Business continuity planning can be quite confusing for many business owners, especially if you own a start-up business and are new to what owning your own company entails. It might have crossed your mind that a disaster recovery or business continuity plan needs to be put in place. But it’s exceptionally advantageous as it protects your business, the software you use and all of the data you hold. But what is a business continuity plan and why is it so important to have one implemented?
What is a business continuity plan?
A business continuity plan, also known as a BCP, is a document that details the steps that will be taken should a business experience an IT disaster. This ensures that company operations will be able to continue should unplanned disturbances or disruption occur. A more comprehensive plan that disaster recovery services, a business continuity plan will often contain contingencies for:
- Assets
- Business partners
- Human resources
- Business processes
A business continuity plan is so detailed that it also includes a meticulous checklist that’s tailored specifically to the company that the business continuity plan is for. Often, the checklist will include things like:
- The equipment a business has
- Any supplies the business has
- Data backups that are already in place within the business
- Questioning whether or not there are any backup site
In addition to that, such business continuity plans will be able to identify relevant planning administrators as well as contact information for people like emergency responders, backup site providers and key personnel. One of the key components of a business continuity plan is, essentially, a disaster recovery plan, containing strategies that are designed for handling IT disruptions to:
- Networks
- Mobile devices
- Servers
- Personal computers
There are three aspects to a business continuity plan, including:
High availability
This allows a business to access applications and processes regardless of if there’s a failure or IT disaster. The failures themselves might be in the business process itself, IT hardware or software or even physical facilities throughout a company, regardless of its size of industry.
Continuous operations
This essentially safeguards the ability for a business to keep their operations running either during or after an IT disaster occurs. Another advantage is that a business continuity plan can also help when it comes to planned disruptions, such as maintenance work or scheduled backups.
Disaster recovery
This establishes a way in which data can be protected and recovered using a different site should an IT disaster destroy or compromise the primary site. In some more severe cases, the primary site could be rendered completely inoperable should an IT disaster occur in this way. Having a business continuity plan in place is the best way to deal with such issues.
Why is it important to have a business continuity plan?
A business continuity plan is essential to have in place for all companies, regardless of the size of your business. It will help to identify and address the resilience of synchronisation between your IT infrastructure, business applications and company processes.
This will, in turn, help a business to continue to thrive even after an IT disaster. Protect your business and data from malicious viruses and malware with the implementation of a business continuity plan. Many companies are looking to put a business continuity plan in place that are able to do the following:
- Retain customers
- Deliver exceptional customer service
- Protect data and information
- Keep a business up and running no matter what
- Reduce operating costs for the long-term
All of the aforementioned things are extremely beneficial to even the smallest of businesses as it can minimise downtime and sustainably improve a number of IT processes, including: IT disaster recovery, corporate crisis management capabilities, business continuity and regulatory compliance. Hence why a business continuity plan is important for any company that doesn’t want to compromise their work as a result of an IT disaster.
How can I implement a business continuity plan?
ICU IT are pleased to provide unrivalled business continuity planning and services for a wide range of businesses across several locations throughout the UK. Whether you own a start-up, small or medium-sized business, you can rest assured that we’ll be able to help.
Nothing is more important than preparing a company to continue with their work after a technological disaster occurs and having a business continuity plan in place is the first step to ensuring the smooth-running of operations should the worst happen.
For more information about how we can help you and your company with meticulous business continuity planning today, get in touch with a member of our dedicated, professional team of experts at a time to suit you – we’re always happy to hear from you.
