Template for
BUSINESS CONTINGENCY	PLAN

EFFECTIVE DATE: [effective_date]

DISCLAIMER
The materials presented herein are for general reference only. Federal, state or local laws or individual circumstances may require the addition of policies, amendment of individual policies, and/or the entire Plan to meet specific situations. These materials are intended to be used only as guides and should not be used, adopted, or modified without the advice of legal counsel. These materials are presented, therefore, with the understanding that the Company is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

PREFACE

The purpose of this plan is to define the recovery process developed to restore Your Company’s critical business functions. The plan components detail Your Company’s procedures for responding to an emergency situation, which affects Your Company’s ability to deliver core services to our customers or our ability to meet investors, legal or regulatory requirements.

Objectives of the Plan

Facilitate timely recovery of core business functions
Protect the well being of our employees, their families and customers
Minimize loss of revenue/customers
Maintain public image and reputation
Minimize loss of data
Minimize the critical decisions to be made in a time of crisis

The following Business Contingency Plan and all related procedures are approved by the president and senior management of Your Company effective the date signed below.

 	

Name – Title	Date

 	

Name – Title	Date

Page 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE	2
TABLE OF CONTENTS	3
RECOVERY STRATEGIES	4
BUSINESS CONTINGENCY PLANNING TEAM	5
OFFSITE DATA STORAGE	6
VENDOR READINESS PLAN	7
COMMUNICATIONS	8
TEMPORARY FACILITIES	9
PROPERTY PROTECTION	10
FIRE HAZARDS	10
HAZARDOUS MATERIAL HANDLING	11
FACILITY SHUTDOWN PROCEDURES	12
INSURANCE	13
SITE MAP DOCUMENTATION	14
PLAN ACTIVATION	15
EMERGENCY ALERT	15
DAMAGE ASSESSMENT	15
RESUMING OPERATIONS	16
TRAINING	17
APPENDICES	18 - 34
VULNERABILITY ANALYSIS CHART	19
CORE FUNCTION REVIEW WORKSHEET	21
DISASTER DECLARATION PROCEDURES	23
DISASTER PROCEDURES CHECKLIST	25
NOTIFICATION SCRIPTS	27
EMERGENCY CONTACTS INFORMATION SHEET	30
TRAINING DRILLS & EXERCISES	32
ANNUAL AUDIT	34

Page 3

RECOVERY STRATEGIES
Recovery strategies identified for Your Company’s equipment and services:
Business functions will be recovered in priority sequence based upon the classification of the function as agreed with business senior management and implemented jointly.
Communications concerning the recovery status will be coordinated through the Business Contingency Planning Team so that those executing the recovery will not be interrupted repeatedly for status.
Purchase and acquisition of equipment and supplies needed for the recovery effort will be coordinated through company Department Heads.
The contingency planning infrastructure will provide for coordination of travel arrangements, food and accommodations for individuals supporting the recovery effort.
Non-critical Your Company functions, such as Development and Test environments, will be cleared without backup as necessary to support the recovery efforts.
Your Company personnel from other sites may be called in to support the recovery efforts.

Page 4

BUSINESS CONTINGENCY PLANNING TEAM
The following individuals are designated plan coordinators for their respective departments and are responsible for the execution of this plan in a qualified disaster.

Name	Title	Phone	Email	
				
	Plan Coordinator			
				
	Sr. Management			
				
	Line Management			
				
	Human Resources			
				
	Safety Director			
				
	Security			
				
	Community Relations			
				
	Sales/Marketing			
				
	Finance			
				
	Legal			

	Insurance			

Page 5

OFFSITE DATA STORAGE
Backup data facilities have been identified at the follow location:

Name of company: Main contact: Phone number: Email address: Street address: City:
State and zip:

The identified location of the backup site will be accessible for a minimum period of six (6) weeks from initial date of occupancy after disaster declaration. It will be available for 24-hour access and retrieval and be protected by: security, fire suppression, water detectors, heating, air and ventilation.

Your Company will have access to the backup site facility within [ x ] hours after notification and guaranteed occupancy shall be at least six (6) weeks.

This storage facility will be reviewed for effectiveness annually. Storage facilities for electronic documentation to be considered via MyWavePortal® - provided to Your Company by [b_officialname].

Offsite storage process will include, but is not limited to, the following. All documentation of importance to the operations of Your Company will be stored via this backup site.

Backup Tapes - Weekly tape backups of ALL your disk files.  These include: mainframe, mid-range, servers and PCs ( mandatory and with at least two generations)
System, program product, and in-house developed software manuals and guides
Legal - Copies of contracts, leases, legal and critical correspondences
Insurance – Policies, riders, and addendums
Financial - General and private ledgers, year end financial statements, tax returns, bank records
Recovery Plans - A complete set
Assets - Complete fixed asset listings
Referenced Items - Copies of any item referenced within your recovery team plans
Floor plans
Architectural drawings that should include mechanical plans
Photos of facility and various work areas
Other critical documents or data critical to the operation of your business

Page 6

VENDOR READINESS PLAN
Your Company relies on vendors to provide us certain equipment, supplies, materials, goods or services. Some of these vendors are considered more critical than others.

To minimize our potential exposure to a disruption by our vendor(s), there are several steps provided to take in advance:

Your Company will avoid a single source (sole source) provider of any equipment, supplies, materials, goods or services. That is, Your Company will always have at least two vendors that can provide each of our critical goods and services required to support our business.

Key vendors identified: (list key vendors and backup vendors)

Vendor	Main Contact	Phone	Email	Plan	

					

					

					

Your Company will request that the vendor complete the survey and return it to our attention within 30 days.

When the survey is returned, review the responses:

If the vendor indicates that they have a plan,

Request a copy of the section that addresses their ability to recover the processes that delivers the equipment, supplies, materials, goods or services you use.
If the vendor declines to provide you with a copy, request additional information.
If the vendor does not provide the additional information, Your Company will contact the appropriate backup vendor.

Page 7

COMMUNICATIONS
Communications are key within Your Company’s business environment. A three-prong approach will be utilized:

Key Your Company personnel call list
Identified vendor for offsite call center operations
Identified vendor for recovery of communications and equipment repair/replacement Key personnel cellular phone contact list:
Contact	Title	Home #	Cellular #	Email	

					

					

					

					

Provided vendors will supply offsite call center capabilities to handle incoming calls. This offsite communications facility will be reviewed for effectiveness annually.

Vendor Name:	Main Contact:
Phone:	Cellular Phone Number:
Email address: Street address: City:
State and Zip:

Provided vendors will provide communication recovery establishing a new core communications center and equipment. This communication recovery vendor will be reviewed for effectiveness annually.

Vendor Name:	Main Contact:
Phone:	Cellular Phone Number:
Email address: Street address: City:
State and Zip:

Page 8

TEMPORARY FACILITIES

An offsite business operations center has been predetermined where members of the various business contingency teams and other Your Company personnel will assemble immediately after they receive notification.

Access to this facility is controlled by the members of the Business Contingency Planning Team.

The offsite business operations center is located at: Building name:
Street address:
City:
State and zip: Phone:
Directions to the facility:

This offsite business operations center contains:
Phones/facsimile and circuits
Internet capabilities
PCs for documentation, letters and cc:Mail
Work area space
Portable generator
Normal business type supplies
Emergency supplies, including bottled water
Basic set of tools
Coordination with hot and cold sites for Information Systems
Telephone forwarding mechanisms

The identified location of the temporary facilities will be accessible for an extended period of time. Your Company will have access to the facility when it is determined that normal business operations will be non-functional for an extended period of time. The facility must be made available within twenty-four (24) hours after Your Company provides written or verbal notice to vendor of intent to occupy the facility, and guaranteed occupancy shall be at least twelve (12) months.

Page 9

PROPERTY PROTECTION

Protecting facilities, equipment and vital records is essential to restoring Your Company’s operations once an emergency has occurred.

Only members of the Business Contingency Planning team will authorize, supervise and perform a facility shutdown.

Employees will be trained to recognize when to abandon the effort.

The forthcoming procedures will be followed as a course of action for the stated emergency. Best judgment is to be used as unique factors surround any emergency situation.

Fire Hazards

The following materials have been identified that could cause or fuel a fire:

Material	Facility	Stored	MSDS Sheet	Attributes	

					

					

					

					

					

Fire safety information will be distributed to employees: how to prevent fires in the workplace, how to contain a fire, how to evacuate the facility, where to report a fire.

Maps of evacuation routes will be posted in prominent places.

Smoke detectors will be checked for proper operation once per month. And batteries will be replaced every 6 months.

Page 10

PROPERTY PROTECTION

Hazardous Material Handling

Hazardous materials are substances that are flammable or combustible, explosive, toxic, noxious, corrosive, oxidizable, an irritant or radioactive. A hazardous material spill or release can pose a risk to life, health or property. An incident can result in the evacuation of a few people, a section of a facility or an entire neighborhood.

Identify and label all hazardous materials stored, handled, produced and disposed of by your facility. Follow government regulations that apply to your facility. Safety data sheets (SDS) for all hazardous materials at your location will be stored 	.

Hazardous Material Handling Plan
Below procedures confirm procedures to notify management and emergency response organizations of an incident.

(insert notification procedures)

Establish procedures to warn employees of an incident. (insert procedures to warn employees)
Establish evacuation procedures.

(insert emergency evacuation plan)

List government agencies required to be notified of a hazardous materials spill (insert government agency phone numbers and contact names)

Your Company has identified the below vendors for hazardous material containment and clean up.  Vendor effectiveness will be reviewed annually.

Company	Main Contact	Phone	Email	Notes	

					

					

Page 11

PROPERTY PROTECTION

Facility Shutdown Procedures
Facility shutdown is generally a last resort but always a possibility. Improper or disorganized shutdown can result in confusion, injury and property damage.

Department heads are to establish shutdown procedures. Include information about when and how to shut off utilities. Identify:

The conditions that could necessitate a shutdown
Who can order a shutdown
Who will carry out shutdown procedures
How a partial shutdown would affect other facility operations
The length of time required for shutdown and restarting

Department	Dept Head	Phone	Email	Plan Confirmed	

					

					

					

					

					

Page 12

INSURANCE

All business interruption coverage and disaster planning resources are coordinated through 	.

Active policies are noted:

Coverage	Carrier	Contact Name	Phone	Limits	Effective Dates	

						

						

						

An exposure analysis will be conducted annually. A formal assessment will be completed to determine appropriate coverage levels and review additional risk management strategies to mitigate exposures.

Page 13

SITE MAP DOCUMENTATION

Attach all appropriate information pertaining to building and site maps that  indicate:

Utility shutoffs
Water hydrants
Water main valves
Water lines
Gas main valves
Gas lines
Electrical cutoffs
Electrical substations
Storm drains
Sewer lines
Location of each building (include name of building, street name and number)
Floor plans
Alarm and enunciators
Fire extinguishers
Fire suppression systems
Exits
Stairways
Designated escape routes
Restricted areas
Hazardous materials (including cleaning supplies and chemicals)
High-value items

Page 14

PLAN ACTIVATION

Emergency Alert

In the event that a situation or disaster occurs at Your Company, the Business Contingency Planning Team is responsible for contacting the Management Team and assessing the emergency situation.

An Alert will be sent to all Department Heads.  Status updates will be provided by the Business Contingency Planning Team to the Department Heads for dissemination of pertinent information.

Damage Assessment

During the damage assessment phase, the Business Contingency Planning Team will identify specifically who and what has been affected by the disaster. The Business Contingency Planning Team will evaluate the event that has occurred and determine what Department Heads will be required to respond to the situation. The decision to activate the disaster recovery plan for the affected areas may be made at this point or after notification and review with the Business Contingency Planning Team.

As part of the damage assessment process, the risk assessment to the business will be evaluated.	Considerations of engaging temporary facilities, equipment and vendors will be reviewed and a determination to enact recovery procedures will be determined by the Business Contingency Planning Team and Department Heads.

If after assessment it is determined that activation of the recovery plan is required, notification to the Executive Team will be made. An authorized individual will immediately notify the affected site that the disaster has been DECLARED.

Page 15

RESUMING OPERATIONS
The previously identified Department Heads will act as the Recovery Teams with the utmost attention of ensuring the safety of personnel and property.

The Recovery Team for the affected operations will assess any remaining hazards and maintain security at the incident scene.

The Recovery Team will conduct an employee briefing relaying pertinent details of what happened, what business operations were affected and the plan for recovery.

Additional notifications will be made to:
Employee’s families about the status of personnel on the property
Off-duty personnel about work status
Insurance carriers about incident details
Appropriate government agencies

An investigation will be conducted by the Recovery Team notating details of the incident scene via video recording and digital photography.

Damage related costs will be recorded to include charges for purchases and repair work. Protection of undamaged facility operations will be approached by the following procedures:

Procedures	Responsible Party	Complete (Y/N)	Comments	
Close up buildings				
Remove smoke, water and debris				
Protect equipment from moisture				
Restore sprinkler system				
Secure the property				
Restore power				
Conduct investigation				
Notify Government				
Separate damaged from undamaged goods				
Store damaged goods				
Record inventory of damaged goods				
Restore equipment and property				
Assess value of damaged property				
Assess impact of business interruption				
Report findings to Department Head				
Maintain contact with clients/vendors				
Page 16

TRAINING

All employees will review disaster preparation and emergency action plan procedures with their Department Heads.

New employees will be introduced to our emergency action plans via employee orientation.

Mock disaster training will be conducted annually and will involve local police and fire authorities.

Quarterly training will approach a walk through to functional drills to an evacuation drill leading to full-scale mock disaster training.

Walk-Through Drill -- The Business Contingency Planning Team, Department Heads and Recovery Teams will perform their emergency response functions.

Functional Drills -- These drills will test specific functions such as medical response, emergency notifications, warning and communications procedures and equipment, though not necessarily at the same time. Facility shutdown procedures will be tested, reviewed and modified as needed.	Personnel are asked to evaluate the systems and identify problem areas.

Evacuation Drill -- Personnel walk the evacuation route to a designated area where procedures for accounting for all personnel are tested. Participants are asked to make notes as they go along of what might become a hazard during an emergency, e.g., stairways cluttered with debris, smoke in the hallways. Plans are to be modified accordingly.

Full-Scale Exercise -- A real-life emergency situation is simulated as closely as possible. This exercise involves company emergency response personnel, employees and management, and community response organizations.

Page 17

Appendix A
Vulnerability Analysis Chart

Vulnerability Analysis Chart

TYPE OF EMERGENCY	
Probability	Human Impact	Property Impact	Business Impact	Internal Resources	External Resources	
Total	

Weak	

Strong	
0	
	High	Low
5	1				Resources  5	1 Resources	
0	
		High Impact 5		1 Low Impact			
0	
							
0	
							
0	
							
0	
							
0	
							
0	
							
0	
							
0	
						Overall Results	
0	

Page 2

The lower the score the better

Appendix B
Core Function Review Worksheet

Core Function Review Worksheet

Core Business Function	Site Function Performed At:	Recovery Strategy	
			
Payroll			
			
Communications			
			
Production and Equipment			
			
Customer Service			
			
Shipping and Receiving			
			
Information Systems			
			
Emergency Power			

Appendix C
Disaster Declarations Procedures

Disaster Declarations Procedures

The following individuals, in the order shown, are authorized to declare a disaster for Your Company:

List the individual’s name, title and emergency contact phone number.

Name and Title	Phone

Insert name/title here
Insert name/title here
Insert name/title here
Insert name/title here
Insert name/title here

To declare a disaster, execute the following procedures (outline procedures on how to declare a disaster below):

Appendix D
Disaster Procedures Checklist

Disaster Procedures Checklist

Action	By whom	Comments	Check when done	
1. Receive Communication on emergency situation	Bus Cont Planning Team Leader	log time		
2. Contact Your Company Business Contingency Planning Team and Department Team Leader	Bus Cont Planning Team Leader	log time		
3. Contact temporary facilities site and alert them that disaster may be declared.	Bus Cont Planning Team Leader			
4.   Assess Damage	Bus Cont Planning Team & Dept Heads	Network Equipment Building Employees		
5.    Estimate Length of Outage	Bus Cont Planning Team & Dept Heads	Length of outage
< 1 Hour
> 1 Hour - ,< 2 hours
> 2 hours, <12 hours
>12 hours, < 24 hours
>24 hours, <48 hours
>48 hours Unknown		
6.   Estimate Business Risk	Bus Cont Planning Team & Dept Heads			
7. Make Decision. If no declaration then contact the temporary facilities site and inform them alert is over If decision is to declare, proceed to step 8.	Bus Cont Planning Team & Dept Heads			
8. Declare Disaster, notify Executive Team immediately and declare disaster at site operations	Business Contingency Planning Team	Log time		
9.   Notify Emergency Response Team Leader
identified in Emergency Notification List	Mgmt Team LEADER	Log time		
10.  Activate Command Center	Business Contingency Planning Team	Log time		
11.  Report to Command Center	Business Contingency Planning Team	Log time		

Appendix E
Notification Scripts

Notification Scripts

This procedure is to be used by all Your Company Company employees when contacting other employees at home to notify them of the occurrence of a disaster.

The purpose of this procedure is to standardize the information given to employees regarding a disaster and to prevent disclosure of information regarding the disaster to anyone outside of Your Company.

Individuals making notification phone calls as a result of a disaster should also be aware of the fact that it is possible that the employee was at the site of the disaster when it occurred. Using this script will prevent unnecessary panic for the family members of the employee.

Contacting Via Direct Phone Contact

Hello, may I speak with  	  please?

If employee is not home, state the following:
When he/she returns, would you ask them to please contact me immediately at the following number _ 	.

If employee is at home, explain the following:
Give the employee a brief description of the situation that has occurred and what it has impacted and estimate of the length of outage, if known.

Tell the employee where to report and when and how long they should expect to stay.

Remind them to bring any recovery procedures with them.

If travel arrangements have been made for the employee, inform them of what they are.

If travel arrangements are to be made by the employee, inform them of where and when they are expected and verify they have the information to make the arrangements.

If employee is to remain at home, inform them that they are to remain on-call and prepared to report to work.

Remind the employee that they are not to speak to anyone regarding the situation.

Contacting Employees via Email

To all employees of Your Company,

Please be advised we have experienced a disruption of our critical core business functions. (Provide general details as to what happened, what it has impacted and the estimated length of downtime.)

We have taken the appropriate steps in planning for such events, and have activated our recovery plan procedures.

Please contact your Supervisor at (insert telephone number) for further instructions as to where to report. Be prepared to bring along your recovery procedures.

Be aware the local news media might try to contact you regarding details of this event. Please do not speak directly to the news media regarding this event. It is our policy to refer any inquiries to our Media Communications contact (insert name and telephone number).

Your attention to this matter is truly appreciated. Adherence to our recovery procedures are of the utmost importance for the protection of our most valued asset, our employees.

Sincerely,

(sender’s name)

Appendix F
Emergency Contacts Information Sheet

Your Company EMERGENCY CONTACTS SHEET

AGENCY INFORMATION	
Name:	
Address:	
City/State/Zip:	
Phone #:	
After Hours #:	

Insurance Carrier:	
Line of Insurance	
Address:	
City/State/Zip:	
Phone #:	
After Hours #:	

Insurance Carrier:	
Line of Insurance	
Address:	
City/State/Zip:	
Phone #:	
After Hours #:	

Insurance Carrier:	
Line of Insurance	
Address:	
City/State/Zip:	
Phone #:	
After Hours #:	

FIRE:	POLICE:	HAZMAT:

Appendix G
Training Drills and Exercises Timeline

Training Drills and Exercises Timeline

Jan	
Feb	
Mar	
Apr	
May	
June	
July	
Aug	
Sept	
Oct	
Nov	
Dec	
Management Orientation - Review													
Employee Orientation													
Contractor Orientation													
Community - Media Orientation													
Management Tabletop Exercise													
Response Team Tabletop Exercise													
Walk- Through Drill													
Functional Drills													
Evacuation Drill													
Full-Scale Exercise													

Source:  Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Appendix H
Annual Audit

EVALUATING AND MODIFYING THE BUSINESS CONTINGENCY PLAN
Your Company conducts a formal audit of its entire plan at least once a year on [insert date here].  The issues to consider when reviewing our current plan include:

	YES	NO	
Are the problem areas and resource shortfalls identified in the vulnerability analysis being sufficiently addressed?			
Does the plan reflect lessons learned from drills and actual events?			
Do members of the emergency management group and emergency response team understand their respective responsibilities? Have new members been trained?			
Does the plan reflect changes in the physical layout of the facility? Does it reflect new facility processes?			
Are photographs and other records of facility assets up to date?			
Is the facility attaining its training objectives?			
Have the hazards in the facility changed?			
Are the names, titles and telephone numbers in the plan current?			
Are steps being taken to incorporate emergency management into other facility processes?			
Have community agencies and organizations been briefed on the plan? Are they involved in evaluating the plan?			

In addition to a yearly audit, Your Company will evaluate and modify the plan at these times:

After each training drill or exercise
After each emergency
When personnel or their responsibilities change
When the layout or design of the facility changes
When policies or procedures change
Remember to brief personnel on changes to the plan