A business continuity plan template helps you identify the most vulnerable aspects of your business and create a strategy to recover them to avoid going out of business if you ever face a compromising situation.
(Insert here)
(Add the names of the CEO, COO, President, or whoever leads the company at the moment)
In the event of an emergency, the emergency response team will be the only one with the authority to make determining decisions on how to proceed, such as:
Declare the start and end of an incident or emergency Evacuate staff Order immediate interruption of activities Communicate with the media and craft press releases Make decisions that can affect the company workflow(Add any other that may apply)
Team Leader:
Marketing team representative:
Security representative:
Product team representative:
Legal team representative:
Team Leader:
Marketing team representative:
Security representative:
Product team representative:
Legal team representative:
When creating your emergency team, think about the type of roles you need to cover for your team to have all the necessary skills.
(Insert information about the natural disaster facilities in your building and how they should be used)
If applicable to your business type, designate a space or facility for natural disaster response. This place should be accessible and equipped with water, emergency aid kits, a charged cellphone and charger, a blueprint of the facility, a map of surrounding areas, an emergency generator, flashlights, and anything else you find suitable for your business.
To prepare for business interruption, here is our BIA (business impact analysis) to identify our risks and vulnerabilities and their impact on the business. The BIA needs to be updated yearly if any changes occur.
(what operations does it affect)
(potential losses you will face)
Use this space to develop a response or solution to each threat you mentioned in the previous point. This is the heart of the continuity plan, and you can be as specific as you need.
(Describe teams involved)
(Describe any activities required to carry out the plan)
(Describe the resources and providers involved or needed to carry out the plan)
(Identify any partners who are necessary or able to help)
Employees should report an emergency first to [Sender.Phone] . In case this person is unavailable, please immediately contact (phone number).
During an emergency, the following announcements will be used by the emergency response team for internal communication purposes through text messages:
If evacuation is not needed: “Due to a developing emergency, we ask you to await the emergency response team's indications before continuing any work-related activities. Please pause any communications with clients, partners, or vendors until further notice.
If evacuation is needed: “Due to a developing emergency, we ask you to calmly exit the building and head to our designated response location (add preferred location, e.g., a specific street outside your building). Gather only necessary items such as medication, wallets, keys, phones, or laptops, as long as you don’t have to deviate from the exit to get them. We will inform you as soon as we have more information”.
If you have a personalized warning system in your facility (such as sirens or lights), you can describe them too.
Please follow (Team Member name) indications for emergencies that need to be shared with the press and members of our community.
All our social media platforms will be used as communication channels during this time, and any other online activity will be paused until further notice, including marketing campaigns.
If press releases are necessary, this is a list of reliable media outlets with whom we already have a relationship: (add media outlets and contacts).
We kindly ask you not to share company information with outside sources without consulting our emergency response team. In case you can’t contact them and need to know how to reply or respond to an exterior message, here is a quick guide to ensure proper communication:
Avoid speaking to the media or our independent journalists. Do not share information about the current situation with our clients unless indicated otherwise. Avoid sharing information about the current situation on your social media.Contact emergency services and/or law enforcement immediately if the situation is life-threatening. (Add contact number, e.g., 911).