A Profession in Transition?

I have just finished reviewing the results of the 2009-2010 Preparedness, Security and Crisis Communications a survey co-sponsored by Honeywell. The results are interesting and show a continuing trend towards all hazards approach to Emergency Management.

As a relative new comer to the profession of Emergency Management I have been intrigued by the specialization and competition amongst the various fields that contribute to the preparedness field. I often wondered why the various specializations seemed to want to claim primacy where in fact all contribute to the field of Emergency Management.

Being a former soldier I pictured this as the various branches of Armor, Infantry, Artillery and Engineers all clambering to prove they are the most important component of the Army. But as any true soldier knows its only when the four arms are combined and supported by the necessary resources is the full power (resilience) of the whole Army truly on display.

Perhaps what the client group is trying to tell our profession is that they need a whole solution to their preparedness challenges and the focus should shift from specific BCM, IT or crisis communications to a broad all hazards approach to the task.

I wonder if this is true Emergency Management?