Post Strike? So What?

So we now know that we are to face what is likely to become a long postal strike. Papers today report the Communication Workers Union as feeling stronger and more confident than Arthur Scargill before the miners' strike. This could herald a long difficult period for law firms who still, in general, prefer to deal in hard-copy.

Fortunately you saw this one coming. A post strike was one of the risks you identified as part of your standard risk planning. You analysed how much mail you send and receive, you've identified the clients who are very "paper heavy" and you've talked with them about arrangements during the strike period. You've setup an email confirmation system so that you know when post has been received. You also set up accounts with couriers - local, national and international.

You did do that, didn't you? Oh dear... I'd suggest that you get on with all of that as soon as possible. Whilst your clients will know there is a post strike, they will probably assume that, as a professional organisation, you will be ready.

If you have doubted the need for risk management and contingency planning, this is a concrete example of its benefits. If you find yourself in the unhappy position of scrambling about over the next few days sorting things out (to the detriment of your real business) then please set plans in place to consider other risks. An hour in advance saves three hours in a panic.

If you are feeling a little smug because you do have a risk system in place and you do have a suitable contingency plan then (a) you probably should - congratulation, but (b) make sure you "debrief" in a few weeks to see if there is anything to learn or anything you could have done better.

Finally on the subject of risk management - have you considered Reputational risk. The recent mess surrounding Trafigura and Carter-Ruck shows two things. Firstly the need to have a plan in place to deal with bad publicity (or even a plan to review clients before you act for them?). Secondly this affair shows the power of the new or social media. While Carter-Ruck seemed to successfully gag the Guardian and (second hand) the BBC, they were incapable of doing anything about public discussion, fascilitated by Twitter. Food for thought for us all - and something to be considered the next time you are reviewing risk.

Contingency and Risk Planning

I am lucky enough to both live and work in EC4 in the City of London. I have the wonderful benefit of walking to work and walking to visit clients and very much enjoy being in the heart of the City.

At 9pm on Tuesday evening, we had a power failure. This is very unusual, and we did all the usual things from checking our supply and trip-switches to ringing EDF. The fault was traced to a damaged underground cable and was fixed by about 11am the next morning.

As a consultant in, amongst other things, Risk Management I'm pleased to say that I had already considered the scenario of a power failure. Being in the centre of London, I have many options available to me. I have, however, made some effort into ensuring that I can continue to work in difficult circumstances. My backups are available remotely and incoming mail is scanned into my filing system - so I am in a position to take my laptop, find a new space with power and an internet connection, and start work.

Power failure, however irritating, is one of the easiest incidents to deal with. With my interest in risk, I have considered fire, theft, flood, regulatory problems, PR issues, professional problems, client issues etc etc etc

If you haven't done all of this - and done it in a systematic manner - you really must. If you are a partner in a firm and don't know for certain that your firm has all of this in place - ask now. Sadly I suspect that many firms would have a somewhat embarrassed reply to that question. It is never too late to sort your risk management out.

Mar-aon Consulting can help with your risk management - and provide a pragmatic, workable system fit for your firm. See www.mar-aon.co.uk for more details.