Most small and medium-sized businesses have no
contingency plans for staff who might be unable to get to company
offices in the aftermath of an emergency, research by Cable and
Wireless reveals.
Over 65% of SMEs admit their businesses would be materially
affected if staff were unable to come into the office for a day or
less, yet a third of SMEs outside London and two-thirds in London
have no business continuity plans in place.
The survey of 100 organisations also reveals that less than a
third of small businesses have updated their business continuity
plans since the 7 July London bombings.
Jim Norton, senior policy advisor at the Institute of Directors,
said that business leaders had a responsibility to plan for
business continuity.
“The tragic events of 7 July and Hurricane Katrina, as well as
potential fuel shortages, have each shown in their own way that
businesses are vulnerable to events beyond their control,” he
said.
The survey shows that although a third of small businesses
recognised the need to back up data, they did not keep back-ups
outside their headquarters, which placed them at risk if their
offices became inaccessible.
Two-thirds of the companies had no provision for staff to work
from home or to access company networks.
This lack of planning could leave businesses vulnerable if
police cordons, fires, floods or terrorist incidents made buildings
inaccessible.
“We are calling for businesses to take business continuity
planning in all its aspects – technology, people and processes
– very seriously," said Norton. "That means backing up data
offsite, having access to alternative facilities and giving
employees technology to work from home.”
* Viruses and worms present the biggest security
risk for small and medium-sized businesses, a survey of
more than 700 organisations by Forrester Research shows. The
businesses also saw spyware and spam as more significant threats
than external hackers and identity theft. However, European
businesses were less concerned about malicious code than US
firms.