It goes without saying that disaster planning is important everywhere; the same thing goes for small businesses. As a business owner, you always have to be on your toes and must be ready at all times for the worst-case scenario. In running a business, being prepared is recommended so that you’ll still be able to keep on operating even when the “lights go out”, so to speak.
Nobody is hoping for life’s bad surprises, but it’s always best to arm yourself with precautionary measures. Natural calamities might not be easy to anticipate or be prepared for, but some measures may be helpful in order to at least lessen its impact and get yourself back on track again. For instance, if you run a plumbing business and you need a van for work, do you have a ready contingency plan which you could depend on in case of emergencies?
Or what if there is power interruption in a certain part of your office? What will happen now? Can you make your staff work from home if they have to and can still have access to their emails?
The strategy is to recognise those processes or functions which are significant to its operations and how to keep them coming. Try stepping back from your business for the time being and find out those vulnerable and weak spots.
After that, it is time to identify a short-term solution which can support if ever crisis strikes and then make sure that everything’s still in place and to execute those solutions as fast as you can. This is why disaster planning must not be taken for granted for your small business.