JENNIFER H. ELDER, CSP, CPA, CGMA, CMA, CIA, CFF, is President of The Sustainable CFO. The company specializes in strategic consulting, business and executive coaching, and leadership development. In addition, she is an instructor for the AICPA and focuses on audit and accounting updates.

Preface xi

Chapter 1 Business Disaster Defined 1

Disaster Timing and Size 2

Disaster Types 3

Note 4

Chapter 2 Why You Need a Plan 5

Disasters Occur . . . a Lot 6

Disasters Happen Quickly 9

Disaster Response Is Expensive 11

Impaired Response 13

Some Industries Require Them 13

Your Reputation and Value Are at Stake 14

Additional Reasons 14

Why Businesses Fail to Plan 15

Notes 17

Chapter 3 Business Continuity Planning 19

The Five-Step Business Continuity Cycle 21

The Business Continuity Planning Process 23

Getting Started 24

Note 25

Chapter 4 Step 1: Obtain Management Support 27

Management’s Role 28

Obtaining Management Support and Approval 29

Note 32

Chapter 5 Step 2: Assemble a Planning Team 33

Role of the Planning Team 34

Who to Include 35

Organization of the Team 35

The First Meeting 37

Chapter 6 Step 3: Collect Data 39

Identify Your Mission-Critical Functions 40

Department Evaluations 41

Policies and Procedures 41

Regulatory Codes and Requirements 43

Useful Documents 43

Sample Forms 48

Chapter 7 Step 4: Evaluate Operations 49

Chapter 8 Step 5: Identify and Evaluate Risks 53

Risk Assessment Process 54

Three Risk Assessment Methods to Consider 66

Assign a Chief Risk Officer 72

Chapter 9 Step 6: Determine Recovery Strategies 75

Prevention 76

Incident Response 78

Business Continuation 81

Communications During a Disaster 82

Chapter 10 Steps 7–10: Create, Communicate, Test, and Regularly Update Your Written Plan 89

A Complete Business Continuity Plan 90

A Basic Business Continuity Plan 93

After the Plan is Written 94

Practice Your Plan 96

Chapter 11 Insurance Coverage 99

Predisaster Financial Planning 100

Basic Types of Insurance 102

Understanding Your Coverage 106

Concepts to Know 107

Filing an Insurance Claim 111

Insurance Adjuster versus Public Adjuster 113

Notes 116

Chapter 12 Computer Systems: Disaster Prevention and Recovery 117

Causes and Costs of IT Disasters 121

IT Disaster Prevention 123

Laptop and Cell Phone Protection 126

Network Security 129

Operating in the “Cloud” 130

Creating an IT Disaster Recovery Plan 132

Cyber Insurance 136

Notes 137

Chapter 13 Special Disaster Issues 139

Power Outage 140

Fire 141

Hazardous Materials Spill 142

Flood 143

Hurricane 145

Earthquake 146

Tornado 147

Winter Storm 148

Heat Wave 149

Flu 150

Conclusion 151

Appendix A Insurance Coverage Worksheet 153

Appendix B Risk Analysis Worksheet 155

Appendix C Damage Assessment Form 159

Appendix D Summary of Communication Systems 161

Appendix E Emergency Communications Summary 163

Appendix F Business Continuity Plan Outline 165

Appendix G Schedule of Training and Testing 169

Appendix H List of U.S. Privacy Laws 171

Appendix I IT Backup and Testing Log 175

Appendix J Sample Computer Network Map 177

About the Author 179

Index 181 

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