How Business Continuity Planning Can Help Your Company Weather a Crisis

Your business could be hit with various negative consequences when disaster strikes. Customers could quit, suppliers may withdraw support, and capital sources or investors might cease funding. These repercussions can make it difficult for executives to keep operations running smoothly. A well-designed business continuity plan can help your company to handle any crisis.

A business continuity plan identifies critical functions that need to continue running in the event a disaster, and defines the resources required to operate these functions. A business impact assessment (BIA) or risk assessment (RA) is a crucial first step.

From there, companies need to decide on how to deal with each threat they are aware of and what the acceptable amount of downtime should be for each important job. The next step is creating an emergency response plan. It’s a detailed document with step-by-step instructions. The plan should include emergency contact information, recovery strategies and detailed steps to take in various scenarios.

It’s recommended to review and update your business continuity plan regularly. You can test the plan with tabletop exercises, simulations and other types testing during this period of time. These tests can also reveal areas that require improvement. It is essential to keep your business continuity plan updated particularly when your technology, processes and employees change. Regular testing https://happyboardroom.com/how-to-transition-to-paperless-board-meetings/ and reviewing can ensure that your plan is prepared to handle any disaster.