Terrorism Aimed at the Private Sector
The worst terrorist act in U.S. history was aimed at one of the premier symbols of global commerce. Yet, the symbolism of the destruction of the World Trade Center towers is far overshadowed by the thousands of victims – most of them just employees doing their jobs. While corporations are legal creations impervious to blasts, the people who comprise them are flesh and blood and spirit, all too vulnerable to acts of terror.
For now, HR professionals and other managers must cope with the immediate aftermath. Obviously, those most directly affected by the attack are already responding, often heroically. But virtually all companies have been at least indirectly affected. Many employees are suffering from fears and anxieties that HR professionals will want to do their best to allay. Some workers may need immediate access to counseling services. Dr. John Sullivan, head of the HR program at San Francisco State University, recommends that managers keep employees busy to get their minds off current events. On the other hand, supervisors also need to remain sensitive, flexible and compassionate. Some employees may need to take time off from work, often to cope with family emergencies or to volunteer their services to organizations such as the Red Cross. Employee communication is key in this time of crisis.
At the bottom of this TrendWatcher, there are Web addresses of various information sources that may help managers both deal with the immediate impact of the attack and educate themselves about terrorism more generally.
In the coming weeks and months, managers will need to learn more about the unsavory subject of terrorism. They will find that an attack like the one on the World Trade Center, while unspeakably horrendous and shocking, was not completely unexpected by some security experts. Last June, an article on terrorism from Insight on the News magazine began, "Pearl Harbor probably will happen again. Only this time the attacks won't be in far-off Hawaii but against the American mainland."
Of course, no one could have predicted the specifics of the World Trade Center disaster, but some data indicates that terrorist attacks against U.S. interests – especially business interests – have been on the rise. Basing its analysis of the U.S. State Department's "Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000" report, Security Management magazine reports that organizations with a U.S. connection were hit 206 times in 2000, up from 169 in 1999, though only 17 of those incidents were included in a list of "significant" incidents of global terrorism.
"As has been the case in the past, business bore the brunt of terrorism in 2000, and not just U.S. business," reports Security Management. "Internationally, private-sector facilities were attacked 384 times, up from 276 in 1999. By contrast, only 17 government facilities and 13 military facilities were similarly hit around the globe."
There are at least two major reasons that private-sector buildings rather than government facilities have become the primary targets for terrorist acts. First, because of past terrorist actions, the U.S. government has been improving the defensive capabilities of government facilities, which encourages terrorists to select "softer," more vulnerable targets. Second, U.S. businesses increasingly symbolize American power and culture. This is especially true for companies with strong brand recognition.
Companies will undoubtedly be taking a hard look at their current risk-management strategies. Managers may even begin to ask whether traditional approaches are enough to protect their people. Frank J. Cilluffo, a senior policy analyst at the bipartisan Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Congress last April that he believed private companies should be incorporated into the larger framework of antiterrorism planning: "Public-private partnerships and strong leadership establish a framework within which to work on preventing terrorism, not simply managing risk."
Of course, it's still far too soon to know exactly how corporate America can or should react over the long term, but we do know that for now this crisis is drawing people together as never before. Even amid our sorrow and anger, we can be grateful for the support of one another.
====================================================
To read Dr. John Sullivan's "How Should HR and Managers React in the Aftermath of Terrorism Events?" please see
http://www.erexchange.com/articles/default.asp
For more information on how HR should respond to the crisis, please see
http://www.shrm.org/hrnews/articles/default.asp?page=terrorismpage.htm
For other SHRM articles on how HR professionals are responding, see
http://my.shrm.org/hrnews/articles/default.asp?page=091201d.htm
and http://my.shrm.org/hrnews/articles/default.asp?page=091201b.htm
Here are some Workforce magazine articles on coping with crisis:
http://www.workforce.com/feature/00/08/12/
For information on the emotional aftermath of the crisis, see
http://www.msnbc.com/news/627976_asp.htm
Information from the American Psychological Association on the subject of trauma counseling can be found at
http://www.helping.apa.org/therapy/traumaticstress.html
For information on various rescue and relief organizations, see
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/fc/US/Emergency_Information/
The Web site for the Federal Emergency Management Agency is located at
http://www.fema.gov/
For a list of the tenants of the World Trade Center towers, see
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/nation/articles/tower1.html
For more on the report "Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000," see
http://www.usis.usemb.se/terror/rpt2000/
To read about The Gilmore Commission's Second Annual Report, "Toward a National Strategy for Combating Terrorism," please see
http://www.rand.org/nsrd/terrpanel
The ANSER Institute for Homeland Security is a nonprofit public service research institute that focuses on national security issues. Please go to
http://www.homelandsecurity.org
The Center for Strategic and International Studies has produced various reports on terrorism and home defense:
http://www.csis.org/burke/hd/index.htm#reports
A summary of the U.S. Commission on National Security Report, which proposes the creation of a National Homeland Security Agency, is at
http://usinfo.state.gov/topical/pol/terror/01013102.htm
For now, HR professionals and other managers must cope with the immediate aftermath. Obviously, those most directly affected by the attack are already responding, often heroically. But virtually all companies have been at least indirectly affected. Many employees are suffering from fears and anxieties that HR professionals will want to do their best to allay. Some workers may need immediate access to counseling services. Dr. John Sullivan, head of the HR program at San Francisco State University, recommends that managers keep employees busy to get their minds off current events. On the other hand, supervisors also need to remain sensitive, flexible and compassionate. Some employees may need to take time off from work, often to cope with family emergencies or to volunteer their services to organizations such as the Red Cross. Employee communication is key in this time of crisis.
At the bottom of this TrendWatcher, there are Web addresses of various information sources that may help managers both deal with the immediate impact of the attack and educate themselves about terrorism more generally.
In the coming weeks and months, managers will need to learn more about the unsavory subject of terrorism. They will find that an attack like the one on the World Trade Center, while unspeakably horrendous and shocking, was not completely unexpected by some security experts. Last June, an article on terrorism from Insight on the News magazine began, "Pearl Harbor probably will happen again. Only this time the attacks won't be in far-off Hawaii but against the American mainland."
Of course, no one could have predicted the specifics of the World Trade Center disaster, but some data indicates that terrorist attacks against U.S. interests – especially business interests – have been on the rise. Basing its analysis of the U.S. State Department's "Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000" report, Security Management magazine reports that organizations with a U.S. connection were hit 206 times in 2000, up from 169 in 1999, though only 17 of those incidents were included in a list of "significant" incidents of global terrorism.
"As has been the case in the past, business bore the brunt of terrorism in 2000, and not just U.S. business," reports Security Management. "Internationally, private-sector facilities were attacked 384 times, up from 276 in 1999. By contrast, only 17 government facilities and 13 military facilities were similarly hit around the globe."
There are at least two major reasons that private-sector buildings rather than government facilities have become the primary targets for terrorist acts. First, because of past terrorist actions, the U.S. government has been improving the defensive capabilities of government facilities, which encourages terrorists to select "softer," more vulnerable targets. Second, U.S. businesses increasingly symbolize American power and culture. This is especially true for companies with strong brand recognition.
Companies will undoubtedly be taking a hard look at their current risk-management strategies. Managers may even begin to ask whether traditional approaches are enough to protect their people. Frank J. Cilluffo, a senior policy analyst at the bipartisan Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Congress last April that he believed private companies should be incorporated into the larger framework of antiterrorism planning: "Public-private partnerships and strong leadership establish a framework within which to work on preventing terrorism, not simply managing risk."
Of course, it's still far too soon to know exactly how corporate America can or should react over the long term, but we do know that for now this crisis is drawing people together as never before. Even amid our sorrow and anger, we can be grateful for the support of one another.
====================================================
To read Dr. John Sullivan's "How Should HR and Managers React in the Aftermath of Terrorism Events?" please see
http://www.erexchange.com/articles/default.asp
For more information on how HR should respond to the crisis, please see
http://www.shrm.org/hrnews/articles/default.asp?page=terrorismpage.htm
For other SHRM articles on how HR professionals are responding, see
http://my.shrm.org/hrnews/articles/default.asp?page=091201d.htm
and http://my.shrm.org/hrnews/articles/default.asp?page=091201b.htm
Here are some Workforce magazine articles on coping with crisis:
http://www.workforce.com/feature/00/08/12/
For information on the emotional aftermath of the crisis, see
http://www.msnbc.com/news/627976_asp.htm
Information from the American Psychological Association on the subject of trauma counseling can be found at
http://www.helping.apa.org/therapy/traumaticstress.html
For information on various rescue and relief organizations, see
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/fc/US/Emergency_Information/
The Web site for the Federal Emergency Management Agency is located at
http://www.fema.gov/
For a list of the tenants of the World Trade Center towers, see
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/nation/articles/tower1.html
For more on the report "Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000," see
http://www.usis.usemb.se/terror/rpt2000/
To read about The Gilmore Commission's Second Annual Report, "Toward a National Strategy for Combating Terrorism," please see
http://www.rand.org/nsrd/terrpanel
The ANSER Institute for Homeland Security is a nonprofit public service research institute that focuses on national security issues. Please go to
http://www.homelandsecurity.org
The Center for Strategic and International Studies has produced various reports on terrorism and home defense:
http://www.csis.org/burke/hd/index.htm#reports
A summary of the U.S. Commission on National Security Report, which proposes the creation of a National Homeland Security Agency, is at
http://usinfo.state.gov/topical/pol/terror/01013102.htm