Most of the people involved in business claim that the initial idea for your own company and its services or products are the most vital parts of leading a startup. However, a brilliant idea is not enough to keep your business profitable for longer.
What’s also essential in the case of any company is creating a well-prepared business continuity plan. It allows you to prepare for future events, and it ensures financial fluidity and security of the business in case of any problems or breakdowns. Nevertheless, creating such a plan is not easy for someone who doesn’t specialize in it.
It doesn’t mean, though, that you have to hire a specialist to do it. With a little effort and research, it is possible to prepare a robust business continuity plan and make it a base for your startup. Read on and find out what steps to take in order to do it. There are also some more tips available online, for instance, at Continuity2.
What is a business continuity plan?
A business continuity plan, often abbreviated to BCP, is an emergency manual that refers to maintaining the flow of your business in case of any unpredicted situations, like a hacker’s attack, a natural disaster, or data theft.
This plan contains guidelines and points to cover in case of such an event, supposed to help the business function properly in difficult conditions.
A business continuity plan focuses not only on restoring data and other necessary IT tools but also on the functioning of the whole organization. It’s really important to have such a manual of surviving a sudden crisis.
How to create a business continuity plan
Creating an effective business continuity plan may take some time and effort. That’s why it’s most convenient to divide your work into a few steps.
First, you should develop a core of your plan by covering the most important information about the company. These could be, for example:
- The goals of your company
- Major areas, teams or departments that need to be managed
- Interdependencies within the company, e.g., how a breakdown of one area affects other aspects of your business
- Acceptable delay of work (e.g., in launching products or executing services)
- Any other crucial aspects of the company that need to work in case of a crisis
Once you prepare answers to these points and develop them, you may start making the plan as such. Knowing the information from the points above is also crucial in any context, not only in the difficult circumstances of a crisis or a breakdown. To get more tips on creating an outline of a business continuity plan, visit this website.
Your business continuity plan – a checklist or a manual?
There are various forms of business continuity plans, so every business owner may choose their own idea. However, the most popular and advisable form is a checklist.
A checklist needs to cover all the points and steps necessary to take in a difficult situation, for example – when and how to make backup copies of documents and data, how to restore the IT system, who is supposed to take charge of the company and/or teams in case of a crisis.
Another form of a business continuity plan is a manual. It is written in the form of step-by-step instructions with tips on what do to in difficult circumstances. A manual is usually more developed and detailed than a checklist. However, it should cover similar topics and ideas.
How do I know if my business continuity plan is good?
A business continuity plan is a tool that needs to be used in case of an emergency, so it should be of excellent quality. Nevertheless, how is it possible to check it beforehand?
There are a few ways of doing such a check. First of all, you can perform a disaster simulation testing to see if a company is well-prepared for the upcoming dangers. In this context, it will be easier to spot all the potential mistakes and inconsistencies in the business continuity plan. If you want to know more about disaster simulations, read this article.
Another way of checking your plan can be a brainstorming session with all the employees and managers. This will help to point out the weaknesses of the procedures and at the same time, exchange ideas on how to improve them. To read more on how to prepare for brainstorming sessions, click here.
Conclusion
If you own a company, it’s essential to think about preparing a business continuity plan well in advance. Without this kind of a backup, it will be difficult for your company to stay strong and profitable in case of a crisis or a disaster.
That’s why it’s vital to create a business continuity plan in the form of a checklist or a manual, and then check if it works in advance. Once you do it, you will feel safer and well-prepared for any circumstances. Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst!
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