Is SNOW a Disaster? Minor vs. Major Disruptions Require Business Continuity Planning

So as many of us in the Midwest have been experiencing SNOW can be a fairly big hassle. OK so we don't have to worry about hurricanes like Florida does, or earthquakes, wild fires and mudslides like our friends in California but every year we have MINOR disruptions in our business by Mother Nature in the form of the fluffy white stuff. These disruptions can last up to several days if the snow and ice affect electrical service or they could cause a longer disruption of activities, see the Metrodome story from this weekend as an example. So what's my point - Businesses need to prepare for both Minor and Major disruptions to their operations. Major disruptions are more obvious - after a tornado, hurricane or earthquake you probably can do a quick assessment and know if you are going to be impacted for longer than a day or two.

Minor Disruptions could include losing a shift of processing at your plant, temporary loss of communications or electrical power, etc. How will you communicate with your employees? How will you continue your normal business processes such as taking orders, creating invoices, shipping product, etc. In all of these cases a business can probably withstand a few hours of down time. The problem is, you never know when Minor issues will become Major ones. Snow building up on the rood of your warehouse or production facility is rarely noticed until part of the roof collapses.

If it has been a year or more since you have reviewed your firm's Business Continuity Plan we strongly suggest you contact us and let us walk you thru our review & audit process. For your piece of mind.