Could Your Business Survive a Crisis

Over the course of time it is inevitable that any company will face an unforeseen crisis. Whether the company experiences the tragic loss of a critical member of its team or an unexpected departure presents itself, the initial reaction of the company leaders will be essential to maintaining "business as usual". While urgency in these times of crisis is important, level-headed urgency is crucial. A tested way to make sure the business stays afloat is to put in a place an emergency backup plan.

Backup plans allow companies to absorb the shock an emergency brings by focusing on the structure that helped to create the company. A backup plan can be thought of as a living business plan. A top-down approach based on an organizational chart affords the company the ability to address the particular needs and concerns of each department while framing it in a big picture.

Transferring institutional knowledge from people to paper is the basis of the backup plan. Over years people amass a wealth of knowledge that often gets overlooked. Every office knows who to go to for to remedy certain issues. This approach will only work as long as guy or gal they want to go to isn't gone. Backup plans are an action-oriented approach to fostering knowledge transfer and creating department surrogates.

Knowing who the new "go to" person is immediately allows crisis management to start. Thus when a crisis rears its head, the company won’t be left wondering “what next?”; instead they will be able to consult a comprehensive plan that will guide them through the crisis. In turn, this will take some of the worry and stress off of an already potentially tense time for the company.

Backup plans don’t have to be limited to the general operations of a company. They can be broad enough to address any concerns that may arise. Keeping a list of client and third party contact information is another valuable way to make sure that the knowledge transfer of all information is stored in one place.

The owner of the plan can lead both its inception and maintenance. Storing the company’s backup plan on a shared drive allows easy accessibility for any member of the team that needs to access or update it. It is then necessary to make sure that this vital company document is backed up regularly as well.

Overall, backup plans can help alleviate the stressors associated with times of transition or times of unexpected events. The living document can be the differentiating factor in whether the company is flexible enough to handle the challenges that it will certainly face.

Documenting the key components of your business using the Smart Business Company Manual will ensure you've covered all bases and that nothing is left out.