Every Business Needs a Contingency Plan

The coronavirus situation reminds businesses everywhere that  employees, financial operations, supply chains and customer relations can all be affected. Fraudsters and cybercriminals also might see an opportunity to catch your business with its guard down. 

That’s why every business needs a plan to meet disruptions with clarity, confidence and relative calm. At Chase, we have our own resiliency protocols as well as tools and support to ensure your business is prepared. We’re here to help.

The Anatomy of a Plan

A good plan first identifies the most likely disruptions. Separating the probable from the possible helps you chart realistic tactics and achievable goals. Disruption comes in many forms:

• Environmental—fire, floods, earthquake
  • Are emergency supplies readily available? Will your vendors be affected?
• Technological—data breaches, electrical outages, malware and denial of service attacks
  • Do you have back up technology available? Will you be able to receive payments from customers?
• Personnel—prolonged absence due to health concerns or illness
  • How will you manage through prolonged employee absence due to health concerns or illness? A good plan will answer a handful of core questions:

Regardless of disruption type, a good plan will answer a handful of core questions:

• What—systems and processes will likely be affected?
• Who—must be notified?   
• When—do specific actions need to be taken, in order of priority?
• Where—will your business operate?   
• How—will circumstances change the way employees do their work?

Getting Started

You’ve identified the likely disruptions. Depending on the identified possibilities your response will need to vary.  

Develop a continuity plan for each scenario. In case of potential data breach or malware attacks, notify Chase immediately, as well as your customers and vendors. In a situation where payment systems might be disrupted, have backup options in place if payments need to happen remotely. 

Ultimately, you want to protect employees, stabilize your supply chain and stay in close contact with customers. 

• Draw up scenario-specific health practices and evacuation plans. Know your protocol for securing facilities and data.
• Analyze and adjust cash-flow budgets so that you can pay employees and bills on time. Establish alternatives for paycheck distribution.
• Stay in close communication with existing vendors, financial institutions and external partners.
• Make it clear which suppliers, service providers and vendors you need to pay, including how much and by when. Consider keeping digital and printed copies of vendor-critical information.
• Prioritize transactions—time-sensitive, urgent, scheduled.
• Keep an eye on customer communication channels. Don’t overlook social media. 

Location, Location, Location  

For some businesses, a physical location is essential to ongoing operations. This might mean having alternate locations and backup facilities.

• Keep card readers and point-of-sale equipment clean and disinfected. Visit our payments support center for instructions.
• Can you rapidly shift accounting operations to a different location during a crisis? Be sure you have access to the tools you need to make time-sensitive payments, such as payroll and taxes.
• You might need Wi-Fi access or additional supplies and equipment, such as computers and deposit slips.
• Consider whether your business insurance provides coverage for a significant financial loss as the result of a closure or a disrupted supply chain.
• If your business is heavily dependent on a physical storefront, consider investing in your digital presence to help customers find you.
• How will workflow be affected at backup locations or for employees working from home? Can they get to important resources, such as banking IDs, passwords and accounts payable lists? Confirm that remote access and login credentials are current and that employees have remote access.