Building Operating Management

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Training and Testing Facility Violence Prevention Designs

A business may wish to change how it trains and tests its BCP in order to maximize the value of crisis architecture by accounting for the building’s unique designs and functions. The following principles apply: 

Building resilience  

A well-designed BCP is essential for any organization that wants to survive and thrive in the face of unexpected crises. The harmonization of BCPs with crisis architecture enhances an organization’s ability to do just that: crisis architecture being paired with a BCP can minimize the recovery time after an attack. After all, if the building design delays an attacker from inflicting damage before law enforcement arrives, resuming operations will be less of a burden.  

But quick recovery from an attack is not just important for the immediate facility, its staff, and its operations. It is also important for sending a powerful psychological message: that of resiliency. After an attack, reopening is a crucial victory that signals resolve. The impact of the incident can be minimized, discouraging future attackers who similarly seek to cause chaos and tragedy. 

Daveed Gartenstein-Ross is the founder and chief executive officer of the private firm Valens Global. He also heads a project on domestic violent extremism for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) think tank. Thomas Plant is an analyst at Valens Global who supports the organization’s project on domestic violent extremism for FDD.