what is a business continuity plan bcp 
a business continuity plan bcp is a system of prevention and recovery from potential threats to a company the plan ensures that personnel and assets are protected and are able to function quickly in the event of a disaster understanding business continuity plans bcps bcp involves defining any and all risks that can affect the company s operations making it an important part of the organization s risk management strategy risks may include natural disasters fire flood or weather related events pandemics acts of terrorism or cyber attacks once the risks are identified the plan should also include bcps are an important part of any business threats disruptions or halts to the business activity for any period of time mean not only losses and higher costs but also difficulty to start back again which leads to a drop in profitability financial loss and protential bankruptcy and liquidations and businesses can t rely on insurance alone because it doesn t cover all the costs or the customers who move to the competition it is generally conceived in advance and involves input from key stakeholders and personnel business impact analysis recovery organization and training are all steps corporations need to follow when creating a business continuity plan benefits of a business continuity planbusinesses are prone to a host of disasters that vary in degree from minor to catastrophic business continuity planning is typically meant to help a company continue operating in the event of major disasters such as fires bcps are different from a disaster recovery plan which focuses on the recovery of a company s information technology system after a crisis consider a finance company based in a major city it may put a bcp in place by taking steps including backing up its computer and client files offsite if something were to happen to the company s corporate office its satellite offices would still have access to important information an important point to note is that bcp may not be as effective if a large portion of the population is affected as in the case of a disease outbreak nonetheless bcps can improve risk management preventing disruptions from spreading they can also help mitigate downtime of networks or technology saving the company money 