Active Shooter Preparedness – Current State of Readiness; Detailed Guide on How to Be Prepared

Everbridge and  Emergency Management and Safety (EMS) Solutions recently conducted a survey around active shooter preparedness and found org...

Everbridge and  Emergency Management and Safety (EMS) Solutions recently conducted a survey around active shooter preparedness and found organizations are overwhelmingly concerned about violent acts – such as active shooter situations – taking place in their buildings or on campus. Despite this concern, the majority of respondents said they were not properly prepared for an active shooter event.

Public and private organizations have long sought to prepare themselves for natural disasters, severe weather and other large-scale incidents that can pose dangers to employees, visitors, students, patients and customers. But in recent years, the increased frequency of deadly active shooter incidents has elevated these events to top-of-mind for anyone responsible for the well-being of those people and the continuity of their business.

Advance planning and training are the keys to maximizing the safety of your people, but they also play a key role in the continuity of your business. Active shooter events have repercussions that extend well beyond their actual duration, so knowing what to do before, during and after will help create an atmosphere of security and stability. This may seem like common sense, but as Everbridge learned through its comprehensive 2016 survey, Active Shooter Preparedness, what makes sense isn’t always what is being done.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines an “active shooter” as “an individual actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area.” Alongside data from the FBI about active shooter incidents since the year 2000, this report presents the results from the survey to provide the perspective of nearly 900 leaders from business, academia and government on where their organizations stand in terms of awareness, preparedness and practice. These will provide insights – many of them real eye-openers – about the state of readiness for active shooter events across a broad swath of industries and organizations.

We also include recommendations from Regina Phelps, founder of Emergency Management and Safety Solutions. Ms. Phelps is an internationally recognized expert in the field of emergency management and contingency planning. She has provided consultation and speaking services to clients on four continents since 1982 and is the author of From Response to Recovery: Conducting Successful Exercises. This report also touches on insights from Everbridge on critical components of a comprehensive emergency communications system so organizations can minimize both the immediate impact and enduring consequences on your personnel and your business from active shooter incidents and other workplace violence.

The reality of the modern world is that we all must be prepared for the worst. We hope that this report gives you tools and information you can use to ensure that your company is as prepared as it can possibly be.

— The Everbridge Team