Insurance, Franchise Expert Chooses Firestorm

SEP. 28, 2009                                                                                                           FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

ROSWELL, Ga. – With more than 25 years experience in commercial property and casualty insurance underwriting and risk management, Dr. Linda Hunt King knows the value of preparedness. As a Business Alliance Inc.-affiliated franchise broker, she also can spot a solid business opportunity.

So when Dr. King learned of Firestorm® business continuity planning and consulting franchise availability through its association with BAI, she completed the due diligence process and this month became the latest Firestorm franchisee.

Firestorm (www.firestorm.com) is a national leader in business continuity, communicable illness/pandemic planning, vulnerability analysis and crisis management. Franchisees utilize all capabilities of Firestorm -- which provided the on-site crisis management support at Virginia Tech -- including its name and trademark; operational methodology including plans, policies, procedures and training; and access to its staff, Expert Council and Online Resource Center.

Dr. King, of Atlanta, is the President and CEO of Hunt-King & Associates, Inc., which is headquartered in Atlanta’s Buckhead community and also has operations in Virginia. The company specializes in risk management and business consulting. 

Dr. King most recently was a Senior Underwriting Officer with Chubb Group of Insurance Companies. During her career, she specialized in working with small and medium-sized businesses, national and multi-national organizations, and niches including nonprofits, museums and cultural institutions, technology, educational institutions, broadcasters, wholesalers and retailers, manufacturers, local government, federal government contractors, law firms and other professional services providers. A critical component of her underwriting and risk management responsibilities was helping insureds develop and implement customized disaster recovery and business continuity plans.  

Dr. King is also the founder and President of Soul Care Ministries International, Inc. (SCMi™), a nonprofit community outreach organization specializing in faith-based counseling, coaching and equipping leaders. She has a passion for and dedication to making a real difference by helping people at their place and point of need. 

So it’s no surprise that Dr. King’s vision aligns with Firestorm’s focus on the human impacts of disaster (Every Crisis is a Human Crisis), and goal of building a Culture of Preparedness in the U.S. private sector.

Dr. King cites “a career in commercial insurance underwriting and risk management and having personally experienced the loss of my family’s home by fire when I was a child,’’ as her  main reasons for wanting to help businesses and families be prepared for disasters. “I felt compelled to team with Firestorm in this most important work. Being from Virginia, the Virginia Tech crisis and the work that Firestorm did there certainly also had a profound impact on me.

“Their expertise and experience, passion for serving business and community, the business model and getting to know the Firestorm staff were key factors in my decision to become a Firestorm franchisee.” 

The implementation of Public Law 110-53 (Title IX-Private Sector Preparedness), which mandates the Department of Homeland Security initiate certification of business continuity planning in the private sector, creates wide-ranging opportunity for the BCP industry. Other significant drivers include the global health crisis presented by the swine flu (H1N1) pandemic and other communicable illnesses; the worldwide economic crisis; the increase in natural disasters related to climate change; and elevated exposure to mass violence threats nationally and internationally.

“Dr. King’s professional experience and expertise, educational training in business and behavioral sciences, her personal experience with disasters and her work with community outreach gives her quite an appreciation of the human toll disasters bring,’’ Firestorm Executive Vice President Hutch Hodgson said. “We’re proud to include her in our growing network of franchisees.’’

Dr. King’s Firestorm franchise will operate out of Atlanta. She can be reached at 888-761-8777, ext. 1 or (678) 288-6207, ext. 1 and lhking@firestorm.com.

For more information, visit www.firestorm.com. Media inquiries should be directed to Mike Pennetti at mpennetti@firestorm.com or (678) 557-9243.