Research shows that small, dedicated task forces, though often perceived as unwieldy and slow moving, produce higher-quality disaster response plans than individuals acting alone. Thus a planning task force needs to be formed, with a clear mandate from the library's central authority, usually the library director. The mandate should set forth the objectives of the task force, assign authority to the chair, and establish a deadline for presenting the final plan. It is reasonable for the work to require three to four months. The library director should appoint as chair of the task force a knowledgeable and experienced librarian capable of moving work along at a steady pace. A planning task force typically includes all or some of the following members: Access or public services supervisor, preservation officer or conservator, representative of rare books and manuscripts, cataloger or computer or systems specialist, representatives of any branch libraries in the system.

In addition, experts might be invited to offer their experience and expertise. For example, an insurance or risk assessor and the head of the local fire department could advise the task force about relevant aspects of the plan.

The chair of the task force should work with the preservation or conservation professional to assemble a few examples of disaster response plans from other libraries as well as a few related readings to acquaint task force members with some general principles before the first meeting. Even if the library does not have a preservation or conservation professional, it is important to include a staff member with some preservation and conservation responsibilities on the task force, because much of the salvage and recovery may depend in part on some basic conservation skills.