Well, here we go again – another senseless shooting, this time in a workplace in Virginia Beach, VA. It’s still early stages as I write this, and much is yet to be learned about the motivations of the shooter, but already this shooting is raising many concerns about basic active-shooter protection concepts and assumptions. Questions, such as, “what can be done when a disgruntled employee has access to an otherwise access controlled facility?”, or, “should all problem (or terminated) employees be flagged in some way?” These are legitimate questions that go to the core of whether it is even possible for our workplaces to be 100% free of this type of violence.

The unfortunate truth is that it is impractical for all but the most resource-supported workplaces to be 100% risk free. But there are steps that can be taken that at least provide the opportunity to minimize the ability for a shooter to inflict the kind of damage that was done in Virginia Beach. These steps involve a combination of technology and operational policies that can be implemented in any size workplace, with the most important aspect being that every employee has a responsibility and a role in the overall plan. And in order for the plan to be successful, it has to be tested and table-topped, repeatedly and often, so that everyone knows what their roles and responsibilities are.