When TAL Global member and emergency management thought leader Lucien Canton walked into the San Francisco Emergency Operations Center in 1989 to offer his services during the Loma Prieta earthquake, he never expected it to spark a career change.
Lu Canton and Mayor Willie Brown of San Franciso.
That career change would take him to exotic locations in the Pacific and the Caribbean, involve him in Federal disaster planning at the national level, develop terrorism response and coordination techniques, and see him appointed by Mayor Willie L. Brown, Jr. as the Director of Emergency Services for San Francisco in 1996.But when we look back at Lu’s career, reinventing himself is nothing new.
Formerly a career officer who left the Army to travel in Africa and earn an MBA, he soon began a promising career in private security. However, the Loma Prieta earthquake mentioned earlier led him to join the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which became a major career steppingstone for Lu, eventually landing him a position with TAL Global.
Understanding Emergency Management
According to FEMA, emergency management programs are designed to “protect communities by coordinating and integrating activities necessary to build, sustain, and improve their capabilities to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from threatened or actual natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters.”
Further, FEMA defines emergency management as “creating a framework within a community to reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with risks.”
Taking a position at FEMA was a perfect fit Lu. His strong people skills also made him very effective in this new position.
He quickly developed a reputation as a stabilizing influence in disaster situations, which can become very disarming and chaotic in a matter of seconds. This is probably why he later served on over seventeen Presidentially-declared disasters ranging from typhoons and hurricanes in the Pacific Islands and the Caribbean to wildfires, winter storms, floods, earthquakes, and riots throughout the United States, many as part of an elite national response team.
Some of these events include the following:
- The Northridge earthquake in Los Angeles
- Hurricane Iniki in Hawaii
- The Rodney King riots
- Hurricane Marilyn in the US Virgin Islands
Over the years, Canton has emerged as a significant thought leader in emergency management, advocating the use of management concepts to professionalize a field that has often been mischaracterized as a technical discipline.
A frequent speaker at national conferences and guest lecturer at universities both in the United States and abroad, his book, Emergency Management: Concepts and Strategies for Effective Programs, is now used as a textbook for graduate and undergraduate courses when educating others on emergency management operations and skills.
As a consultant, Lu specializes in helping managers lead more effectively in crises by understanding the human factors often overlooked in crisis planning. He also teaches clients how to adapt to and thrive in new environments. Lu believes that a consultant’s job is to partner with the client to change the client’s condition for the better – exactly what he helps us do here at TAL Global.
Integrity, Reliability, Confidentiality
Johnathan Tal is Chief Executive Officer of TAL Global Corporation, an international investigative and risk-consulting firm. He served as a military field intelligence officer for the Israeli armed forces during the 1970s. Tal has also served as an antiterrorism security specialist. He is a licensed investigator, Certified Private Investigator (CPI), and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), and he holds a Bachelor of Science degree. He can be reached through his company website at www.talglobal.com.
