Page 27 - spaces4learning, Spring 2023

Threat Procedures. Additional information to follow.
Similarly, the method for initiating the message through your system should be simple. Of course, the initiation trigger should be secure, but it should not take four passwords and
three confirmations asking “Are You Sure?”
Emergency communications should be multi-modal. The
main mode should be a push message like a SMS or MMS text. According to Statista, in 2023, the current number of smartphone users in the world today is 6.92 billion, meaning 86.34% of the world's population owns a smartphone. It is generally a mistake to depend on emergency notification that is sent to an email or social media. This is passive communications and only notifies the recipient when they check their email application.
Who is the Recipient of Each Message
A significant challenge is getting your population enrolled in the emergency notification program or system. It usually re- quires the recipient to divulge their personal cell phone num- ber, and many people feel they want to keep that private. There
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are reports that many organizations can only get about 32% of their workforce to enroll and have attempted to improve this with policy requirements. This can be a slippery slope, however, and is often met with much resistance.
How to Initiate the Message
To augment targeted messages to smartphones, organizations may turn to sending messages to desk phones, house phones, and public address / audio speakers in buildings, as well as outdoor speakers. These are very helpful, especially if visitors are prevalent. Emergency messages need to target not only employees, but also visitors and non-employees. For exam- ple, when a tornado or wind shear approaches your area, how would an emergency notification get people off the street into safe areas?
When selecting the technology or systems, there are many options. Some of the larger emergency communications vendors are expanding their features to be a resource for many varied potential clients. Look for the feature set that meets most, if not
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