|
 With hurricane season just around the corner, Choice Partners recently hosted a workshop with Disaster Recovery Services (DRS) covering procurement for disaster recovery.
Shelley Vineyard, director of procurement specialty, opened the event with the intent to support and inform Choice Partner members with a strategic plan for disasters, as well as optimizing federal funding.
“Responding to disasters is a continuous improvement scenario,” Vineyard said. “It’s always good after a disaster to think about what went well, what didn’t go well, and what we can do to remedy that and do a better job next time.”
More than 40 members from school districts, counties, cities and universities attended the in-person workshop at Kemah Boardwalk in the greater Houston area. The workshop was also offered via Zoom to members who could not attend in person.
Over the course of the presentation, members gained insight to numerous aspects of how procurement should be practiced. They also received various tips for their own disaster plan, which included how to avoid costly missteps, developing a pre-fight checklist, and multiple workbook activities that focused on real-life scenarios.
One activity that was highlighted entailed federal funding with FEMA. Members wrote down key people in their organization who would be ready for the disaster recovery process with FEMA. Whether one person or a strategic team, the goal was to prepare a disaster recovery flight crew that was prepared to respond when disaster strikes, specifically for fiscal and financial recovery.
Brad Boullion, director of project management, commented on what he listed as “pre-position (already in place) contracts.”
“(When you're trying to rebuild) there’s a big chance that you’re not going to get everything on that list procured correctly,” he said. “The answer to that is with pre-position contracts. Whether through a cooperative like Choice Partners or you bid them, get them done correct, compliant, pre-storm.”
For more information on Disaster Recovery Services, visit www.disastersllc.com or contact Shelley Vineyard, director of procurement specialty, at 832-603-2251 or svineyard@disastersllc.com.
|
