Business continuity planning

Preparing a simple plan is better than no plan. You can use these templates to start your plan:

• Emergency Management and Recovery Plan template from Business.gov.au
• Business Continuity Planning Template from Business Queensland

Getting started

Use these key topics to focus your thinking before completing a business continuity plan.

Operations

• Organise a staff meeting to talk about the risk of potential disasters and how you could manage through them. Discuss:
  • the parts of your business that could continue in different situations
  • how you would restore the other parts during the recovery process.
• Make a contact list for all suppliers, print it out and store it in a weatherproof container. This will allow you to change delivery schedules or reorganise payments when disasters hit.
• Make sure you are insured for the risks your business faces. Speak to your accountant about how you could access lines of credit to manage your cash flow.

Premises, equipment and stock

• Make sure your premises can remain secured when left unattended, when the power is out or the Wi-Fi is down.
• Regularly maintain your premises and infrastructure to be weather resilient. Inspect your roofing and drainage systems and ensure key equipment or stock can be moved out of disaster-prone areas.
• Have a plan for an extended power outage and consider what you can run off a generator, where you will source a generator and how you will keep it fuelled.
• If you have stock, livestock, vehicles and equipment that may need relocating or protecting during an event make sure you know:
  • where you would take them
  • what the trigger is to move them
  • how you would transport them
  • who is responsible.

Customers and suppliers

• If possible, diversify your clients to include a mix of local, interstate, international, in person, online, private and government customers.
• Make sure your contracts with customers and suppliers allow for adjustments to delivery and payment timeframes as required. Disasters take time to respond to and recover from.  
• Consider how your suppliers could be impacted by a disaster. Consider how that would impact your operation and how you could minimise that impact. It pays to have backup suppliers in place as a precaution.

Community

• Join a local business organisation or industry body. These organisations provide you with a network, information sources and direct access to government funding opportunities.
• Exchange contact details with your neighbouring businesses, residents and community organisations so you can share information, capabilities and resources in times of need.
• Subscribe to Council and Government publications, mailing lists. Form a relationship with relevant staff.

Communications

• Ensure you have active channels of communication with your customers and audiences through social media, email newsletters, text, signage, websites, blogs, live streams and more.
• Prepare a media pack with company information, a press release template, photos, logos and spokesperson contact details to be able to quickly share if contacted by media during a disaster.
• Be familiar with Council’s Local Disaster Management Plan and how it relates to your business.

Technology

• Back up your critical data to portable storage devices & secured them safely offsite. Ensure cloud storage is backed up regularly and has solid cyber security in place to protect it from being compromised.
• Subscribe to MoretonAlert for free weather alerts over text, email and voice messages.
• Keep an up to date offline list of emergency contacts and business recovery contacts. A template is supplied in this document to get you started.

Employees

• Train your staff in evacuation scenarios, first aid procedures and when to trigger your disaster response and recovery plans.
• Prepare an emergency kit including key business documents, your continuity plan, first aid supplies, a torch, a battery-operated radio, spare batteries, power banks and chargers, plastic bags and water at a minimum.
• If your team are able to work from home during a disaster, make sure they have the resources at home to carry out core activities and keep the business operating.

Know your triggers

One of the most important parts of disaster preparedness and response is knowing exactly which conditions, measures or scenarios will trigger you to start your preparation and response activities. These triggers are dependent on the type of disaster, geography, risk exposure level, potential impact and the type of business you operate. Staff need to be well trained and informed in when to engage your planned activities to allow them autonomy and confidence in commencing the activities.