Our business continuity plan helps client retain key customers and better manage risk

Client challenge

Two of our industrial client’s largest and most publicly known customers contractually required our client to have a BCP. Our client needed to develop a robust BCP in four to six weeks in order to retain their two largest customers.

A BCP documents critical information an organization needs to continue operating during a disruptive and unplanned event. BCPs are crucial to businesses of all sizes because being prepared for an entire host of unexpected situations helps to mitigate risk and keep people safe while protecting an organization’s bottom line. Creating a BCP is a complex endeavor, especially for manufacturing and supply-chain businesses. To navigate the complexities, collaborating with a partner that has a high level of risk management expertise is essential.

Our client had previously worked with us and knew our risk management experts’ creative approach and systems thinking would be ideal for developing a plan on a fast track.

“Haley & Aldrich conducted the training on-site and our staff found a lot of value in the training, as most people were unaware of roles and responsibilities. The training was interactive and had opportunities to get hands on and visualize what to do in the case of an event.”

Client’s Director of U.S. Operations

Our approach

The Haley & Aldrich team was undaunted by the tight window for completing the comprehensive BCP. We started by first conducting a detailed vulnerability assessment. This included gaining an understanding of industry requirements and location-specific needs, as well as securing data backup sites and ensuring the right equipment redundancies were in place. Identifying these elements at the outset set the stage for an in-depth review of the company’s risk level, which would make BCP implementation smoother.

We also created a workbook that included a combined risk assessment and business impact analysis tool to help management prioritize risk and develop a threat analysis. The tool was flexible and dynamic, accounting for current and future needs such as if the company added or removed a product line. The tool was available online for employees to access electronically, allowing them to adjust the BCP as circumstances changed. Additionally, the workbook allowed our client to build customized documents for each of its key customers that detailed our client’s BCP, while still protecting the confidential information in the plan.

The Haley & Aldrich team also brought together employees in different departments and from different levels of the company to better understand each other’s work — and their roles in the BCP. With our facilitation the team tapped into their creativity — together we conducted group scenarios during which employees changed roles to address and see problems from different perspectives. This allowed each team member to experience one another’s world, and ultimately see how the whole system operated.

Knowing that graphics and visuals support dialogue and program retention, our team took the client’s employees through a collaborative, live graphic facilitation. We created a holistic visual representation of how the BCP pieces fit together and how the plan would impact employees. The visuals gave stakeholders a walkthrough of everything that needed to happen to go from “incident” back to “normal,” with scenarios ranging from a tornado to an active shooter.

“By using collaborative, group activities and making it relevant for everyone, various groups see risk from different points of view to expose things they hadn’t even thought of before. That’s crucial when creating a business recovery plan.”

Danyle Hepler, Haley & Aldrich

When our team finished, our client had a BCP, and a plan to implement it while meeting its most important customers’ contract requirements. Beyond this benefit to the business, our client’s entire workforce now views risk through the same lens, giving them priceless peace of mind.

Value delivered

• Developed and implemented a BCP in less than six weeks, delivering on our client’s contractual requirement from its customers
• Helped employees understand risk and take responsibility for their own roles
• Provided a clear plan to go from incident back to normal
• Used collaborative group activities and innovative visuals to increase staff retention
• Created a flexible, adaptive tool to drive the BCP