Key Players in Planning an Effective Business Continuity Plan

by Olivia Bacayao

The year 2020 had become one of the most critical years of any business type, whether big or small. All types of industries suffered major losses. Families lost loved ones. Employees lost their jobs. It is indeed, like an unending series of unfortunate events. Fortunately, some business companies have their BCP (Business Continuity Plan) that can hopefully address problems encountered during natural disasters.

A Business Continuity Plan can be compared to a contingency plan. It is a plan, tailored specifically for your company that should contain necessary steps on how to proceed and ensure that your business continues to operate during and after a natural disaster. It is strategic planning, operational planning and financial planning, all rolled into one. It is something that should involve every department of your business – and when I say “every department,” I mean ALL aspects of your business should be properly represented in generating your BCP.

The following are just examples of the people that should be involved in planning:

Safety and Security Personnel

In times of natural disasters, the first responders are the safety and security personnel. They assist employees during natural disasters. They look into safety, health maintenance and prevention of illness and accidents. Their role is the most critical during crisis intervention and disaster prevention.

Employees

The most important aspect of a business is its employees. When your employees get sick, your manpower for generating the desired output is affected – whether in quality or quantity. When your employees get sick because you failed to address issues raised, you either will get legal entanglements or suffer from employee turnover. This also applies to procrastination in taking action on issues brought up. For instance, a highly communicable disease has been identified and one of your employees was identified to have been its source. Not only should you be concerned about containing the information, but you should also be actively concerned in ensuring that no additional employees acquire that disease.

Finance department

All plans need a specific amount of resources to ensure implementation. These people know how much is allowed to spend – the maximum reasonable amount to spend – to ensure that business will continue to operate.

Take a step back. Did you involve these people in generating your business continuity plan? It may be a tedious task for you to bring together ideas from these individuals, however, with the right mindset, a detailed and “everything” and “everyone” taken into consideration type of plan will come out. Do not fear planning. Instead, you should worry that you don’t have a plan when the time comes.