Preventive+Measures


 * ====Understand the environment: Slower speed could have prevented the Titanic accident. ====
 * ====Keep your hubris in check: The ship’s officers were overconfident about their ship and their abilities. Humility is a great virtue and one that will serve you well, in all situations…crisis or not. ====
 * ====Lead: It is important that those in the position of leadership do just that, lead! A key aspect of that leadership is the willingness to make a decision and then execute on that decision. There was much hedging going on in the early stages of the Titanic emergency and leadership was in short supply. ====
 * ====Communicate, Communicate, Communicate: Poor communication seems to always be one of the top learnings in any disaster. It is essential to have a well thought out external and internal communication strategy. The external communication was challenged by the Marconi wireless telegraphy system onboard the Titanic. It was innovative and probably too cutting-edge to be effective: Not many people knew yet how to operate and receive Marconi messages. The internal communication was poor especially to the third class passengers. No formal ship wide announcement was made that Titanic was sinking. People who heard murmurs of an emergency dismissed them. ====
 * ====Have a plan: Remember the Titanic was unsinkable. And when you actually believe you are unsinkable, why have a plan?!?! There was no plan because it wasn’t supposed to happen. We must have plans, they must be usable, executable and current…. even if you believe nothing will ever happen ====
 * ====Activate early: The evacuation order was given too late. By the time people realized it was “bad”, it was too late. Passengers were reluctant to board the lifeboats and most of the lifeboats placed in the water were less than half full. ====
 * ====Training is essential: The Titanic crew was not familiar with the procedures to evacuate the ship and launch the lifeboats. The time to learn your procedures is not when you need them but well in advance. Training is critical and pays off when emergencies occur. ====
 * ====Exercises are a lifesaver: The crew’s inability to respond quickly and appropriately wasted time and cost lives. We fall back to our level of training and humans learn best by doing. We need to do regular exercises to ensure an appropriate response. ====
 * ====Have the appropriate equipment: The Titanic didn’t have enough lifeboats – there were 1,178 lifeboat seats and 2,200 people. The regulation was based on the ships tonnage, not the number of passengers. ====