Eleanor Miclette, Manager of Economic Development, Town of Canmore

Key Outcomes

• 100% of participants reported increased confidence in knowing which actions to take first during a crisis

• 100% reported feeling more prepared to protect staff, customers, operations, and reputation

• 86% reported improved confidence identifying key crisis role

The Town of Canmore (TOC), located in the Canadian Rockies’ Bow Valley, is always aware of the possibility of disasters and crises. Having seen what happened during the region’s 2013 floods, as well as other disasters in Alberta, including the Fort McMurray and Jasper fires, Economic Development Manager Eleanor Miclette knew how important crisis preparedness was to local businesses.

The Town of Canmore had previous experience working with RIC Disaster Management and had seen the company’s work with other municipalities. When RIC launched the Disaster to Dynamo workshop, which is part of its Bounce Back Biz program, Eleanor found it to be the perfect training to run for local businesses during Emergency Preparedness Week. The workshop is designed for small and medium-sized businesses to help them build a clear, usable plan for real-world disruptions without jargon, bureaucracy, or overwhelm.

As part of the Disaster to Dynamo workshop, participants learned how to identify critical business functions, assign emergency roles and responsibilities, identify stakeholders that need to be informed, and more. Businesses left with confidence and tangible plans and tools they could continue developing with their teams.

The breathtaking mountain landscape surrounding the Town of Canmore attracts millions of visitors each year. However, it also exposes the community to natural hazards like wildfires, flooding, drought, and severe smoke events.

The town’s location—connected to neighbouring communities by a single major highway—can further complicate emergency response and evacuation during major incidents. But natural hazards aren’t the only threats local businesses face. Water outages, utility failures, security breaches, supply chain disruptions, and other unexpected events can all interrupt operations and put businesses at risk. This means preparedness isn’t just optional; it’s fundamental.

The Town of Canmore is home to more than 2,900 registered businesses in diverse sectors spanning tourism, hospitality, recreation, construction, manufacturing, healthcare and professional services. For the municipality’s leadership, including  Economic Development Manager Eleanor Miclette, the goal of helping businesses prepare for disruption has become an essential part of protecting Canmore’s economy and ensuring the community can recover quickly after a crisis.

Eleanor has seen firsthand how preparedness influences recovery. In her 17-year career in economic development, she’s worked on the recovery efforts of the 2013 Alberta floods, the Fort McMurray wildfire, and the Jasper wildfire.

Through that work, Eleanor has seen drastically different scenarios play out. Some businesses were able to survive and adapt after disruptions because they had a plan. Others struggled to stay afloat because they hadn’t prepared.

“According to FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) and SBA (Small Business Administration), up to 40% of businesses never reopen after a major disaster,” says Eleanor. “Additionally, 25%+ of those who do fail within one or two years. If operations can’t resume within five days, failure rates spike to 90% within one year. Those are staggering numbers that show why emergency preparedness is critical.”

Canmore faces ongoing risks from wildfires, flooding, smoke events and other catastrophic events. With this in mind, Eleanor knew the town’s local businesses needed training to be better prepared for disruptions.

“Think of it like first aid,” she says. “You never need first aid training until you need it, then you’re happy you have that knowledge. You never really know how deep that knowledge is until you are supporting someone with a life-altering response.”

Building this kind of preparedness across the business community is not an easy task, though. Eleanor has noticed the businesses that need the work the most often don’t engage in preparedness initiatives.

“By hosting workshops, our goal is to always get new people around the table to understand what they have already developed and how we can support them in strengthening that information,” she says.

The Town of Canmore decided to partner with local business owner Rebecca Innes of RIC Disaster Management to deliver RIC’s Disaster to Dynamo workshop to businesses in the community during Emergency Preparedness Week. The workshop is part of RIC’s Bounce Back Biz program for small and medium-sized businesses. Local businesses were invited to participate free of cost by the Town of Canmore.

RIC approached the engagement as a partnership, taking the time to understand community needs before the event and following up afterward with detailed reporting and recommendations.

“I love working with Rebecca because she gives me follow-up reports, which a lot of consultants don’t do,” says Eleanor.

RIC’s approach to the workshop was unique. Rather than overwhelming participants with technical emergency management information and jargon, the training focused on practical actions that small business owners could apply immediately.

“Rebecca is very detailed,” says Eleanor. “She asks a lot of questions, and she follows up one-on-one with businesses, which builds the resiliency we want in the community.”

Eleanor plans to make emergency preparedness training an annual practice in Canmore and intends to continue the partnership with RIC.

“Repetition is key,” says Eleanor. “If we can bring it up again and again, sooner or later, other businesses will realize it’s something they need to work on. And my hope is that it’s before we are actually in a crisis situation.”

Eleanor’s broader philosophy and her experience working in other emergencies is the driving force behind the plans she has for the Town of Canmore and the advice she gives to other municipalities.

 “Emergency preparedness should not be an afterthought,” she says. “It should be something you think of ahead of time so you can support your community and its longevity. Many communities think about it when something has already happened, and unfortunately that makes recovery even harder.”