Business Continuity

Table of Contents

• Being Prepared for the Unexpected in Your Business
• Potential Focus Areas
• Phases of Business Continuity Deployment

Being Prepared for the Unexpected in Your Business

The past year placed many companies under stress – some through loss of business, some from sudden increases in demand – which exposed financial constraints, workforce challenges, technological weaknesses, supply chain disruptions, and key employee risks. According to a MANTEC survey of local manufacturers, 70% report that they either don’t have a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) in place or that their plan is not effective, especially in responding to the past year. 

Manufacturers know they must always be prepared for potential business interruptions, but it can be hard to know where to start in creating an effective plan.

Potential Focus Areas

For manufacturers, there are four main areas of focus when creating a business continuity plan or assessing operational risks.

• Single Points of Failure- This could be related to assets such as the plant, equipment, or logistical bottlenecks or it could be related to people such as a person that is key to the success of the overall company.
• Proactive Risk Management- Examples are working capital or insurance considerations, or technology security and remote accessibility.
• Dependencies & Commitments- These are commitments you’ve made or dependencies you have such as key customer requirements, revenue concentration, or supplier diversification.
• Policies & Documentation- This focuses on responses and responsibilities. How will the company respond to incidents and what are the roles and responsibilities?

Each plan will be tailored to the unique needs of each company. For example, in one case, the emphasis could be on surviving through the crisis of financial distress – in another, the efforts could be focused on leadership transition and succession planning – and in others, mitigating the risks of single points of failure among vendors, plant & equipment, and irreplaceable employees could be most pressing.

Phases of Business Continuity Deployment

Our dedicated team of knowledgeable professionals makes it easy to identify vulnerabilities and create an actionable plan to reduce risk. MANTEC will start with a gap assessment that drills down to what is important to your company. You walk away with an understanding of the favorable findings, areas of concern, and recommendations. The process is flexible and works with your schedule. Meetings can be done in-person, virtually, or both depending on the needs of the company.

For a limited time, as part of MANTEC’s commitment to improving the stability of our manufacturing community, companies may qualify for a grant that could reimburse 50% or more of your out-of-pocket investment in this service.