El Niño years don't play favorites – but they do have a signature. And forecasters are increasingly warning that this year could bring a Super El Niño. While Atlantic hurricane activity tends to quiet down, the southern storm track strengthens, pushing more rain across California, the Gulf states, and up the East Coast. Flooding, landslides, prolonged power outages, and, later, severe winter storms become the more likely culprits, and they're no less disruptive to your branches and your members. The credit unions that navigate these events best are the ones that prepare before the season starts.
Here are three things every credit union should do right now to prepare for storm season and how Agility Recovery can partner with you for resilience throughout the season.
Most credit unions have a business continuity plan; fewer have tested it under realistic conditions in the last year. There's a meaningful difference between a plan that exists on paper and one your team has actually walked through.
A tabletop exercise doesn't need to take a full day. Pick a scenario – a branch goes offline, a key system is unavailable, a third-party vendor is unreachable – and walk your team through the response. You'll find gaps you didn't know were there: unclear ownership, outdated contact lists, procedures that assume tools or vendors you no longer use.
The goal isn't a perfect plan. It's a team that knows what to do when the pressure is on.
Power outages are the most common consequence of severe weather events – and one of the most operationally disruptive. If your branches can't process transactions, access core systems, or serve members, the downstream effects on trust and retention start immediately.
Before storm season hits, confirm that your backup power solutions are tested, fueled, and sized correctly for your critical systems. A generator that hasn't been run in 18 months is not a reliable safety net. Neither is one that can power the lights but not the servers.
Key questions to ask your facilities team now:
When was the last time backup power was load-tested?
What's the runtime on current fuel reserves?
Which systems are and aren't on backup circuits?
Workspace disruption is often underplanned. When a branch is inaccessible, whether from flooding, structural damage, or a prolonged outage, your staff still needs a place to operate. Your members still need to be served.
There are three common recovery scenarios, and each comes with its own set of considerations:
Recovering from home. Remote work sounds simple until you account for what employees need to do their jobs: a secure connection to core systems, the right hardware, a compliant environment for handling member data. Not every employee has a home setup that meets those requirements. Know in advance who can work remotely and who can't and have a plan for the latter group.
Recovering on-site. If your branch can continue operating through a disruption, make sure you've accounted for what that actually requires: backup connectivity, power for terminals and systems, and enough supplies to sustain staff through an extended event. Water and basic provisions matter more than people expect when an event stretches past the first day.
Recovering at another branch. This is often the default assumption – "we'll just send people to the next location" – but it creates real complications. Capacity, parking, network access, and member-facing workflows that aren't set up for a surge in traffic are all friction points that slow down recovery and frustrate members and staff alike. If this is your primary continuity strategy, it's worth a dry run.
The credit unions that navigate disruptions best aren't necessarily larger or better funded. They're the ones that have already made the decisions – where people will go, what equipment will be deployed, who makes the call – so that when something happens, execution is straightforward.
Agility Recovery works with financial institutions across the country to make sure that when disruption comes, recovery is fast, confident, and coordinated. From backup workspace and power solutions to fully staged equipment and 24/7 response support, we help credit unions turn their continuity plans into real-world outcomes.
Connect with Agility Recovery to talk through your current plan or pressure test it against what this storm season might bring.