Hurricanes are a big deal… the most violent of weather related natural disasters. The Director of Human Resources at Amgen told me that if a hurricane made a direct hit on their production facility in the Caribbean and shut them down, they would be in a world of hurt. The domino effect would impact businesses all over the world.

So, the question to you is, "Are any of your suppliers or major clients in hurricane country?" What will happen to your company if:

… you stop getting supplies?

… your supply routes are blocked or closed?

… your customer's businesses are closed?

What are the chances this will happen?

The predictions from the experts over the last few months and from the National Hurricane Conference that I reported to you on previously… will all be updated in June 1st. The updates will reflect a worsening of the predictions and more pessimistic prognosticators. The experts warn a 'Hell of a year' for hurricanes.

Weather Services International said the coastal region from the Outer Banks of North Carolina northward to Maine was twice as likely as normal to experience a hurricane this year.

STORY LINK: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37360717/ns/weather/

And here's something most people haven't been talking about: What will a hurricane do with all the oil floating on the oceans? The picture isn't pretty. This week the BP CEO announced the oil disaster was caused by "an unprecedented combination of failures." We are about to see "an unprecedented combination of failures" regarding this hurricane season. Both were predictable. The second will impact your business even if you are not located on the coast.

President Obama declared this week, "Hurricane Preparation Week" and Hurricane Season officially starts next week. The past seasons have lulled us into a false sense of security and disaster denial. All forecasts point to an elevated number and severity of hurricanes this year. Probability and risk statistics should not be your key driver. But, "What if?" is the key question to ask this year. Will you be impacted or not, directly or indirectly? If you do not understand all the impacts and don't have monitoring plans, triggers, and predetermined action plans in place, your business is at risk. Failure to plan places you at personal risk.

For example, supply chains will be the single greatest point of failure for businesses across the U.S. during hurricane season. Do you know who your key suppliers are? Have you reviewed their business continuity plans? What metrics did you use? Do you know the shipping routes used? You are betting your company on them. Hurricanes will occur. There will be a disruption. Are you ready?

Your greatest tool in helping your contacts, suppliers and customers be better prepared so that your business is protected (against the impact of their losses), is to keep a "Be Prepared" conversation going with those with whom you have personal contact and relationships. Here are five tips to stay present with:

1. Copy important documents, contracts, legal papers and keep the extra copy in another location (another state or on-line)

2. Update appraisals, ownership certificates and insurance policies (and the documentation for those policies) and keep a duplicate copy somewhere else (another state or on-line storage).

3. Can an alternative communication system be implemented (short wave) to stay in contact?

4. A walk through the business with a video camera looking at details and making comments that will be of interest in settling an insurance claim make be invaluable.

5. Consider the value to a company that photos, art, collectibles, awards, antiques etc may have. They make up a corporate culture and some items can heavily influence the asset sheet balance.

Helping your support system in business and functioning will keep you in business and functioning.