What is Contingency Planning and why is it Important?
Contingency planning is a course of action formulated for dealing with a situation that is unexpected. A contingency plan could be a response to a crisis, emergency or change of situation, a ‘Plan B’ if the original plan did not go as anticipated or even planning for holidays and sickness. Circumstances can change rapidly, and a swift response is essential to limit damage or losses to the business.
Where do I start?
Key points to remember when thinking about contingency plans are:
- Staff can be reluctant to making a Plan B as they have an emotional investment in Plan A, especially if they initially developed it.
- Plan B should be a properly though out process. If you are planning for it, there is the possibility using it. Therefore is must be feasible.
- The probability of a crisis occurring can be small, and therefore contingency planning gets side-lined. It is challenging to allow time for contingency planning, but in the long run, it could save your organisation from potentially devastating consequences.
To overcome this, the importance of contingency plans and the reasoning behind having them should be communicated clearly to everyone in the business.
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