《Business Continuity Plan》.doc

Business Continuity Plan Recent research suggests that on average 20% of all organizations will experience some form of unplanned event once every 5 years. We who work in the United Way system think of ourselves as a resource in the daily lives of our communities – helping to build stronger communities, and among the “rescuers” in a crisis. However, if we personally, or collectively as an organization are impacted by a crisis, then our ability to respond to the needs of others is compromised. In our first two crisis planning components, “Personal Preparedness Planning” and “Emergency Action Checklist,” the focus was on protecting the health and welfare of people. With those efforts completed, our attention turns to the organization and the plans and preparations we can take which will assist us in resuming operations and services as quickly as possible after a crisis. Business Continuity Planning The Business Continuity Plan is an interactive template. In a step-by-step process this component guides the user in building a simple, but effective, plan to minimize damage and speed the resumption of office operations after a crisis. The template takes the user through four major planning steps: Identify and Assess Your Risks Understand Your Organization Creating the Business Continuity Plan Training, Testing and Plan Maintenance Business Continuity Plan Template Table of Contents Introduction 4 Creating a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) 7 BCP In Four Easy Steps 8 Step 1. Identify and assess your risks 8 Table 1. Risk Assessment 8 Step 2. Understand Your Organization 10 Table 2. Understanding the Organization 10 Step 3. Creating a BCP 11 Mitigation 12 Table 3a. Mitigative Actions 12 Preparedness 13 Table 3b. Preparedness Strategies 14 Reality Check 16 Response 17 Recovery 18 Recovery Checklist 18 Step 4. Training, Testing and Plan Maintenance 19 Summary 22 Appendix Glossary 23-26 Table 1. Risk Assessment 27 Table 2. Under