Business continuity is a major issue that faces all businesses in this changing world. How long could your organisation survive if your billing system could not operate? What would you do if a disaster at a nearby site prevented your entire workforce from entering the building?
The list of questions grows, and so do the levels of uncertainty and anxiety. Without a Business Continuity Plan you will have to rely on an ad-hoc approach to deal with these, and the many other issues that will present themselves.
Approximately 80% of businesses affected by a major disruption/incident close within 18 months (source: London Prepared).
A business continuity plan minimises the disruption to your business from any unexpected events or disasters. Staff will know their responsibilities in such situations, and will be able to respond to the events by following an agreed procedure. This will ensure that your business-critical systems are up and running in the shortest possible time.
There are additional benefits of having a business continuity plan in place some of these are:
- Identification of critical systems and information in advance of an event, so that an informed decision can be taken on the extent to which such systems should be protected.
- Definition of the roles of individual people.
- Determination of the resources required to maintain a minimum level of service to the customer.
- In some industries it is a regulatory or customer requirement to have a recovery plan in place. For example, financial organisations must have continuity and security controls.
- A business that can demonstrate an effective business continuity plan has a competitive advantage. For example, if you provide a service to customers that are dependent upon your IT systems, like our service software, then evidence of a sound plan may provide you with an advantage that can be used to win or retain customers.
- Effective business continuity management can help businesses demonstrate that they are managing their business risks and so help to secure lower insurance premiums. In addition, drawing up a business continuity plan can help you assess what types of insurance you need the most, because identifying likely business risks is part of the planning exercise.
Business Continuity Services
BS ISO 22301 (formally BS 25999-2) Business Continuity Management
- Business Continuity Plans
- Integrated Management Systems
Contact us now using our website or by phone to Andrew Holmes on 07976 921005 for further information about Business Continuity and Risk Management.
