Business Continuity: What does this mean to you? What do you think of when this is mentioned? Many people don’t know what to answer when I ask them about their Business Continuity Plan.
While some companies have developed contingency plans, most have not. This lack of preparedness not only threatens the viability of sectors in Canada (and other countries) but, as in the case of manufacturing, it also jeopardizes the delivery of critical goods that depend on complex supply chain systems. Creating and maintaining a business continuity plan helps ensure that your business has the resources and information needed to deal with an emergency. (taken from https://www.bdc.ca/en/articles-tools/entrepreneur-toolkit/templates-business-guides/business-continuity-guide-templates-entrepreneurs)
This is a plan that you set up for your business that lays everything out for you when needed. You will know the steps to follow and what to do without having to think about it during a highly emotional and stressful time. This should be considered a living document, so it will need to be updated from time to time, as things change and grow in your business but once the plan is complete, it is primarily done and ready to put into place, other than any updates needed.
If you are looking for a resource to assist you in creating and building your Business Continuity Plan, please see 8 steps for planning your emergency and disaster plan https://www.bdc.ca/en/articles-tools/business-strategy-planning/manage-business/business-continuity-8-steps-building-plan to assist.
(image taken from https://searchdisasterrecovery.techtarget.com/definition/business-continuity)
Questions to Ponder:
Should you invest time and money to put a BCP in place in your organization?
