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Business Recovery Planning, Good Risk Management
One part of good business risk management is making sure your company can recover in the event of an emergency. While business owners can’t prevent disasters from closing their businesses temporarily, effective contingency planning before a disaster or emergency strikes will help speed recovery, be safer for employees and decrease recovery costs. In the short term, developing business recovery plans, including reviewing critical business processes and alternatives, may improve current business efficiency.
Northern California just celebrated the 100 year anniversary of the Earthquake of 1906 and had a winter of flooding in 2006. Businesses have come a long way from the fires and devastation of 1906 because of more demanding building requirements. However, most businesses do not have plans that will effectively help their businesses recover. During an emergency is not the best time to make those plans.
Some questions to consider:
Do you know how to quickly contact your employees, key business customers and vendors in the event of an emergency?
Do you have disaster safety supplies stored at your work site? Are the supplies still useable?
Do you know which your most critical business processes are and how soon they need to be recovered?
Have you thought about manual and automated alternatives to these processes?
Have you gathered copies of critical financial papers in once spot so they can be quickly moved and are available in the event of an emergency?
If you have a disaster recovery plan, have you tested the plan to see if it works as intended?
This column will discuss business recovery planning, some of the challenges and some alternatives for your business.
Contacting Employees, Key Customers and Vendors
Have alternatives for contacting your employees, customers and vendors to make sure they are safe, to let them know the status of your business and to start the recovery process. If all the information is on your computer, consider printing a paper list of contacts annually and keeping it in a safe place. An evacuation plan should provide alternate routes and consider child and elder care needs.
Disaster Safety Supplies
If you needed to survive in your business for a day or two, do you have food, water, blankets and a first aid kit? Are the supplies you have gathered many years ago lost or in bad condition? At least annually, make sure you have good disaster safety supplies. If you would like a suggested list of basic supplies to include, you can find it on my website, www.businessrisksolutions.net.
Critical Business Processes
Which are the five business processes you need to recover first to keep your business going? How can these processes be recovered? Think about both manual, non-automated alternatives and then automated but greatly simplified alternatives. Can the business processes occur without electricity or without a computer? While you may not need to operate without either, when you are planning for your alternatives, think back to basics. What is the simplest way you can perform the task? Make a list of how you could perform each task in an emergency.
If you are interacting with business contacts, other service providers or vendors, you’ll want to check with them to make sure your recovery plans and theirs align for the most part. This is a conversation that is not completed often enough but is important for good planning.
Important Business Papers
One key to a speedier recovery is to make sure you have the business records you will need to recover your business. Keep copies of these records in a file that would be easy to take with you if you have to move locations. Records may include your business recovery plan, historical sales and inventory records, business account numbers, photocopies of birth certificates, powers of attorney. A more complete list can also be found on my website mentioned above.
Make sure you have a little cash available because if ATM’s aren’t working or banks are closed you may still need to purchase food, supplies or services.
Test Your Business Recovery Plan
At least annually, test your business recovery plan to make sure everything works like you think it should. I have rarely seen a recovery plan work as intended during the first test. Testing gives you the opportunity to make updates before faced with an emergency. Be sure your employees are aware of your Recovery Plan and how it works.
©2007 Business Risk Solutions
Bobbie Bleistift Collins, owner of Business Risk Solutions, Inc. has over 20 years’ of experience in financial, operational and strategic risk analysis in the financial industry, as a management consultant and as a business owner. Business Risk Solutions helps businesses identify risks and put appropriate controls in place Services include business risk analysis, information security business process and disaster recovery planning reviews. Bobbie can be reached at 707-477-7739 or at www.businessrisksolutions.net.
