Valuing Business Continuity

Continuity Solutions

Based on the business impact analysis, consultants may recommend a range of business continuity solutions for a client involving communications links, data replication and storage, power, and other factors. As part of its business continuity plan, for example, 3pL was already in the process of installing a backup generator, which had not yet been turned on, when its power outage occurred. Today, 3pL is in the process of switching to a hosted PBX solution, which will rely on equipment bas-ed in the carrier network and owned by the carrier, eliminating the risk that would be involved with a premises-based phone system.

Redundant communications links typically are another part of a business continuity solution—and consultants can provide valuable information to ensure that those links are truly redundant. O’Brien-Wilms notes, for example, that many Internet service providers route customers based in the Twin Cities through Chicago. To guard themselves against Chicago-based network outages, she helps clients select a backup Internet service provider that routes through Denver or Kansas City.

Not all of a consultant’s recommendations involve a technology investment. It’s also critical to have a plan in place to alert key personnel in the event of an incident, Agar says—and the plan should include contingencies if key personnel are unreachable. “You have to have documentation,” he says. 

The good news is that when companies are able to put a dollar value or ranking on the potential impact of various events on their business, they generally find that the number is far higher than the investment required to fund a business continuity plan. “Typically it’s within a 5 percent range of the impact of being down for a day or so,” Agar says.