You may never fall victim to an earthquake, or an epidemic, but what happens if a vital system in your business fails? That was on everybody’s mind as the world approached the fail-safe point we all called Y2K.

One of our clients bears one of the most respected brand names in the world. The managers of this international corporation knew they had to deal with awesome possibilities. There were too many Y2K unknowns and too many people depending on the service and reliability that had built their brand. They wanted to know that every department had a plan to handle disruptions. They called the Ki Group.

Ki partners worked to identify critical department business tasks, assess risks, determine appropriate budgets and identify cost-effective work-arounds to enable operations continuity. With this information we developed and tested customized contingency plans. Together with key managers we also implemented a Communications Command Center as well as a company-wide communications plan to provide vital customer information and allay customer concerns. Internally, the program created a two-way pathway of information. Departments continually updated the Command Center with regular status reports and in turn they were regularly kept informed on the state of the company.

How did they gain when Y2K turned out to be Y2-so-what? Our clients weren’t just prepared for the Big Crash that never came. They were now also well prepared and disciplined to deal with almost any type of disaster. Individual departments now consider and plan for previously un-thought-of business risks and their impact, not just on them, but on the whole organization. New lines of communication are open between internal groups. There’s a new sense of cooperation, interdependence and teamwork. Their planning provided not only for business continuity, it provided critical tools of success!