Most of us never consider the big picture of how the disaster restoration industry business models work. And for good reason… you already have plenty on your plate and no urgent need to evaluate models. But if you are managing a portfolio of properties with many locations, it is worth taking the time to step back and reflect on the big picture. Believe us when we say, there are more efficient ways to handle business interruption and disaster recovery.

Let’s Dive In

You may often find yourself asking why it takes so long to complete jobs and finalize claims after a loss—and why there are so many annoyances along the way. The fact is that the traditional industry model has many steps based on the needs of your company, your insurer and your restoration provider.

The Traditional Disaster Recovery Model

In many cases, the various players responding to a loss may have had little to no previous interaction. This slows down the initial response as emergency crews get familiar with a building and specific client expectations. It also means that all stakeholders will need time to make sure that everything is being done properly and fairly. This review and negotiation process in the middle and/or end of a job can slow things down for weeks or even months at a time.

The Speed of Trust… and Specialization

Stephen R. Covey, the author of the bestseller, The SPEED of Trust: The One Thing that Changes Everything, said that “Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication.” Considering all of the review, negotiation and approval processes in the diagram above, it’s clear that increasing trust among the parties in the claims process improves communication and saves time.

The challenge, of course, is that building trust is much easier said than done; it takes communication and coordination amongst all of the parties. Most of the time, however, the various parties have little incentive to spend much time communicating and coordinating prior to a loss.

When it comes to accelerating recovery time and lowering costs, trust isn’t the only thing that’s important. Vendor experience, specialization, capabilities, and processes are also critical. Every loss presents unique considerations and challenges. The more experienced your provider is, the more efficient the resources available in their “toolbox” are likely to be. This keeps your operations going…or your residents in their homes when it’s safe to do so throughout the recovery and rebuild process.

A Little Pre-planning Goes a Long Way

Ultimately, making the disaster recovery process more efficient requires preparation. And the more properties there are in play, the more opportunities there are to find efficiencies and streamline processes. Especially when trust and communication between your company and your restoration provider have been established.

We build trust by always doing what’s right for the customer. With our portfolio approach, we also emphasize preparation and building relationships among all key stakeholders in the claims process. This proactive approach enables us to eliminate many time-consuming steps in the recovery and rebuild processes. Clear communication and collaboration help drive continual improvements.

For a quick summary of the advantages of the portfolio approach, watch and share this video:

The Efficiency Model: Why Proactive Beats Reactive Every Time

Thanks to Kim Hartz from our National team for sharing her skills! Make sure to check out part 1 here.