By KingsBridge BCP:
Earlier this month (BCP on a Budget Part 1) we set you up with six tips for getting your business continuity plan started without breaking the bank. In BCP on a Budget Part 2, we continue the series with six new ideas to get your plan off the ground when dollars are tight.
1 – Don’t get bogged down in the Threat Risk Assessment.
While the threat risk assessment is important for risk mitigation, it’s not a necessity for getting your plan started. Regardless of what causes a business interruption, it’s likely to cause one of four possible results: no building, no people, no systems or no third party providers. Writing your plan to prepare for these four possibilities allows you to skip the arduous threat risk assessment process (for now). And, it ensures that regardless of what strikes, you’ll have a plan to address it.
2 – Try a ‘light’ Business Impact Assessment.
If you don’t have the time to look at all the business processes within your organization, start with the obvious. If your business is making widgets then you better make sure your widget sales, manufacturing and distribution business processes are addressed. Get the basics covered and save the rest for another phase of the project.
3 – Incorporate business impact assessment thinking into the change management process.
Adding another widget line or bringing on a new piece of software? Ask yourself how critical that new widget line or software will be to your business before you implement it. Next revisit your recovery priorities. Your business impact assessment will remain up to date every time your business changes without having to go through a formal ‘business impact analysis’ process.
4 – Keep old hardware ‘just in case.’
While it’s great that the workforce is getting more mobile, not everyone has a laptop and those that do, don’t always take them home at the end of the day. When replacing hardware, consider storing the ‘expired’ laptops, cell phones etc. in an offsite location where they can be put back into use should they be needed.
5 – Do an after-hours laptop audit.
Wondering if those laptops really are going home at the end of the day? If this is your organization’s policy, roam the offices once everyone has gone home for the day. Find a laptop? Pick it up and leave your business card. The delinquent employee will need to make the ‘walk of shame’ to your office to reclaim their hardware. This is a definite deterrent to leaving it behind a second time!
6 – Leverage evacuation drills as mini-exercises.
While there is ‘no time’ to exercise the business continuity plan, evacuation drills are often required. This is a perfect opportunity to check in on an unsuspecting team and do a little scenario exercise with them. Questions like ‘What would you do if you were told you couldn’t go back to work today?’, ‘What if your office was in flames right now?’ and “How would you manage today’s critical tasks if this weren’t a drill?” will get them thinking.
About KingsBridge: KingsBridgeBCP offers businesses of all sizes BCP Software Solutions and industry know how based on best practices. We help build, exercise, and maintain Business Continuity Plans. Our services and software packages are customized to meet the wide range of our customers’ needs, ensuring we deliver the best value in every project. To learn more click here.
