For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: Press Office 202-282-8010
September 23, 2004

Fact Sheet: Ready Business Campaign

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in partnership with the Advertising Council and a variety of business organizations, today launched Ready Business.  This extension of Homeland Security's successful Ready campaign, which has helped millions of individuals and families prepare for emergencies, focuses on business preparedness.  Ready Business will help owners and managers of small to medium-sized businesses prepare their employees, operations and assets in the event of an emergency.

"The terrorist attacks of 9-11 and more recently hurricanes Charley, Frances and Ivan showed that disastrous events can paralyze business operations," said Tom Ridge, Secretary of Homeland Security.  "Ready Business was created to help encourage every business to develop an emergency plan, thereby making our nation and our economy more secure."  

An emergency preparedness plan can greatly improve the likelihood that a company will survive and recover from all emergencies, natural disasters or terrorist attacks, but, too few businesses are taking the necessary steps to prepare. One of the key findings of the 9-11 Commission report was the need for the private sector to prepare for potential disasters.  Ready Business, is designed to make emergency planning easier. The Ready Business website (Ready.gov) provides businesses with practical steps and easy to use templates to help them:

• Plan to stay in business
• Talk to their employees
• Protect their investment

Ready Business is funded by Homeland Security's Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate.  The initiative was developed and launched in partnership with:

• The 9/11 Public Discourse Project (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• ASIS International (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• Business Executives for National Security (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• The Business Roundtable (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• International Safety Equipment Association (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• International Security Management Association (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• National Association of Manufacturers (This link leaves DHS.gov)  
• National Federation of Independent Businesses (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration (This link leaves DHS.gov)  
• Small Business Administration (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• The Society for Human Resource Management (This link leaves DHS.gov)
• U.S. Chamber of Commerce (This link leaves DHS.gov)

A webcast of the Ready Business launch event (This link leaves DHS.gov) will be available on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce website.

The Ready campaign is a national public service advertising campaign produced by the Ad Council (This link leaves DHS.gov) in partnership with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.  Ready is designed to educate and empower American citizens to prepare for and respond to potential terrorist attacks and other emergencies. Citizens interested in receiving a "Get Ready Now" brochure may call 1-800-BE-READY or visit Ready.gov  for more information.

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