Every business, big or small, needs an emergency communication plan. When something unexpected happens, employees need to know who is sending instructions, where those messages will come from, and what to do if the usual communication method fails.
That is why an emergency communication plan should be more than a document tucked away in a binder. It should reflect how your organization actually communicates day to day and account for the moments when phones, email, internet service, or other systems are unavailable.
Quick Answer: What Should an Emergency Communication Plan Include?
Emergency plans are designed for the things that we can’t necessarily predict. An emergency communication plan should identify who is responsible for communicating, who needs to receive the information, which communication method will be used, and what the backup will be if that method fails. A useful emergency communication plan template should also document message approval, emergency contacts, radio channel assignments, backup systems, testing procedures, and a schedule for reviewing and updating the plan.
Why a Plan on Paper is Not Enough
In 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower famously said, “Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.” His point was simple. Emergencies are unexpected, so they rarely unfold exactly as we imagine.
That is where a written plan can fall short. The incident may happen after hours. The employee assigned to send alerts may be unavailable. Cell service could be down. Power could be out. Staff may be scattered across several buildings or working in the field.
A crisis communication plan needs to account for those possibilities before they happen. That means assigning backup roles, identifying alternate communication methods, practicing procedures, and updating the plan when testing reveals gaps.
A plan may give people direction, but the planning process prepares them to respond when circumstances change.
Emergency Communication Plan Template: Start With Four Questions
Though Eisenhower’s comments might make it seem like a written plan is pointless, that’s not
really the overall message. To be clear, written plans are important, but even more so is the thought and preparation that go into creating them. Your team needs to know what the plan says, understand their responsibilities, and be ready to adjust when an emergency does not unfold as expected.
But that begs the question: how do you write an emergency communication plan, and what should it include? We’ve provided a simple framework to help your business get started.
| Question | What to Document |
| Who communicates? | Primary communicator, backup communicator, and department leads. |
| Who receives the communication? | Employees, leadership, visitors, contractors, families, and responders. |
| How is the communication sent? | Radios, mass notification, phones, email, PA systems, and desktop alerts. |
| What is the backup plan? | Secondary channel, alternate network, radio channel, or manual process. |
Every emergency communication procedure should answer all four questions. If one piece is missing, employees may be left waiting for instructions or unsure where to turn when the usual process fails.
Our downloadable emergency communication plan checklist can also help you work through these decisions and document the details your team will need.
Step 1: Decide Who Has the Authority to Communicate
Confusion can set in quickly when no one knows who is responsible for sending instructions. Your plan should assign communication roles, not just individual names, since staff changes over time.
Those roles may include the incident lead, communications lead, backup communicator, facility or safety manager, department supervisors, security, IT, and people responsible for responders, employees, families, patients, parents, or the public.
Schools, hospitals, factories, and office campuses may divide these duties differently. Your plan should also state who can authorize an evacuation, lockdown, shelter-in-place order, closure, or other major message. So what’s the moral of the story? Always name a backup.
Step 2: Identify Who Needs Each Message
Now it’s time to think through and document who needs to receive these critical messages. Sending the message to everyone isn’t the best strategy.
Not every emergency requires the same message to go to everyone. Depending on your organization, recipients may include employees, leadership, security teams, contractors, visitors, students, patients, families, parents, or outside responders.
For example, a chemical spill in one part of a facility may require evacuation instructions for nearby employees, an access warning for people approaching the building, and separate details for the response team.
Your crisis communication plan should identify these groups in advance so you can direct messages to the right people without unnecessary delays.
Step 3: Choose a Primary Communication Method and Backup Plan
Next, decide how you’ll send each message and what your team will use if that method fails. A strong emergency communication plan should include a primary, secondary, and backup communication path.
For example, your plan might use a mass notification system first, two-way radios second, and an in-building PA system as another option. The right combination will depend on your facility, staff, and available technology.
Just as important, think about why a communication method might fail. If both your primary and backup methods depend on cellular service, one outage could affect both. Building in multiple communication paths is a core best practice for communication outages, especially when one network or device may become unavailable without warning.
Your backup should use a different path whenever possible so employees can still receive instructions.
Call Trees vs. Automated Notification
Call trees and automated notification systems can both support emergency communications, but they work very differently.
| Call Tree | Automated Notification |
| People contact others manually | One message reaches many recipients |
| May work for small teams | Better suited to larger groups |
| Depends heavily on individuals | Can distribute messages automatically |
| Can take longer | Sends alerts rapidly |
| Harder to track completion | May offer delivery or response reporting |
Though some people may think that call trees are outdated, we don’t necessarily agree. They can still work for small teams or serve as one layer of a backup plan. But as an organization grows, managing manual calling becomes harder during a fast-moving event.
That is where a mass notification platform such as Motorola Solutions Rave Alert can help. It can distribute one message across several channels and may also provide delivery or response tracking.
Plan for Cell, Internet, or Power Outages
As you build your backup plan, assume at least one communication method will be unavailable.
What happens if cellular networks are congested, Wi-Fi goes down, internet service is lost, or a power outage affects network equipment?
What if employees cannot access email or are working away from their desks?
We have seen these problems play out during major emergencies. On September 11, 2001, telephone and wireless networks in New York City and Washington, D.C., were overwhelmed by extraordinary call volume, making many calls difficult or impossible to complete.
That is why communication outage planning should include systems that do not depend on the same infrastructure. Land mobile radios can provide direct group communication without individual cell calls. Other backups may include PA systems, backup power, alternate network connections, satellite communications, or predefined manual procedures. We recommend layered communication paths so one failure does not silence the entire organization.
Step 4: Assign Radio Channels Before the Emergency
Though we’d love to tell you that having radios is enough, unfortunately, that’s not the case. You need to take it a step further. Your emergency communication plan template should document who carries a radio, which channel each team normally uses, and what should happen when an emergency begins.
Here’s what should be included in your basic channel structure:
- Operations
- Security
- Facilities
- Medical or safety
- Leadership or command
- Emergency all-call
The plan should also answer practical questions. Who monitors the emergency channel? Does everyone switch channels or stay with their assigned group? Who can make an all-call? How will outside responders communicate with internal teams? Are channel names programmed and labeled the same way across the radio fleet?
Our team at EMCI Wireless helps organizations address those details through radio programming, coverage planning, fleet configuration, dispatch, interoperability, and system design. Those choices can determine whether channel assignments still work as people move through a facility.
Step 5: Prepare Messages Before Anyone is Under Pressure
In extremely stressful situations, your body will more than likely move into fight-or-flight mode. When this happens, you won’t be best equipped to write and send clear communications. That’s why it is so important to create message templates in response. Leveraging something already in place is easier, faster, and more effective than creating something from scratch when every second counts.
Prepare templates for:
- Evacuation
- Shelter in place
- Lockdown
- Severe weather
- Medical emergency
- Communication outage
- Facility closure
- All-clear
Each message should explain what happened, who is affected, what to do, and where to go or what to avoid. Some situations may also require recipients to confirm that they received or understood the message. Motorola Solutions Rave Alert can help distribute standardized alerts across several communication channels.
Step 6: Test the Plan Before Emergency Tests It For You
You’ve likely heard people in the workplace refer to “the best-laid plans.” But what does that really mean? Best-laid plans refers to the idea that even careful preparation can fall apart when unexpected circumstances get in the way.
That brings us right back to Eisenhower’s point. A communication plan that has never been exercised is still largely theoretical. Testing shows you where the gaps are before an actual emergency exposes them.
During a drill, ask questions such as:
- Can the assigned person actually send the alert?
- Can employees hear radio traffic everywhere they work?
- Does the backup channel work?
- Can staff switch channels without instructions?
- Are phone numbers current?
- Do employees understand the message?
- Can leaders account for responses?
Regular workplace emergency drills can test communication flow, leadership response, equipment, and employee actions under more realistic conditions. Ready.gov also recommends training, testing, and exercises as part of business preparedness.
How Often Should You Review an Emergency Communication Plan?
Writing your emergency communication plan takes effort and persistence, but avoid the temptation to treat it as a one-and-done document. Conduct a formal review at least once a year to evaluate communication roles, procedures, contact lists, radio assignments, backup methods, and available technology.
It also makes sense to conduct a quick spot check every quarter. Verify that phone numbers, email addresses, employee roles, department contacts, and other details are still accurate.
Review the plan sooner whenever something changes, such as staffing, facilities, technology, radio fleets, or emergency responsibilities. You should also revisit it after every drill or actual incident. Document what worked, where delays occurred, and what needs to change.
The goal is to keep the plan current enough that employees can rely on it when they need it most.
Emergency Communication Plan Checklist
Once you have worked through the major parts of your plan, use a checklist to confirm that nothing has been missed. And before you consider your plan complete, run through a final checklist. This helps confirm that the details are documented, current, and ready to use during an emergency.
At a minimum, confirm that your plan includes:
- A primary communications lead and backup lead
- Emergency contact lists that are up to date
- Primary, secondary, and backup communication methods
- Radio users and assigned channels
- Emergency all-call procedures
- Backup plans for cell, internet, Wi-Fi, or power outages
- Message templates for common emergency situations
- A method for communicating with outside responders
- A schedule for drills and testing
- Quarterly spot checks and a full annual review
To make that process easier, use our downloadable Emergency Communication Plan Checklist as a quick reference when creating, reviewing, or testing your plan.
Build a Communication Plan That You Have Actually Put to the Test
So, that quote we shared earlier from Eisenhower? It still holds up today, nearly 70 years later. A written document can give people direction, but planning gives them practice dealing with the things no document can fully predict.
That means testing communication paths, checking radio coverage, confirming channel assignments, reviewing backup methods, and making sure people know what to do when the primary system fails.
We can help facilities, schools, hospitals, businesses, and other organizations evaluate radio coverage, channel configuration, backup communications, mass notification, and related Motorola Solutions technologies.
Contact our team at EMCI Wireless to discuss the communication tools behind your emergency plan and identify gaps before an actual emergency exposes them.