Why Business Continuity (BCM) matters for SMBs
Business Continuity means keeping your business running even when people, suppliers, IT, or facilities are disrupted. Unlike pure “risk management,” BCM ties everything together in practice: what’s critical, what can stop us, how we restart fast, and who does what.
- When SMBs need it: customer or insurer requires it, you’re a subcontractor to an enterprise, you’re dealing with NIS2/DORA/ISO or SOC 2, or you’ve already felt the pain of an outage.
- What you’ll get: a short plan, list of critical functions, contacts, and clear recovery steps. Nothing academic—purely operational.
How a small or mid-sized business can start in 90 minutes (BCM “light”)
1) Create a simple list of critical business functions
In a spreadsheet/record, list 5–12 critical business functions (e.g., Invoicing/Billing, Customer Support, Sales, Production/Operations, Procurement, IT Service). For each, note:
- Owner (role/name)
- Maximum tolerable downtime (RTO: hours/days)
- Impact of downtime (low/medium/high, briefly why)
- Dependencies (systems, vendors, key people)
2) Do a “light” BIA (Business Impact Analysis)
For each function, assess impact and time criticality:
- Financial impact (lost revenue, penalties)
- Customer impact (SLAs, reputation)
- Legal/Compliance (regulatory obligations)
- RTO/RPO (how fast it must run again / how much data loss is tolerable)
Tip: Use a 3–5 point scale to keep it quick. The BIA output sets recovery priorities.
3) Map dependencies (what can stop you)
- People: single point of failure? Backups/coverage? Contacts outside the company?
- Vendors: alternatives? Contracted SLAs? Escalation contacts?
- IT/Systems: access, backups, cloud vs. on-prem, recovery procedures.
- Facilities/Equipment: alternate site, remote work mode, spare devices.
4) Define simple scenarios and recovery steps
For the 3–5 most likely/most painful scenarios (e.g., critical system outage, vendor outage, building not accessible, ransomware), write one-page playbooks:
- Trigger (when we declare an incident)
- First 0–60 minutes (who calls whom, what to shut down/start)
- Recovery (how, where, in what order—guided by the BIA)
- Communication (customers, partners, leadership, media)
5) Assign roles and align contacts
For each critical function, list the owner, backup, contacts (phone, email, alternate channel), and decision rights during an incident. Store offline as well (PDF/print).
How to connect it with risk management, incidents, and compliance
Risk management = input to BCM
Risks define what and why to address; BCM defines how we keep operations running. In practice:
- Risk matrix: threats × impact on critical business functions
- Controls: prevention (Secure), detection (Track), response (Act), recovery (Recover), lessons learned (Reflect)
Incident management = action “here and now”
Incidents are the moment of truth. Logging, categories, SLAs, owners, and subsequent lessons learned feed back into the plan.
Compliance (NIS2, DORA, ISO, etc.) = external requirements
BCM helps demonstrate readiness to customers, auditors, and insurers. Keep handy: BIA, list of critical functions, recovery plan, test records, and training records.
Minimum content of your BCP (1–2 pages per function)
- List of critical business functions with RTO/RPO and owners
- Contact tree (internal, vendors, customers, media)
- Scenarios and playbooks (max 5, clear and concise)
- Recovery locations and resources (sites, access, backups, spare equipment)
- Testing (schedule, test types, who evaluates results)
How often to maintain and test BCM
Frequency
- Quarterly: quick tabletop exercise with 1–2 scenarios
- Semiannually: verify contacts, backups for key roles, and vendors
- Annually: refresh BIA, plans, metrics; broader team exercise
Key metrics
- Response time (detection → escalation)
- Recovery time vs. RTO
- Contact availability (accuracy, reachability)
Common SMB mistakes and how to avoid them
- Overcomplicated plan: better 5 concise scenarios than 50 pages of text.
- Plan kept only in IT: BCM is a business responsibility; IT is just one part.
- Single point of failure (person): always assign a backup and keep contacts available offline.
- No testing: without exercises, plans get stale and fail under stress.
How Aptien makes BCM practical for small and mid-sized businesses
1) Catalog of processes & critical business functions
Maintain a register of functions with owners, RTO/RPO, impacts, and dependencies. This is the “heart” of BCM. From here you link risks, incidents, vendors, and policies.
2) Risks as input, incidents as validation
Risks set improvement priorities; incidents validate what works. After any incident, update the BIA and playbook.
3) Policies, training, acknowledgments
Who does what and where are the contacts? Store policies, train the team, and collect acknowledgments. In a crisis, seconds matter.
4) Compliance and audits without fear
Keep evidence of tests, reviews, and certifications in one place. When customers/insurers ask, you can produce a summary in minutes.
Quick print-friendly checklist
- Do I have a list of critical business functions with RTO/RPO and owners?
- Do I know the dependencies (people, vendors, IT, facilities)?
- Do I have 3–5 one-page playbooks for top scenarios?
- Are contacts current and stored offline?
- Have we tested this in the last 3–6 months?
FAQ: short answers for owners and managers
Is BCM the same as risk management?
No. Risk management says what could go wrong; BCM says how we keep operating and how we recover. You need both—kept simple and connected.
Do we need it if we’re not regulated?
Not until an outage stops you. In practice, customers, insurers, or banks will ask for it. A minimal BCM “light” can be set up in a day.
How much detail is enough?
For SMBs: brief and usable. One page per function and a single contact list outperform a thick binder.
Next steps
- Create a register of critical business functions and complete a “light” BIA.
- Write 3–5 playbooks for key scenarios.
- Link to risks, incidents, policies, and vendors.
- Schedule a short tabletop exercise within 30 days.