The first step of a business continuity plan is to think about the parts of your business that are crucial in keeping it going.

• Identify your core business requirements. What do customers expect from you? What do you need to be able to provide and how quickly?

• Identify the interactions that take place within your organisation and between its customers and suppliers Identify areas where you are vulnerable.

• What are the most likely and greatest risks to your business? How likely are they to happen? What effect will they have on your business? Write down your own examples of incidents and lists ways of how to cope with them.