Some uncomfortable questions to ask yourself as we head into another storm season

As storm season approaches, it’s worth taking a moment to ask yourself this question: if normal operations were disrupted tomorrow, what would my business need to keep operating?

Even if your business avoids significant physical damage, the knock-on effects of road closures, power outages, supplier delays, damaged stock and communication failures can have a lasting impact on your business.

Many disruptions become a business continuity issue because something the business relies on stops working. It might be a key supplier, a critical system, internet access, a premises or a member of the team with specialist knowledge.

The next step is thinking through what happens if those people, systems, suppliers or premises are unavailable.

If a supplier couldn’t deliver, what are the alternatives? If your premises were inaccessible, where could the business operate from? If power, internet or phone services were unavailable, what would happen to your most important activities?

Disruptions often have flow-on effects. A supplier issue becomes a customer issue. A power outage affects communication. A road closure affects deliveries, staffing or access to customers. Thinking through these connections can help identify vulnerabilities that might otherwise be overlooked.

It’s also worth considering whether important information would be accessible when it’s needed. Customer records, supplier contacts, payroll information, financial records and insurance documents can all become critical during a disruption.

Most businesses have a reasonable idea of what they would do in the first 24 hours. The harder questions often emerge when disruption continues for several days or longer. How will customers be informed? How will employees work? What commitments need to be prioritised? What can wait?

The answers will look different for every business, but they’re worth working through before storm season arrives.