Completing projects, sending emails, chatting with co-workers, it’s just a normal day at the office—until it’s not. Suddenly computers begin to freeze or shut down. Or maybe the lights go out due to bad weather.
Whatever the situation, you don’t want to be left wondering what to do in these moments. Forming a contingency plan is essential for navigating them. From backing up data to running tests, you need to be ready for emergencies. Follow this step-by-step guide to get started on your business continuity plan.
What Is a Business Continuity Plan?
A business continuity plan (BCP) is an outline of the processes and procedures a company should follow after an unforeseen disruption, such as a natural disaster or cyberattack. It’s similar to any other emergency plan, like how to get to your hurricane shelter safely or what steps to take in case of a flood.
Your BCP helps you recover data, communicate with team members, protect assets and customer trust, and continue working during and after these events.
How Do I Make a Business Continuity Plan?
1. Assess Risks and Vulnerabilities
The first step is to perform a business impact analysis (BIA). We’ll break down the pieces of this analysis in the next few sections.
Start by identifying and evaluating your organization’s critical functions. Catalog all of the different tasks and assess the importance of each, as well as the impact of its disruption.
Next, identify vulnerabilities by analyzing both internal and external threats. Internal threats might include system failures or employee errors, while external threats range from natural disasters to cyberattacks or supply chain interruptions.
This analysis highlights the most significant weak spots and helps you prioritize resources and response strategies during and after a disruption.
2. Determine Your RTO and RPO
Recovery Time Objective (RTO) is the maximum acceptable amount of time that a business process can be unavailable after a disruption, determining how quickly operations need to be restored to avoid significant impact. In order words, how quickly do we want to have things up and running again after an outage?
Recovery Point Objective (RPO) is the maximum acceptable amount of data loss measured in time, indicating how much data the organization can afford to lose and determining the frequency of data backups needed. Another way to view RPO is, how long can we wait for data to be backed up or restored before there is a significant loss.
When calculating RTO and RPO, carefully consider industry norms and the unique aspects of your business. Be realistic when setting objectives and choose achievable times.
3. Develop Recovery Strategies
Once you make goals, it’s time to create strategies for achieving them. Consult a professional IT service on how to maintain operations during an interruption. Be sure to include plans for data recovery, communication with employees and clients, and alternate work sites. Determine what functions and resources are necessary for recovery and which should be restored first.
4. Draft Your BCP
Now it’s time to make the actual plan! Detail specific procedures for responding to disruptions, such as exact steps for data recovery, system failover, and continuity of operations. Outline clear roles and responsibilities for your crisis management team, including team leaders, communication coordinators, and IT support.
Develop a communication plan that establishes how and when to inform stakeholders, employees, and customers about the incident, the steps the company is taking, and recommended action for them. Compile a contact list of key personnel—such as department heads and IT specialists—and emergency services like fire departments, police, and utility providers.
5. Put Your Plan in Action
Integrating your BCP into daily operations is crucial to its success. Encourage habits and practices that support the plan, hold trainings and drills, and confirm that your new business continuity plan aligns with your existing risk management and emergency response plans.
6. Test, Review, Update, Repeat
Testing your plan is an essential, continual step. Regular testing allows you to identify any weaknesses or gaps in your plan and make the necessary adjustments before an actual disruption occurs. It provides an opportunity for your team to become familiar with their roles and responsibilities, ensuring a swift and coordinated response during a real crisis.
Practice runs also help verify that all technological systems and backup procedures function correctly. After each drill, review your plan, make changes, and run it again to make sure your company can withstand challenging scenarios.
Spreading Awareness and Gaining Support
For a business continuity plan to be effective, you must create robust support and awareness throughout the organization. This begins with top-down support: leadership commitment is key. When top executives and management visibly endorse and participate in the planning process, it sends a clear message of its importance to the entire organization.
As with any other emergency procedure, employees at all levels should understand the significance of the continuity plan and their specific roles within it. Regular training sessions and drills can reinforce this understanding so that everyone is prepared to act during an actual disruption.
Complement Your Business Continuity Plan with Run Networks
At Run Networks, we know how hard it can be to recover after an interruption. We care about your company and your success, so let us be a part of your business continuity plan. With our data backup and recovery services, we’re ready to help your business run smoothly after an incident.
Ready to try Run Networks? Request a network evaluation, and let’s get started.
