In today’s volatile business environment, planning for the unexpected is not optional – it’s essential. A business continuity plan (BCP) is the foundation of organisational resilience. Whether facing a natural disaster, cyber attack, power outage, or supply chain failure, continuity planning helps you keep critical operations running and supports a rapid recovery.
This guide to business continuity outlines why continuity planning matters, what a good business continuity plan includes, and how to put one in place using best standards and practices.
What Is Business Continuity?
Business continuity is the ability of an organisation to maintain essential processes and services during a period of disruption. It goes beyond disaster recovery or emergency response – it’s a holistic approach to prevention and recovery that protects your people, assets, and reputation.
A business continuity plan provides procedures and instructions to follow in a crisis. It ensures a clear path to maintain critical activities and return to full operation as soon as possible.
Why Business Continuity Planning Matters
When faced with a major disruption, businesses without continuity measures often experience prolonged downtime, reputational damage, and revenue loss. Even small incidents – a server outage or staff illness – can escalate without a backup plan.
Having a successful business continuity plan demonstrates preparedness and improves outcomes in events such as:
- Cyber attacks
- Fire or natural disasters
- Disaster recovery plan activations
- Business interruption due to strikes, illness, or supply chain issues
- Power outages or IT infrastructure failure
Organisations that follow business continuity management standards, such as ISO 22301, and align with good practice guidelines from bodies like the Business Continuity Institute (BCI), are better positioned to survive and thrive after a disruption.
The First Step: Business Impact Analysis
A business impact analysis (BIA) is the starting point for any BCP. It identifies critical processes and assesses the impact of their disruption. The BIA sets out recovery time objectives (RTOs) and recovery point objectives (RPOs), helping prioritise response and recovery strategies.
For example, if your payment systems or order processing platform fails, how long can the organisation tolerate the disruption before significant harm occurs?
Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Business Continuity Plan
Every business continuity plan should be customised to your organisation’s structure, risks, and industry. However, the following steps form the core of any good business continuity plan:
1. Conduct Risk and Threat Assessments
Work with risk management teams or external advisors to map out potential hazards. These include natural disasters, cyber threats, utility failures, and reputational crises. Link these risks to your BIA findings and assess the likelihood and impact.
2. Define Recovery Strategies and Responsibilities
What actions will you take to maintain or recover critical activities? Strategies may include emergency management procedures, secondary suppliers, remote working capabilities, or cloud backup solutions.
Appoint roles and decision-makers clearly in the plan, from incident leads to communication officers.
3. Develop Your Business Continuity Plan Document
Structure your BCP to include:
- Scope and activation triggers
- Chain of command and contact details
- Business processes and their recovery steps
- Disaster recovery plan checklist for IT services
- Emergency management policies and escalation paths
- Links to insurance documentation and regulatory obligations
Use a business continuity plan template to ensure consistency and usability.
4. Align with Business Continuity Planning Standards
Your plan should comply with relevant business continuity management systems and standards, especially if you are in a regulated sector like finance, healthcare, or sport. This may include:
- ISO 22301:2019
- BCI Good Practice Guidelines
- Sector-specific regulations (e.g., FCA expectations)
Following business continuity planning standards not only boosts resilience but strengthens credibility with stakeholders and insurers.
5. Test, Train, and Maintain
A well-written BCP is worthless unless tested. Conduct regular exercises (e.g. scenario walk-throughs or live simulations) to evaluate readiness. Update your plan at least annually – or whenever information changes significantly.
Staff training is also essential. Everyone should understand their roles and how to activate the plan during a significant disruption.
A Word on Disaster Recovery
While a BCP focuses on maintaining operations, a disaster recovery plan zeroes in on IT systems, data, and communications. Both plans should be integrated, with your DR plan covering:
- System restoration priorities
- Cloud failovers
- Communications and downtime protocols
- Testing of backup systems
Your recovery time and recovery point objectives should align across both BCP and DR documents.
What Makes a Good Business Continuity Plan?
A good business continuity plan is:
- Practical and concise
- Regularly reviewed
- Based on current information and risk management insight
- Supported by leadership
- Built into the culture of the organisation
- Clear on procedures and responsibilities
Avoid overly technical language. During an emergency, plans should be simple, accessible, and actionable.
Conclusion: Preparedness Builds Resilience
No business is immune to disruption. But those that invest in business continuity planning are better equipped to bounce back – protecting jobs, revenue, and reputation.
Whether you’re building your first plan or enhancing existing ones, use this guide as a starting point. Follow business continuity management standards, prioritise your critical processes, and regularly test your plan. In a crisis, it will make all the difference.