Key steps in Business Continuity Management

The Business Continuity Management Model has 5 steps:

Step 1: Analyse your business

Know what the crucial parts of your business are:

• Where is it most vulnerable?
• What would be the worst for your business?

For both questions above, think about:

• Your staff
• Customers
• Suppliers
• IT systems and processes
• Partnerships
• Buildings, and
• Timescales

Step 2: Assess the risks

Analyse your relevant risks by asking the following two questions:

• How likely is it to happen?
• What impact will it have on the business?

Step 3: Develop your strategy

Know your break-even point. Develop an easy-to-follow corrective strategy to manage the crucial areas of your business in order to ensure its survival.

Step 4: Develop your plan

Develop plans for worst-case scenarios. By doing this you will soon realise what incidents are most dangerous to your business. Your plans must be easily understood, accessible, realistic, executable and have clear responsibilities and decision-making powers.

Step 5: Rehearse your plan

The proof is in the pudding. You have to test your plan to ensure nothing has been forgotten. A copy of the plan must be given to all staff, involving them in the drill and allowing time for questions. Your Business Continuity Plan (BCP) is a living document and must be updated if anything in your business environment changes.

There is a generic 5 Step BCM (Business Coninuity Management) Model that is followed. However the detail within the plans is always relevant to the size and business nature of the organisation.

The London Prepared Partnership sees organisations falling into 3 broad categories, namely:

• small businesses
• medium-sized businesses
• big businesses

Once you have identified into which category your organisation falls, the next stage is to complete the 5 Step Process of BCM.