Small business ownership is sometimes full of hurdles, high jumps and hazards. That's why business contingency planning is so important; you've got to be prepared for the worst. Part pre-emptive strategy and part disaster recovery plan, a just-in-case business contingency plan is a critical tool for bouncing back from both minor crises and major catastrophes. A business contingency plan can be an independent document or a smaller part of your larger business plan. Either way, the strongest and smartest business contingency plan will prepare you for any number of worst-case scenarios. For starters:

1. A business contingency plan should protect your electronic information from loss, theft or malfunction.
2. Business contingency planning should help your business weather manmade and natural disasters.
3. A business contingency plan should act as insurance in times of financial hardship.
4. Business contingency planning should extend the life your business in the event of illness, accident or death.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Build a business contingency plan for responding to office emergencies

If your office faces a power outage, flood, fire or other isolated emergency, a business contingency plan can help you recover more completely and more quickly.

I recommend: Start your business contingency planning by downloading the Institute for Business & Home Safety's free disaster planning toolkit; it includes advice for building a disaster recovery plan and free forms for business continuity planning, property protection and more.

Build a disaster recovery plan with which to survive area-wide catastrophes

If your entire town is in crisis due to a tornado, earthquake or other act of God, a business contingency plan can keep you up and running.

I recommend: The American Red Cross offers disaster recovery services and resources, including a checklist of what to include in a personal workplace disaster supplies kit.

Create a business contingency plan that protects your data

In the event of a technological hiccup, outage or failure, your business contingency plan should ensure that you don't lose your electronic files, records or data.

I recommend: As part of your business contingency plan, consider backing up important data via online storage websites such as Pro Softnet’s IBackup, Iomega’s iStorage or Xdrive. Or, hire an offsite storage specialist like DocuSafe to protect your data for you.

Strengthen your business contingency plan with economic safeties

Not all disasters are natural ones. Business contingency planning can keep your business safe from economic downturns as well as environmental ones.

I recommend: Because insurance is a critical component of every business contingency plan, consider buying business interruption coverage, which isn’t typically sold as a separate policy but may be included in a business owner’s policy or property policy. Browse rates online via InsuranceNoodle or USInsuranceOnline.com.

Combine business contingency planning and business continuity planning

Where business contingency planning ends, business continuity planning begins.

I recommend: FEMA offers several free resources to help businesses build a business contingency plan, including a standard checklist for business recovery.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  While disaster recovery services are expensive -- business contingency planning consultants can cost between $10,000 and $20,000 -- they are not cost prohibitive; poor planning, however, is, as it can leave your company not only broke, but also broken.
• •  If you can't afford disaster recovery services, consider developing your own disaster recovery plan and then sharing it with your attorney and your insurance agent for feedback.
• •  Successful business contingency planning requires a committed contingency planning coordinator; select an employee to do the job and give him or her the appropriate resources to create, maintain and execute your business contingency plan.
• •  Every business contingency plan should include a communications strategy; in the event of an emergency, be sure you know how you'll communicate with your employees, partners and customers. Keep important contact information in multiple locations for easy and certain access.
• •  Don't just write your business contingency plan; practice it. Share your plan with employees, engage in regular evacuation drills and revise plans as necessary on an ongoing basis.