Washington, D.C. --    Terrorists direct their attacks against business far more than any other target," testified Michael Czinkota, Professor of Marketing and International Business at Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business.  "Terrorism is the third most important concern to firms, after energy prices and exchange rate volatility. . . Firms reported to have spent on average about $147,000 on terrorism preparedness and hired about five new employees to deal with the issue. Yet, many corporations do not believe their shareholders would reward these investments. . . many firms are still unprepared for the impact of terrorism," he stated.

Testifying before the House Committee on Small Business, Professor Czinkota presented results of interviews and a survey of 642 internationally active firms of varying sizes which he collected and analyzed in collaboration with Professor Gary Knight, Florida State University; Professor Gabriele Suder of Ceram Sophia Antipolis, France; Professors John Steen and Peter Liesch, University of Queensland, Australia and Shahed Amanullah, Georgetown University.

Professor Czinkota also proposed a model of the different levels of corporate readiness for international terrorism and approaches to emergency preparedness in general, "There needs to be a much wider dissemination of preparedness information and an integration of preparedness materials into university courses, community college training, high school curricula and text books. We make sure that our children know how to check for dangerous traffic -- they need to be more informed about terrorism and have an embedded sense for planning. Their preparedness may eventually lead to a national competitive advantage!"

Addressing the cost of achieving increased preparedness, Professor Czinkota said, "The gains from early preparation are high when compared to the costs. A capable response of firms to disaster benefits the public purse. If public order and processes fall apart, the government will have to set things right at greater expense. Firms which stay in business, retain their employees and serve their customers can make a great difference to societal continuity. As the saying goes -- you can either pay now or pay later."

Prof. Czinkota's testimony may be found at: http://141.161.89.18/faculty/czinkotm/index.htm.

For information on the hearing go to www.house.gov/smbiz, or contact Rich Carter, Small Business Committee Director of Communications, 202-225-5821.

About the Robert Emmett McDonough School of Business
Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business is a premier, distinguished business school located in the nation's capital. Founded in 1957 to educate undergraduate business students through the integration of liberal arts and professional education, the McDonough School today has approximately 1,300 undergraduates, 620 MBA students, and more than 500 participants in its executive education programs annually. For more information about the McDonough School, visit msb.georgetown.edu.

About Georgetown University
Georgetown University is the oldest Catholic and Jesuit university in America, founded in 1789 by Archbishop John Carroll. Georgetown today is a major student-centered, international, research university offering respected undergraduate, graduate and professional programs on its three campuses. For more information about Georgetown University, visit georgetown.edu.

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