This document provides guidance on developing a business continuity plan using an approach that structures the plan by functions. It recommends that each functional team create a "mini BCP" to catalog their mission critical and secondary activities, and how they would scale back those activities if a disruption occurred. An example checklist is provided for the Finance function, listing 5 mission critical activities and 3 secondary activities, along with the standard operating procedure and triggered action for each. The document stresses that while this approach avoids prioritizing some operations over others, it risks creating plans in silos without a holistic view of how resources may be shared between departments during a disruption.

1. Step 4:
Collate Helpful
Resources
Approach
#1
-
Structure
by
Events
APPROACH #1 STEP 4
Create an Appendix with resources
that will be helpful during a disruption

2. Key points of contact for your
facilities and systems
Emergency services agencies and
first responders
Evacuation maps/diagrams
Disaster/emergency kit contents lists
Create an
Appendix with
resources that
will be helpful
during a
disruption.
For example:
Contact information for key personnel,
especially those providing management
and support during an interruption

3. Step 5: Implement
Strategies
Approach
#1
-
Structure
by
Events
APPROACH #1 STEP 5
Review and discuss the draft BCP
with a diverse team!

4. “Working with people of different
backgrounds doesn’t just give the group a
different point of view; it makes you reassess
your own. This is extremely powerful because
we’re all trapped in what we’ve previously
learnt. And ‘previously learnt’ often means
what we’ve previously been told. And that’s
usually not true or entirely accurate.”
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JOHN HUNT, IN THE ART OF AN IDEA
Approach
#1

5. Here is some question prompts to
make your BCPC discussion
productive:
Will we know what to do—and who will do it—based on the
contents of this plan?
Are our critical functions addressed?
Do we feel more confident—or more uncertain—about our
resilience with this plan?
What are the strengths of this plan?
What are the weak points?

6. MARY
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ACTION
PARTNERSHIP
Structure by
Function
Another way to develop a plan is to review your
existing functions and departments and ask each
functional team to create a mini BCP.
The upside of this approach is that it doesn’t pit
operations and activities against each other.
Each function determines its mission-critical and
secondary activities and how they will scale back
during an interruption.
APPROACH #2

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ACTION
PARTNERSHIP
Structure by
Function
The downside of this approach is that the result is not
a holistic view of the organization; each mini BCP
was created independently.
Drafting the plan by function reinforces silos and may
eliminate the opportunity to adjust capacity and share
resources between departments.
APPROACH #2

8. Step 1:
Catalog Functional
Activities
Approach
#2
-
Structure
by
Function
APPROACH #2 STEP 1
Consider creating an activity checklist to
help guide the Business Continuity Plan
conversations for functional teams.

9. Here's an
example:
Mission-critical activity #1: Payroll
Standard operating procedure - Staff Accountant
reports payroll weekly by uploading data to our
external provider. Payroll reports are reconciled bi-
weekly.
Action if BCP is Triggered – SAME; Payroll reports
are reconciled monthly
Mission-critical activity #2:
Payment of benefits
Standard operating procedure - AP team processes
payments weekly, in-house
Action if BCP is Triggered - AP team switches to
external processing provider for all critical payments;
frequency of payments reduced to bi-weekly
FUNCTION NAME: FINANACE

10. Here's an
example:
Mission-critical activity #3:
Onboarding of new hires
Standard operating procedure - Paperwork is
processed upon hire
Action if BCP is Triggered - Hiring activities are
temporarily suspended
Mission-critical activity #4: Cash
flow forecasting
Standard operating procedure - Forecasts are prepared
every 90 days
Action if BCP is Triggered - Forecasts are prepared
every two weeks
FUNCTION NAME: FINANACE

11. Here's an
example:
Mission-critical activity #5:
Funder reporting
Standard operating procedure - Funder reports are
prepared per their respective due dates, such as
every 90 days
Action if BCP is Triggered – Request flexibility from
funders; delay reporting as permitted
Secondary activity #1: Updating of
finance and accounting manual
Standard operating procedure - Complete one section
of the manual each month
Action if BCP is Triggered - Postpone until after the
disruption ends
FUNCTION NAME: FINANACE

12. Here's an
example:
Secondary activity #2: Selection of
a new financial management
system
Standard operating procedure - Complete vetting
process for a minimum of 4 vendors by year-end
Action if BCP is Triggered - Postpone until after the
disruption ends
Secondary activity #3: Redesign of
board financial dashboard
Standard operating procedure - Due by the end of the
fiscal year
Action if BCP is Triggered - Postpone completion until
after the disruption
FUNCTION NAME: FINANACE

13. Knowledge
Check!
"What’s one activity that must
continue without fail, even if your
agency faces a disruption?
Has your agency developed a backup
plan for this activity?"
Question #2
Pause and Reflect
MOVE TO NEXT ACTIVITY TO ANSWER