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Survey and Assessment of Planning for Operational Continuity in Public Works

Arizona State University — Polytechnic Campus, scott.somers{at}asu.edu

The public works department provides an array of essential services to the community that business and citizens rely on. Preparation for service provision during and after a crisis is called continuity of operations planning (COOP). Historically, the federal government has conducted such planning, and private businesses have embraced business continuity planning. Local governments have more recently begun to adopt such "good business practices." This article provides a background on government COOP planning, describes the important elements of a continuity plan as described in federal documents and standards, and reports on a survey of public works departments. The results of the survey indicate that although some planning efforts have been undertaken, a majority of public works agencies in this sample are at risk for breakdowns in the provision of essential service in crisis situations. Public works agencies need to intensify planning efforts to ensure operational continuity.

Key Words: continuity planning • homeland security • disaster preparedness • crisis management

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Public Works Management & Policy, Vol. 12, No. 2, 451-465 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/1087724X07308772


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This Article Abstract Free Full Text (Free PDF) Free Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Somers, S. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?