Business Continuity Planning in the Pest Control Industry

The pest control industry is enjoying an economic upswing (Pest control industry continues..., 2005). The National Pest Management Association (NPMA) sponsored research which revealed that 24 percent of all Americans believe that the risks associated with pest infestations have increased over the past few years, 44 percent of Americans see an increased need for professional pest control services, and 72 percent believe that professional pest control services are more effective than do it yourself products (Pest control industry continues..., 2005). The pest control industry was a $6.5 billion industry in the United States in 2005, thus demonstrating its significance and underscoring the need for players in the sector to have business continuity plans in place in the event of a natural or manmade disaster which disrupts business activities or places new strains on limited resources.

Like any other industry, the pest control industry depends on technology for many different functions. Curtis (2005) pointed out that having a backup plan in case computerized data management and communication systems fail is a necessity for any business. Pest control companies maintain databases with client information as well as data regarding costs and expenditures, personnel, suppliers, inventory, and vehicle fleets. A backup system is certainly highly desirable in this industry as is testing it to determine whether or not it can withstand external threats (Laidlaw, Marshall, Woods,

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hones and other handheld communication devices. There should be a backup system for such devices. Morwood (1998) contends that workers must be thoroughly trained to use such systems and to recognize what responsibilities they have as individuals in the case of a crisis. This can include responsibility for moving vehicles out of harms way as well as containing chemicals in a secure environment. Morwood (1998) also notes that training must focus on disaster recovery and a business continuity plan should outline the steps to be taken should a disaster occur. These plans should be tested to the extent that is feasible. Other business continuity resources come into play in a crisis. Curtis (2005) suggests that to the extent possible, businesses should have duplicate sets of necessary equipment. This may not be possible to the extent desirable because of the costs of maintaining two full fleets of work trucks and other vehicles and two storage facilities. Instead, any business with the capacity to do so should consider investing in a financial instrument that would provide the resources needed to get the business up and running quickly after a disaster or crisis. Cash resources can be extremely important in replacing damag

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