3 Reasons You Need a Business Continuity Plan

A business continuity plan is an essential – now is the time to take Business Coninuity and Disaster Recovery (BCDR) seriously.

Cyber crime is evolving every day, particularly ransomware threats. This means that a disaster could put you out of business – if you fail to implement a BCDR plan.

And as the threat landscape arrayed against your business expands, you cannot afford to risk losing important business data.

Here are 3 key reasons to ensure you have a business continuity plan in place:

Downtime is Money

The last thing a business wants, is to lose any time for their operations. The costs associated with downtime alone are enormous – we recently saved one of our customers £600,000 (per day!) by installing a Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery solution.

With this figure in mind, consider that the average cost in time for a malware attack is 50 days (Accenture) – downtime alone can be fatal to businesses.

Furthermore, cyber crime is projected to cost businesses up to £4.1 trillion in the next 5 years (Accenture).

Not only will your business have to deal with the cost of not operating but also the cost to the business upon recovery. Trying to recover data or stolen devices will come at a premium as well as sky-high insurance prices post attack.

But it isn’t just time and money – downtime can leave staff impatient and frustrated, not to mention your customers and supply chain.

Therefore, a business continuity plan in place is a no brainer. It minimises potential downtime, saves you money, and keeps your customers happy.

Protect your company reputation with a Business Continuity Plan

A cyber attack can happen to anyone. Being able to recover quickly will set you apart from your competition.

In fact, 96% of companies with a Business Continuity Plan were able to survive a ransomware attack (phoenixNAP). This proves that having a plan in place means recovery is virtually guaranteed.

This makes your business attractive to potential customers if you can deal with tough situations in an orderly fashion. It proves to customers and prospects that you’re well organised and prepared for any circumstances. It also demonstrates you commitment to data security.

Even if your business is hit by a highly sophisticated cyber attack your business will be able to recover. This allows your business to remain competitive and still attract business despite being the victim of an attack that would but others out of business.

Legal obligations

With GDPR coming into action last year (May 2018) it is important that these regulations are adhered to in order to avoid heavy fines.

Heavy fines can be handed out if the rules are not followed. Having a Business Continuity Plan means that your business will be compliant with the necessary rules and regulations meaning you could avoid a heavy fine.

British Airways have only recently been given a whopping fine for breaking GDPR rules and Marriott have followed suit. Even though they have been handed fines of £183 million and £99 million respectively, it is likely that both companies will survive and keep their businesses running.

However, if a fine of this magnitude hit your business would you still be able to keep operating? It doesn’t bear thinking about and with a business continuity plan in place, this horrific scenario can be avoided.Ultimately – A Business Continuity Plan can deliver peace of mind. Knowing that you can withstand a cyber attack, whilst maintaining business as usual, is priceless.

93% of businesses without a Business Continuity Plan went out of business within 12 months of a disaster – do you have one?

Accidents happen. And so do disasters. Contact Neuways on 01283 753 333 or email hello@neuways.com to discuss a Business Continuity Plan.