The pressures on businesses to minimise costs and try to maximise profits in an uncertain economic environment are considerable. With the worldwide impacts of the global financial crisis still fresh in our memories, and gloomy predictions ever-present about the economic stability of Europe, China and the USA, no CEO or Director wants to commit funds to unproductive activities.
Implementing a strong business continuity program can require a significant outlay of time and resources, depending on what components are already in place and how much risk management and business continuity expertise is already embedded in the organisation. So can the expenditure be justified?
Some of the benefits of business continuity programs which offset the cost in time and resources, some obvious and some less so, include:
- Reduced loss of productivity and/or assets (incorporating the protection of people, facilities and activities) in the event of a business interruption
- Improved reputation, stakeholder confidence etc. as a marketable element
- Savings on business interruption insurance premiums
- Meeting contractual requirements
- Meeting compliance requirements (in some businesses and industries)
- Improving efficiencies across the organisation as a whole, due to the increased understanding (from the business impact analysis process) of what current business processes are in use, and importantly, their impact on and value to the organisation
- Improving stakeholder understanding of business risk
Some of these are of course more easily quantifiable than others. A robust risk management process used to assess the possible risks to business continuity can assist in this regard. However, generally the benefit to the business of a vigorous business continuity program will more than compensate for the effort taken to implement it. After all, a robust business continuity program provides a good return on the investment when the alternative might be going out of business.
Please contact QRMC for more information.
