An overview of what you should have in your plan.

Essential and Useful Documents

Detailed business continuity plan components

• Header (Document classification, e.g. confidential etc)
• Footer (version, including date and page number)
• Front Page
  • Title
  • Doc classification
  • Version and date
  • Management 'sign off'
  • Date of last and next plan review and role to carry it out
• Section 1: Plan Overview
  • Introduction
  • Purpose of plan
  • Scope
  • Objectives
  • Assumptions
  • Plan ownership
  • Event/Decision log
• Section 2: Accountability, roles, responsibilities and authority
• Section 3: notification, invocation and escalation
  • Notification process and / or flowchart
  • Invocation process and / or flowchart
  • Escalation process and / or flowchart
  • Staff tree
• Section 4: Business continuity management team
  • BCM team membership
  • Location and contact details of BCM command centre(s) (where the team will be based to carry out BCM)
  • Command centre resource profile (What will be needed)
• Section 5: Checklists
  • List of Practicalities, including internal and external contacts (see Essential and Useful Documents section)
  • List of 'to do's' immediately following an incident (see Essential and Useful Documents section)
  • List of 'to do's' an hour after the incident has happened (see Essential and Useful Documents section)
  • Check-off lists for completed tasks
• Section 6: Supporting Information
  • Personnel (see list of essential items and list of useful contacts)
  • Injuries and fatalities
  • Staff welfare and counselling
  • Media and public relations
  • Health and safety
  • Emergency service liaison
  • Finance
  • Legal advice
  • Invocation of specialist services
  • Communications (e.g. local help lines - see list of essential items and list of useful contacts)
• Section 7: Critical business activities - Recovery Action Plan
  • List of critical business activities
  • Critical business activities recovery action plan
• Section 8: Invocation process and/ or flowchart
  • Recovery site (work area) location floor plan layout
  • Map of recovery site location
  • Relocation of staff (including transport and accommodation)
  • Security
  • Mail
• Section 9: Recovery Resource Profile
  • Standard workstations, i.e. desk, chair, telephone and PC
  • Computer equipment
  • Software applications (see software and hardware inventory lists in Essential and Useful Documents section)
  • Technology connectivity
  • Telecommunications (have all the relevant codes on and off site)
  • Telecommunications links
  • Backed-up data
  • Vital/unique documents/records
  • Office equipment
  • Specialist equipment
  • Stationary
  • Recovery site location requirements, e.g. disabled persons access
• Section 10: Form Templates
  • Meeting agenda
  • Internal briefings
  • Decision and action log
  • Task list status report
  • Telephone message
  • Action or task worksheet