Management

  Lessons learned from a recent hacking competition at Defcon revealed yet again that your employees are the biggest threat to your organization. With just two phone calls, a hacker posing as a Louisiana-based employee handling claims involving the Gulf oil spill was able to trick a computer support employee at BP into divulging sensitive information that could have proved crucial in launching a network attack.  The employee provided information to the caller including the model of laptops BP used, the specific operating system, browser anti-virus and VPN software.  The hacker also convinced the employee to visit an unknown web site, Social-Engineer.org. Other hackers inRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Business Continuity, Human Resources, Incident Reporting, Information Privacy, Risk Management

  A recent follow up article in Federal Computer Week (FCW) highlighted the porn scandal at the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and suggested this was a dramatic wake-up call for any government agency who doubted the need for and importance of an airtight security policy. Good for Teri Robinson… who wrote the article!! However…the steps Teri laid out that an agency should take to build and enforce a security policy are missing a couple of critical steps based on lessons learned and legal defensibility.  Teri suggested the following steps: Review existing policy Social media guidelines should be included and should be specific Assign responsibility becauseRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Business Continuity, Campus Safety, Incident Reporting, Regulatory Compliance, Risk Management

  If you did not read Part 1…you may want to do so before reading Part 2. During my EduComm presentation,  I identified numerous school related incidents and lessons learned and multiple new ways to improve campus safety, reduce costs, protect reputations and save lives. Then after reviewing multiple lessons learned I asked the group another question: What does each of these well-documented incidents have in common? Columbine Virginia Tech Fort Hood University of Alabama-Huntsville   According to expert reviews and reports, each of these incidents could have been prevented. Let me repeat….each of these incidents could have been prevented.  Each of these incidents couldRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Emergency Management, Human Resources, Incident Reporting, Risk Management, School Safety

  Just recently, I had the honor of presenting at the EduComm 2010 conference in Las Vegas. The title of my presentation was ‘Connecting the Dots to Improve Campus Safety’ and was selected as a featured presentation. Presenting at conferences is definitely one of my favorite things to do. I get to share ideas, successes and lessons learned with other people who are coming from many different locations and I have the unique opportunity to ask questions and learn what challenges other people face. During my presentation I asked the following questions:   How many of your organizations have a Crisis Management Plan? (Everyone raisedRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Emergency Management, Incident Reporting, Risk Management

  I recently came across a blog in Emergency Management Magazine discussing the need to use multiple forms of emergency notifications.  Lessons learned and recent studies reveal that the public won’t likely take action unless they receive their directions from at least two trusted sources.  A study on evacuations during the San Diego wildfires found that residents generally wouldn’t leave their homes until they had received confirmation from a second source (like the news or a personal contact). Thankfully, in today’s networked environment, people have information coming at them from all sides (friends, media, online news, social networking sites, etc.) and will most likely beRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Emergency Management, Incident Reporting, Risk Management, School Safety, Workplace Violence

  A recent report from the University of Maryland’s National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) has revealed that since 1995, a much higher percentage (33%) of terrorist attacks in the United States were conducted by unaffiliated individuals, rather than by organized groups. From the Oklahoma City bombing to more recent attacks like Virginia Tech, Fort Hood, and the University of Alabama, another commonality has also been revealed; in 80% of the incidents, red flags and warning signs exist, but are often not identified. There are many reasons red flags go unreported.  Victims or bystanders may fear retaliation or theyRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Business Continuity, Human Resources, Risk Management

  I attended the national ACUTA conference last week and one of the speakers mentioned Philip Quigley’s quote regarding ‘farmers and building tractors’.  If you are not familiar with his quote, see below: Philip J. Quigley, former CEO of Pacific Telesis said, “If we were to go back in time 100 years and ask a farmer what he’d like if he could have anything, he’d probably tell us he wanted a horse that was twice as strong and ate half as many oats. He would not tell us he wanted a tractor. Technology changes things so fast that many people aren’t sure what the bestRead More →

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In: *Connecting the Dots Blog*, Human Resources, Incident Reporting, Information Privacy, Information Security, Risk Management

  Recently, Awareity’s CEO, Rick Shaw, was asked to present at the Infotec conference in Omaha.   During his presentation, “The Truths (and Myths) About Assessments, Planning and Implementing”, Rick discussed the three-legged stool each organization is sitting on, and the importance of all three legs (Assessments, Planning/Developing and Implementing). Most organizations understand the importance of assessments and planning, but where many fail to deliver is in the implementation phase.   As we have seen with numerous headlines and lessons learned, a failure to implement can lead to expensive fines, lawsuits, breaches and losses.  Rick used a case study for CVS Caremark.   Due to employees carelessly tossingRead More →