BUSINESS BUSINESS CONTINGENCY/CONTINUITY CONTINGENCY/CONTINUITY PLANNINGPLANNING

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningContingency planning is a systematic

approach to identifying what can go wrong in a situation

It is also known as a worst-case scenario plan, backup plan, or a disaster recovery plan

The contingency plan is a secondary or alternative course of action that can be implemented in the event that the primary approach fails to function as it should

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningContingencies are relevant events anticipated

by a planner, including low-probability events that would have major impacts.

Contingency planning is a "What if?" skill which is important in all types of planning domains, but especially in contested and competitive domains

Plans of this type allow businesses to quickly adapt to changing circumstances and remain in operation with very little inconvenience or loss of revenue

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningThe objective of contingency planning

is not to identify and develop a plan for every possible contingency.

That would be impossible and a terrible waste of time.

Rather, the objective is to encourage one to think about major contingencies and possible responses.

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningFor example, If a business depends heavily on telephone

communications to conduct business, the contingency plan may be to create a secondary wireless network that can be activated in the event that the public telephone lines are disabled by some type of disaster.

Ideally, the cut over to the wireless network would be seamless, and not interfere with communications for more than a moment or two.

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningThe following questions can help

developcontingency plans:What events may occur that require a

response? What disasters might happen during

execution of the plan? What is the worst case scenario of events

for the situation? What scenarios are possible for the

situation?

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningWhat event would cause the greatest

disruption of current activities and plans?

What happens if costs of the plan are excessive? what happens if delays occur?

What if key people leave the organization? What are the expected moves of

antagonists and competitors? Who or what might impede

implementation of the plan?

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningThe plan allows the day to day operations of

the business to continue without a great deal of interruption or interference.

Next, the backup plan is capable of remaining functional for as long as it takes to restore proper function of the primary plan.

Last, the emergency plan minimizes inconvenience to customers, allowing the business to continue providing goods and services in an orderly and time-efficient manner.

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanningIf an organization's main facility or InformationTechnology assets, networks and applications

arelost, an alternate facility should be available.

Thereare three types of alternate facility:1.Cold site is an alternate facility that is not furnished

and equipped for operation. Proper equipment and furnishings must be installed before operations can begin, and a substantial time and effort is required to make a cold site fully operational. Cold sites are the least expensive option.

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanning2. Warm site is an alternate facility that is

electronically prepared and almost completely equipped and furnished for operation. It can be fully operational within several hours. Warm sites are more expensive than cold sites.

3. Hot site is fully equipped, furnished, and often even fully staffed. Hot sites can be activated within minutes or seconds. Hot sites are the most expensive option.

Contingency Planning Can Be Contingency Planning Can Be Applied To:Applied To:

DisastersCompetitionMissed ForecastsCritical Vendors loss (Sole Sourcing)New ProductsA Critical Customer LossComputer Failure/Data Loss/Viruses

Business Contingency Business Contingency PlanningPlanning Some other totally unexpected causes can also

cause significant business interruption which could be disastrous to the corporations are:

Civil Unrest, Sabotage, Terrorist Activities, Power Grid Failure, Telephone Failure, Other Utilities (i.e. gas), Inclement Weather, Asbestos, or Equipment Failure.

Objectives of BCPObjectives of BCP

To ensure continuity and survival of the business,

To provide protection of corporate assets,

To provide management control of risks and

exposures,

To provide preventative measures where

appropriate,

To take proactive management control of any

business interruption.

What To Do When A What To Do When A Disruption OccursDisruption Occurs

Disruptions are handled in three steps:Response Continuation of critical services Recovery and restoration

Steps to Effective Business Steps to Effective Business Continuity PlanningContinuity PlanningPlan for a wide range of possible

scenarios Downtime (whether it is a result of a hurricane, fire, power outage, hardware failure, or human error) affects your IT infrastructure and ultimately your productivity and bottom line

Understand your time and data requirements Your company can balance recovery requirements and risk tolerance, and budget how much you are willing to spend on a disaster recovery strategy

Steps to Effective Steps to Effective Business Continuity Business Continuity PlanningPlanningLook to keep your people, systems, and

information connected Your business continuity strategy must

encompass information, systems, people, and processes, as well as the complex interdependencies among them. If your workforce cannot connect to systems and data, there is no business.

Communicate Make sure everyone in your company knows

the BCP. Hold mandatory training classes. You do not want your non-critical staff driving through a rain storm to get to a building that has been damaged by fire then wondering what to do next.

Steps to Effective Steps to Effective Business Continuity Business Continuity PlanningPlanning Identify critical documents. Articles of

incorporation and other legal papers, utility bills, banking information, critical HR documents, building lease papers, tax returns...you need to have everything available that would be necessary to start your business over again. Would you know when to pay the loans on your company vehicles? To whom do you send payment for your email services?

Steps to Effective Business Steps to Effective Business Continuity PlanningContinuity PlanningIdentify contingency equipment options If your company uses trucks, and it is

possible the trucks might be damaged in a building fire, where would you rent trucks? Where would you rent computers? Can you use a business service outlet for copies, fax, printing, and other critical functions?

Identify your contingency location. This is the place you will conduct business while your primary offices are unavailable. It could be a hotel. Perhaps telecommuting for everyone is a viable option. Wherever it is, make sure you have all the appropriate contact information (including people’s names).

Steps to Effective Steps to Effective Business Continuity Business Continuity PlanningPlanningPlan and test. Planning involves much more

than just backing up your data. Many companies think they have an effective disaster recovery plan, but unless it is tested, it is only a plan on paper and not in reality. It is essential for your company to develop and test your plan so the first time it is executed is not during an emergency

Review and revise. Every time something changes, update all copies of your BCP. Never let it get out of date. An out-of-date plan can be worse than useless: it can make you feel safe when you are definitely not safe

What’s Your Contingency What’s Your Contingency Plan?Plan?What if your main supplier

suddenly goes bankrupt?

Or, what if your entire sales force gets sick with food poisoning at your annual sales conference?

Or, your payroll clerk simply calls in sick on payroll day?