Business continuity planning is essential for safeguarding business operations in the event of an unexpected event that impacts your ability to carry out core functions and services. Nowadays, this could be anything - from significant macro events such as a pandemic or civil disorder - to more isolated incidents, including a cyber incident, data loss or a sudden loss of utilities.
Managing these situations effectively and isolating impacts on your clients is paramount. Failing to adequately plan for such events could cause significant long-term damage to your business's reputation and potentially even profitability. However, the process of formulating a robust business continuity plan can sometimes be overwhelming.
Business continuity consulting can provide the expertise and advice needed to help you form a continuity plan that suits your needs and gives you peace of mind to face future threats to your business. A skilled consultant can use their experience and knowledge of your sector to provide insight into your business continuity planning needs. Business continuity consulting can help you perform risk assessments and business impact analysis and implement the right safeguards and protocols that will build your company's long-term resilience and mitigate the impact of any future events.
How to choose the right Business Continuity Consultant for your business
Choosing the right consultant to meet your business needs is very important. It may seem obvious, but there are many types of business continuity consultant and you should evaluate your options carefully to ensure you are choosing the right consultant for your needs and achieving value for money for your business. Here are three things to consider when choosing a business continuity consultant:
1. Experience
Experience is the most important factor in choosing a consultant. Always confirm how much experience your prospective consultant has, including in implementing the full lifecycle of a business continuity plan. You should prioritise business continuity consulting firms with a long track record of providing business continuity planning to a number of previous clients. You can ask to speak to previous clients, and a respectable firm should have a wide range of clients to whom they can refer you for testimonials.
2. Knowledge of your sector and business type
While a firm may have years of experience and plenty of clients, if they don't have experience working with clients in your industry or planning for the specific types of risks that your business faces, it may not be the right fit. You will need to consider if a consultancy has other clients in your industry and of your size before engaging them, to make sure your business continuity planning is as well-informed and robust as possible.
3. Knowledge of best practice and innovation
Just as potential threats to our businesses constantly evolve, so too should your business continuity. New technology can provide both risk and opportunity, with technological advances providing better protection against disasters and reducing impacts. You should make sure that your consultants are at the forefront of business continuity techniques so that your business can stay ahead of threats.
Needhams are business continuity experts and can help you develop a business continuity plan that ensures your business is resilient in times of crisis.