Every business should be prepared for disaster! says Bombox
Not a nice thought but independent research has shown that 20pc of all companies will suffer fire, flood or storm, power failure, terrorism or hardware/software disaster – that is a staggering one in five businesses which will be definitely affected by an event that has a high probability of threatening business continuity and therefore turnover and profitability. Yet how many businesses are prepared? Research suggests that without a business continuity plan, 43pc never re-open, 80pc fail within 13 months and 53pc of claimants never recoup the losses incurred by a disaster (source – Aveo)
Taking out insurance for financial loss as a result of disaster offers the comfort of financial relief, but this in no way helps businesses to start re-trading again. However, if it is accepted that a disaster plan, contingency plan and appropriate risk assessment needs to be implemented, just how do you prepare in a way that is practical, cost effective and does not divert attention away from the operations of the business?
Until now, the only option for businesses who wanted to prepare plans to protect their livelihood in the event of a disaster was to either try and do it themselves or employ consultants. However, if you are a small to medium sized business you could expect to pay around £2,500 to £20,000 for contingency management consultants to prepare a plan.
Realising that this is an outlay for businesses, Moyra Franklin, formerly a senior practice specialist in a legal firm created the concept of Bombox after experiencing the devastation and disruption caused to business as a result of a bomb attack. Moyra used a predecessor to the Bombox after the 1996 Manchester bomb and her firm was up and running within hours. She claims that the impact of this concept is brought home by the fact that 474 businesses in the immediate vicinity never recovered.
The makers say that Bombox contains items you need when a member of staff can return to gain entry and move around the premises safely. However, the real value of Bombox, it is claimed, is in the processes and procedures that you put in place to protect and gain access to intellectual property, important files and infrastructure support. Compiled and written by someone, according to the firm, who has first hand knowledge of disaster recovery planning, the Bombox contains the "Survival Bible" and most importantly, according to the firm, a CD that shows you in complete detail how to create your own disaster plans, contingency plans, risk assessment and includes templates for all the information you need.
With an increase in "man-made" disasters such as explosion or terrorist attack and the changes in our weather patterns, it makes sense to consider the unthinkable and act to ensure that, should disaster strike, damage limitation is already in place and business can go on, according to the firm.
Bombox in Manchester has appointed the Sittingbourne based marketing and PR agency Amethyst to undertake a sales and awareness project.
What they say
Moyra Franklin, Managing Director of Bombox, says: "Now is the time for companies to take stock of their disaster and contingency planning and implement straight forward, no nonsense plans. We have sought the service of Amethyst to alert businesses to the fact that this can be economically and easily implemented using Bombox. Our product starts at around £530, which is a small investment should the unthinkable happen. Whether this be a natural disaster or a terrorist attack, businesses protected by Bombox can be up and running again in hours."
