Mar 7, 2022

By Doug Baker, Vice President, Industry Relations, FMI

In today’s world, the margin separating a completely average day from a day where yet another violent incident takes place feels razor thin. False and misleading narratives have undermined public trust in our institutions. Increasing societal stressors like political divisiveness, economic uncertainty, and pandemic-related health concerns have increased levels of anxiety and depression. Meanwhile, threats from active and aspiring terrorists both foreign and domestic continue to place our highly vulnerable infrastructure and public gatherings in jeopardy.

These changes have created a perfect storm that increases daily risks to both lives and property. But this is especially true in the workplace.

Workplace Violence is the #1 Threat to Businesses

According to a recent Securitas study, workplace violence—or WPV—is the number one corporate safety threat ahead of digital security, disaster recovery, and others. The numbers don’t lie—annually, more than 2 million workers become victims of workplace violence, and nearly half of human resource professionals now say their organization has experienced a WPV incident. But even beyond potential loss of life or injury, WPV can have devastating effects on business operations.

In the wake of an incident the workplace becomes a crime scene, there is damage to the brand’s reputation, lawsuits are filed, survivors require counseling, and there is often massive impact on the company’s bottom line. In fact, U.S. organizations spend more than $120 billion annually responding to violent events.

Thankfully, these consequences and costs can largely be mitigated with enhanced preparedness that can help you manage risk and protect both your employees and your organization.

Awareness, Preparation and Prevention

At the upcoming FMI Asset Protection and Grocery Resilience Conference, we’re pleased to welcome decorated veteran, law enforcement professional, and preparedness expert William F. Flynn as a keynote speaker.

In addition to presenting a comprehensive look at today’s threat landscape, Bill will review real world active shooter and terrorist events. He’ll highlight lessons learned from these violent acts and what businesses can do to manage and mitigate risk.

With decades of experience at the NYPD, Department of Homeland Security, and elsewhere, Bill has parlayed his expertise into creating valuable training for organizations across North America. The Power of Preparedness (TPOP) online training has helped companies and their employees across a wide spectrum of industries learn critical skills and training that prepare them to recognize and respond to threats in the workplace.

• Have you assessed the risks to your organization?
• Have you properly prepared your workforce for an incident?
• Do you have an up-to-date emergency response plan?
• What happens if your organization is unprepared?

Join us for this important keynote address as Bill asks these questions and more, and shares strategies for managing your risk and enhancing your preparedness.

FMI has a partnership with The Power of Preparedness that provides members with discounted TPOP training and also free access to industry-specific guidelines for active shooter preparedness, response and recovery.

William F. Flynn is a Partner at The Power of Preparedness (TPOP). Through comprehensive online training, TPOP provides organizations with situational awareness, verbal de-escalation, and active shooter readiness techniques that enhance preparation, recognition, and response against potential threats. For more on TPOP training, visit www.thepowerofpreparedness.com.

Learn About Asset Protection and Grocery Resilience Conference