Business Leaders:
The Power of a Business-Led Approach to Community Safety
The unfortunate reality is that violence can happen anywhere, at any time. From schools and holiday parades to grocery stores and businesses, it can feel like there is no place immune to the threat of a violent critical incident. Though there are no easy answers, it’s clear that a business-led approach to community safety can be hugely impactful.
Witnessing these tragedies can make bystanders feel powerless. The problem can feel impossibly overwhelming, and any impactful action can feel out of reach. It’s important to remember that a community is never powerless to take meaningful steps toward safety. We recently saw this truth come to life in Phoenix, Arizona, as community leaders joined together to equip teachers and school staff with ALICE Training®.
In July, the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Suns Charities joined the United Phoenix Firefighters Association and local first responders to host an ALICE Training® event for that community’s teachers. Over two days, 120 school employees were given the training, experience and confidence needed to participate in their own survival and help their students do the same if ever faced with a violent critical incident. Phoenix sets a powerful example for how business and community leaders can make a tangible difference in whole-community safety.
Business & Community Leaders Join To Promote Safety
Download the Guide
Alleviate the stress of implementing an active threat response program, improve employee safety and mitigate liability risk with help from our new guide.
How Your Business Can Lead the Way to Community Safety
When it comes to preparing for the possibility of facing an active threat, a community is best served by working together. While individual precautions and awareness are important, it is powerful for community members to come together, support one another and work form the same playbook as they seek to understand what options exist in the face of an active threat. Business and community leaders can lead the way, bringing together employees, first responders and others to learn lifesaving lessons with ALICE Training®’s multi-option active shooter response protocols.
By taking a proactive approach to safety training, you can become a leader in building a culture of safety – for your employees and for the community at large. Effective leaders are those who go above and beyond to prioritize employee safety and wellbeing. Knowing an employer is doing everything they can to maximize safety can go a long way toward making employees feel valued, which in turn can impact their sense of wellbeing both in and out of the office. This means that when you invest in developing a culture of safety, your employees can reach their full potential and thrive.
Today’s turbulent times demand these efforts from organizational leaders who want not only to succeed but to also be a force for positive change within their communities. The good news is that you have options. You can begin taking the necessary steps toward building a culture of safety and, in turn, lead the way for your community to do the same. Whether it’s hosting an ALICE Training ®, attending a class, becoming a certified trainer or facilitating an awareness event, you can set the tone for what a commitment to safety and security looks like.
Hear How ALICE Training® Keeps Employees Safe at Work & Beyond
Why ALICE Training®?
The National Sheriff’s Association states that the average police response time to an active violent incident is 18 minutes; in 2019, 47% of attacks ended in less than 5 minutes (U.S. Secret Service). This is why it’s so important for people facing a life-threatening situation to understand how to handle the incident confidently and quickly, increasing the chances of survivability for themselves and those around them even before law enforcement arrives.
ALICE’s proactive, options-based training equips people with a range of possible responses that can be used during critical incidents — including enhanced lockdown strategies and choices for countering and evacuation — and teaches them how to best communicate with others throughout the event. Most importantly, ALICE Training® teaches individuals how to select the most appropriate response based on the circumstances of any given situation.
The basis of ALICE Training® is to help people understand how to proactively respond to violent situations without re-traumatizing them. It utilizes a trauma-informed approach, guided by the concept of the “Four R’s.” This stands for:
- Realize – Trainers must have a basic understanding of what trauma is and how it affects people’s physical, emotional and mental health. This includes coping strategies, behavioral problems, learning difficulties and more.
- Recognize – Trainers should be able to recognize the signs of trauma. For example, people may be physically or verbally aggressive or seem alienated from others.
- Respond – Trainers should apply a trauma-informed approach when responding to trainees. From the language used to the policies implemented, training should incorporate evidence-based trauma practices to promote a physically and psychologically safe environment.
- Resist re-traumatization – Active shooter drills may inadvertently create stressful environments that may re-traumatize people. Resist re-traumatization during active shooter safety drills with open discussion and debriefing when necessary.
Implementing the “Four R’s” can help communities develop trauma-informed practices that create a culture of physical, social and emotional safety.
What Does ALICE Training® Teach?
Alert: A speedy response is critical to survival. Quickly recognizing signs of danger allows people to make the best survival decisions for the situation.
Lockdown: When evacuation is not an option, barricade entry points in the room with enhanced lockdown tactics and prepare for the next response strategy.
Inform: Communicate real-time information about the armed assailant with those in the immediate vicinity and first responders.
Counter: As a last resort, create noise, movement, distance and distraction to decrease the intruder’s ability to cause harm.
Evacuate: When it is safe to do so, retreat to an area that is out of harm’s way.
Training that Builds Confidence in Your Community
The skills learned in ALICE Training® encourage people to take a proactive role in their survival, engendering confidence in their ability to respond to stressful situations appropriately. These skills could be what makes the difference between safety and tragedy in an active shooter incident. It may be difficult to consider the fact that communities need an evidence-informed active shooter response program these days, but with the proper strategy in place, everyone can have more confidence in their ability to respond to a threat no matter where they are when they become unwilling participants in an act of violence.
ALICE Training® can help provide that peace of mind and give participants the tools they need in dangerous situations. To get involved in your community’s safety, contact us to learn more.
