Stuart Smolkin, senior executive with Intralox LLC, the conveyor belt manufacturer, experienced firsthand the devastation caused when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in August 2005. The disaster was both personally and financially traumatic to him and thousands of others whose businesses were affected. How did Intralox recover and keep the business going? Invited by the Center for Social Innovation at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Smolkin shares what the company wished it had known—and done—beforehand.

Since it was situated above the rushing waters, Intralox headquarters sustained no physical damage, but the crippled network communications put the company in a frenzy as it tried to manage customer relations and fend off competitors who had come in for the kill. Smolkin details how the company relied on corporate culture and ingenuity to restore communications, shift production offshore, and establish good will with customers, which resulted in the restoration of Intalox's central operations in 30 stunningly short days.

Smolkin also shares what every business should know about disaster preparedness. Such logistical planning should be a regular part of every company's work plan, he stresses, given that the threat of terrorism makes any area a potential disaster site, not just those prone to hurricanes and earthquakes. A big lesson for Intralox was that a company can't count on federal, state, and local governments in a crisis situation, and that, consequently, preparedness and the ability to self-manage are critical to survival.

Corporate culture, Smolkin emphasizes, is a big determinant for how a business will handle a crisis, and he goes over what constitutes the most adaptive kind of organizational environment. He also makes recommendations for how a company may prepare for the possible disruption of systems networks, and stresses the need for regular drills that walk employees and managers through the steps that should be taken when disaster strikes.

Smolkin said that although New Orleans was hard hit, as it puts itself together it may be an attractive place for employment. With the brain drain that has taken place, qualified professionals may find opportunity.