Preparedness: the state of the art and future prospects

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to show the evolution of the concept "state of preparedness" into "state of resilience" in the context of emergency management, and the implications raised by this new concept. Design/methodology/approach - This paper is a literature review (scientific and governmental) of the most important articles in the field of state of preparedness evaluation. Findings - This article presents two trends in the state of preparedness evaluation: response capability and preparation management. These two trends contribute to the evolution of the concept "state of preparedness" into "state of resilience", a state that is defined as the ability of a system to maintain or restore an acceptable level of functioning despite disruptions and failures. Originality/value - This literature review helps define the concept of "state of preparedness" (in terms of both management and response capability) as the new trend of resilience.