It’s a great idea to plan ahead in your business so that natural disasters, illness, injuries and family emergencies cause the least disruption possible. That’s the idea behind a Continuity Plan – your business can continue in some way if a future event occurs that would disrupt normal business practices.
Probably the most important thing you can do for yourself and your employees, customers and family in the case of a disaster is to remain calm. Having a contingency plan in place will help you to feel confident should anything untoward happen.
Here are some tips to help you with your own Continuity Plan:
- Involve other employees in the planning process to ensure a thorough, workable plan. Make sure everyone in your organization knows the plan.
- Develop an up-dated list of contact information for customers, vendors, subcontractors, and employees that you keep with you at all times.
- Check to be certain you will have access to any warehouse or office space if you are not the primary occupant or if you sub-lease.
- If you plan to work from home, test your systems now to be sure your remote access connections work.
- If you have employees and you plan to allow them to work from home, test their remote access systems, too. Also check their internet access to make sure it is adequate.
- Make note of all user names and passwords required for programs and web access. Make sure that employees who could be working from home have done the same.
- Determine which functions are critical for your business and which can be put on the back burner in case your staff is reduced.
- Cross train your employees so that all necessary jobs can be covered.
- Test or activate on-line banking.
- Make arrangements for additional labor if your own labor is unavailable.
- Make arrangements for your own job functions and those of all key employees should you be unable to work.
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