One page. Printed and carried, not stored in a system that may be unavailable during the operational failures where it matters most. Filled in while everybody is calm.
What follows is the structure with an illustrative example. The organization and details are invented.
Section 1 — Who does what
Four roles, each with a primary, an alternate, and a mobile number. Nobody should be primary for more than two.
Decider — commits the organization. M. Reyes, Exec. Dir. — 208-555-0143. Alt: J. Okafor, Ops Dir. — 208-555-0177
Coordinator — runs the response, tracks who is doing what. J. Okafor. Alt: D. Whitmore
Voice — the only person speaking externally. M. Reyes. Alt: L. Baptiste, Board Chair
Recorder — keeps the log. D. Whitmore. Alt: K. Sandoval
Section 2 — Who may declare
Name the roles that can trigger the response, and set the bar low.
Any supervisor or above. Declaring means: call the Decider and Coordinator, start the log, and no external communication until the Voice says otherwise. A declaration that turns out to be unnecessary is never held against the person who made it.
Section 3 — Decision rights during a declared crisis
Two lines: what moves down, and what moves up. Use figures.
Moves down: any supervisor may commit up to $5,000 for immediate mitigation without approval — securing a site, emergency repair, temporary equipment. Document afterward, not before.
Moves up: anything affecting a contract, anyone’s employment, an insurance claim, or any public statement goes to the Decider regardless of amount.
Section 4 — Notification order
In sequence, with who makes each call. This is where organizations do the most avoidable damage.
1. Anyone harmed, and their family — Decider, in person where possible.
2. Emergency services / regulator if required — Coordinator.
3. Attorney — Decider. [name, firm, mobile]
4. Insurer — Coordinator. [carrier, policy no., 24hr claims line]
5. Board chair — Decider.
6. Staff — Decider, before any external statement.
7. Major funder / largest customer — Voice.
8. Public statement — Voice only.
The order matters more than the speed. Staff learning from a news report, or a board chair learning from a funder, causes damage that outlasts the incident.
Section 5 — First hour
Six lines. Procedural only, because the substantive decision cannot be prewritten.
1. Attend to anyone hurt. Nothing else first.
2. Make the site or situation safe.
3. Convene the four roles, by phone if necessary. State the roles out loud.
4. Start the log: time, what is known, what is not known.
5. Hold all external communication.
6. Establish what is actually known, separated from what is assumed.
Section 6 — Numbers
Attorney. Insurer and policy number. Accountant. Building and utilities. Relevant regulator. IT and systems access. Two board members.
Reviewed every six months, on a date in the calendar. This section is the most likely to be quietly wrong.
Four rules for the card
One page. If it will not fit, the surplus belongs in a longer document that nobody will read during a crisis and that is fine.
Printed and held by everybody named on it. In the vehicle, at home, in the office.
Names, not titles. Titles are vacant at inconvenient moments.
Reviewed twice a year and after any departure. A card listing somebody who left in March is worse than no card, because it will be trusted.
Public bodies and licensed operations should have counsel confirm that the notification order and decision rights are consistent with their own statutory obligations, which vary and take precedence over anything here.
Edited by Patrick J. Wolf, PhD