Data Preparedness…It’s a concept that health officials are thinking about as they prep for the next global pandemic. Suppose the elements to gather, manage, and analyze data effectively are not in place before a crisis. In that case, the evidence needed to inform response will not be available quickly enough to matter. In other words, an organization needs to be prepared to responsibly and effectively deploy and manage data collection and analysis tools, techniques, skilled staff, and strategies in a specific operational context to be ready before a disaster strikes. In transportation operations, the focus is on the day-to-day operations scenarios like crashes, weather, etc.; but we don’t always think about the truly big events, what is needed to understand the impacts, and the cost of not being ready. Click here to read more.