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9
Traveling Employees
and the Terrorist
Threat: Is your
Company Prepared?
At one time, the focus of journey
management involved how to handle
delayed flights, missing reservations and
luggage. Journey management still includes
those, but now it also involves ensuring
employee safety in the face of terrorism.
Will Geddes, Managing Director of the
International Corporate Practice Group,
offers insights on how to plan and train
employees in the instance that an employee
finds himself or herself in danger’s way.
Over the course of the last year, the world
has experienced an unprecedented number
of various terrorist-related incidents. During
the past two years, more than 70 attacks
throughout the world have been attributed
to the Islamic state and this number doesn’t
account for domestic terrorism. Have
companies began to re-assess their risk,
security and training of their employees?
Historically, following terrorist incidents and
attacks, the majority of companies would
only address and revise security measures
for the specific city or region affected. As
a result, we’ve had a significant increase
in demand for the delivery of executive
and training, both generic safety and crisis
response practices. International Corporate
Protection (ICP) Group is experiencing a
significant increase in demand for training
in safe journey management, situational
awareness and, most telling, terrorism and
political/civil instability risks.
What safety and security challenges of
international travel and routine travel
in metropolitan cities have you noticed
recently?
The biggest challenge for companies,
in regards to both international and
domestic travel, is maintaining employees’
safety when outside of their secure office
environments. For example, with the
increasingly spontaneous nature of today’s
terrorism, a major priority is locating staff
quickly and determining their well-being.
The good news is that technology, such as
mobile phones, and apps such as Tactics
ON
(www.tacticson.com), are helping
companies improve the ability to quickly
determine staff’s whereabouts and also
more effectively coordinate them during
crises.
What would be the best way for
employees to prepare for a potential
terrorist attack?
A complete plan should be in place and
traveling employees should be trained in
what to do during, and immediately after, a
terrorist attack. Such training can help save
lives.
Ultimately what are the most common
mistakes that are made during a crisis
situation?
The biggest threat in a crisis situation can
often be your own curiosity. We have to
override that inherently needs and desires
to investigate, so if you hear something
suspicious (explosion, gunfire, etc.), head in
the opposite direction as quickly as possible.