Like with anything on the Internet, social media does not come without its risks. We’ve discussed identifying the risks associated with social media use, as well as the risks of your employees on social networking sites. But if you allow these risks to stop you from engaging in social media, what will you be missing out on? Are there risks associated with NOT using social media?

You would not sign a contract without reading it first. And this means a lot of reading if you are a contractor. So, how are you managing this review process? Do you understand all the implications a contract could have on the future of your business?

Most companies will say they review all contracts with the help of their attorney. This is the optimal path, but we need to throw a wrinkle in it. When was the last time you involved your insurance broker in that review process?

You trust your insurance broker to review a key contract you utilize every year: your insurance policy. They ensure your company’s risk is properly transferred to the insurance carrier using the most up-to-date coverages, endorsements and enhancements available in the market. But when it comes to reviewing and updating insurance requirements in a contract, the insurance broker is often left out of the picture. Now your attorney is forced to be the legal expert AND the insurance expert.

The modern contract review process involves a meeting between your attorney and insurance broker on an annual basis at a minimum. This collaboration helps ensure you are properly addressing all risks you face before you sign a contract.

Let’s look at some common scenarios in which this updated contract review process could have prevented significant losses.

Each year OSHA releases the 10 most frequently cited standards.

Are you taking proper precautions to avoid these hazards in your facility?

Businesses must approach disaster planning as a probable scenario. Approaching it as a possible scenario is not enough. There are several points of impact resulting from a disruption in power, from (the obvious) loss of connectivity, to (the physical) damaged equipment, or (the elusive) reputation damage. Businesses lose more than just power when an outage occurs. Disaster preparedness involves a planning process resulting in both external and internal communications that help a business continue operating as usual, no matter the situation. To facilitate the planning process, ten steps are discussed, beginning with the “Analysis Of Potential Threats,” and concluding with the ever-important “Recovery Phase.”

Employee Engagement. Company Culture. Establishing a positive company culture matters. A company’s culture can be an incredible asset…but if not given the proper attention, it can become your greatest risk.

Culture is the values, beliefs, and the norms of a company. It’s not your policies and procedures; it’s the way you do things. It has many facets. Safety, employee wellness, employee wellbeing, and even the overall organizational health. And in order to establish a positive culture, you must engage your company leaders AND your employees.

We understand the steps to fire prevention and protection for our home. We teach our kids the importance of smoke detectors and why they need to be checked regularly. We establish an escape plan and determine a meeting place. In school, our kids learn what to do and where to go in case of a fire. And they participate in numerous drills.

But what about our workplace? Are we properly prepared to handle a fire? Have we trained our employees and practiced our action plan?

Just as with your family or at school, taking time to plan BEFORE a fire can be critical to survival. Here are four basic steps to help you create a pre-fire plan

As the use of social media continues to grow exponentially, the line between professional and personal life tends to blur. Most likely, many of your employees are using social networks for personal use. They have connected with coworkers and clients. They may also help share posts from your company’s social networks to their own personal ones. The employee’s network of friends and followers probably begin to associate the individual with your company. This can be great. Employees can become some of your most effective brand advocates.

However, being aware of the potential risks is important.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 250,000 serious injuries occur each year to hands, fingers, and wrists. About 8,000 of these result in amputations. A worker’s hands are so incredibly critical not only to their career, but also their personal lives. Action can be taken to help minimize the hazards to hands, especially through the use of equipment safety mechanisms, personal protective equipment (PPE), and proper training.

As the contractor for a construction project, you are presented with significant risks, especially with each subcontractor you bring onto the job. You may be held liable for damages or injuries caused by the work subcontractors perform on your behalf – that could be an injured employee of a subcontractor or even injuries to on-site visitors. To reduce your exposure to loss and protect your business, it is critical to implement risk transfer strategies.

Risk transfer is shifting risks of loss for damage or injury to another party. For contractors, this means requiring provisions to be included in all subcontractor contracts in order to transfer the risk appropriately.

What Is The Mark Of A Proactive Safety Culture?

Early in my career I spent time working in manufacturing as a safety director. After an injury occurred, we would complete the accident investigation and root cause analysis. We figured out what happened, when it happened, why it happened, and how it happened. From there we determined how to keep the injury from occurring again. But why weren’t we doing this before the injury? Why weren’t we doing inspections, reviews, and managing processes BEFORE an injury to prevent it? Why were we waiting until an injury occurred?