Chartwell 2026 Emergency Management Industry Survey Benchmark Report

Chartwell's 2026 Emergency Management Benchmark Survey, drawing on responses from 40 North American utilities, finds emergency management maturing into a formal, enterprise-wide function. Utilities field roughly 4.5 preparedness FTEs per million customers, with 85% adopting an all-hazards approach and most building deep ICS role benches regardless of size. While 61% have completed enterprise-wide threat assessments, formal training remains inconsistent; only 60% require it for new IMT members, and fewer maintain ongoing training or exercise requirements. Utilities also concentrate exercises on familiar hazards like storms, leaving lower-frequency risks such as pandemics and civil unrest largely untested. Activation practices are well-defined, with clear triggers and staffing protocols, and technology investment is rising, though many still rely on operational systems or manual methods rather than dedicated emergency management software.

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