The Department of Homeland Security has designated September, "National Preparedness Month" in an effort to make consumers, businesses and communities aware of the need to prepare in advance for a physical or man-made disaster. As a member of the "2006 National Preparedness Month Coalition," Avaya is urging businesses and organizations to examine their plans for maintaining critical communications should a disaster strike.

A solid communications continuity plan can make the difference between chaos and quickly returning to business as usual. But until recently, communications continuity has been prohibitively expensive for most organizations. It has been said that almost every business knows that it needs to implement disaster preparedness and response technology, but it's usually the last item in the budget and the first to get cut.

Today, the availability of cost-effective communications continuity means businesses, agencies and organizations need not to choose between competing budget priorities. By using IP Telephony, companies can meet many business objectives -- such as improving productivity or customer service -- and simultaneously support business continuity. The Avaya Mobile Briefing Center is traveling to cities across North America to help local business leaders learn how to use communications technology to their advantage in the event of a disaster.

KW