Surface Ripples

Contingency Planning - A Waste of Time?

A number of businesses that I speak to don't have a Business Continuity Plan (BCP). For some, this is because they feel they're too small, because they think they can "wing it" when a crisis hits or (more often than not) because they haven't had time to think things through. Here's why you need a plan.

The heavy snowfalls in early 2010 in the UK resulted in a number of businesses suffering through staff not being able to get to work, disruption of supplies and/or an inablity to get goods out to buyers as postal and courier services have ground to a halt. In 2009, Swine Flu was the big concern, followed by threatened postal strikes disrupting christmas deliveries by small gift companies. A crisis can come from anywhere and, if not handled properly, can drive you out of business.

Any business needs to consider the following when planning for crises (whatever they may be):

Nature of Business

Location

Premises

Staff

Health & Safety

Equipment

Processes/procedures

Buyers

Suppliers

Payments

Systems/Technology

Publicity

Communications

Finance

Insurance

Legal/regulatory

The environment

This list isn't exhaustive, and will vary depending on the type of business, but using it as a framework will give you a start in working out what you'll need to do if something does go wrong. If you need help or further advice, let me know.

Labels: Crisis Management

posted by William Martin @ 01:26