The definition of a business continuity plan is often taken out of context. Many see it as an extensive, overly complex plan printed and bound which, in reality, isn’t very practical. So what should a useful business continuity plan involve?
A business continuity plan is a set of steps and actions that can be taken during a disruption, or disaster, to ensure your business continues with minimal interruption. These steps will include:
Preparation: you’ll need an alternate power supply option such as a generator, inverter or solar power installed as contingencies to your primary power source and an alternate communication system to resort to in the event of an Internet disruption.
Protection: you’ll need to make sure your data is safe and backed up offsite.
Communication: you’ll need the contact details of your employees, clients, suppliers and anyone else who may be affected by a disruption at your business so you can let them know straight away, as well as emergency contact numbers.
Simulation: you’ll need to test your plan quarterly to make sure all aspects of it are working.
Technology has advanced to such an extent that cloud applications, hardware virtualisation and as-a-service offerings have enabled an easier working environment and an easier environment to recover to in the event of a disruption. It’s become economically sensible to embrace cloud technology and make use of software that builds up your company’s resilience, improves its productivity, and saves you time and money.
Instead of having a business continuity plan in a musty safe where it’s out of reach and out of mind, you can use the cloud for safeguarding and easily accessing your plan wherever you are. This means you can also review, update, share and implement it from anywhere.
Why not chat about what your business needs with a business continuity expert?
