Business Continuity Planning and Opportunities in the Philippines
2/13/2020 | By Marella Gimenez
Last February 7, KMC Solutions partnered with the British Chamber of Commerce in hosting a Business Breakfast event: Business Continuity Opportunities in the Philippines, educating participants on the importance of Business Continuity Planning and how to better protect their businesses. The country’s leading flexible workspace provider held the BCP forum in one of their workspaces at 11F FourNeo, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, where guests were also treated to a hearty breakfast. An insightful talk was led by KMC’s VP of Sales, Thomas Cragg, where he discussed business continuity planning for organizations, given the context of the Philippines. This was later on followed by an activity in which the participants give their own take and share their own experiences on what their companies have done in terms of protecting them and other assets from unexpected disastrous events.
A business continuity plan are measures and arrangements that guarantee the continuous delivery of output and services in the event of these unforeseen circumstances, which also protect crucial aspects of a business such as important data and the company’s employees. This makes BCPs an important element to any company in the Philippines, being in a geographically disaster-prone area, resulting in multiple natural calamities and typhoons in a year. But according to a 2011 study conducted by a Japanese research firm, it found that only 9 out of 40 businesses in the country have BCPs in place.
The discussion then tackled disaster recovery and other forms of business continuity planning solutions, such as swing spaces, data storage and recovery:
- With the Philippines’ unpredictable weather conditions, organizations can provide good alternatives to their employees of working from other satellite offices or remote locations that are nearer and more accessible to them.
- In terms of data protection, it is recommended to have files backed up in a separate data center and companies be equipped with backup generators in case of power outages.
- The employees’ safety is of the utmost importance therefore companies should give significance in holding annual earthquake and fire drills, preparing people to know standard protocol and to know what to do at a moment’s notice.
A BCP’s nature is to be prepared no matter the circumstances and are designed to support the growth of the company. With most businesses flocking to Metro Manila, KMC and the Bristish Chamber of Commerce sheds new light in the importance of planning for the future and prioritizing the wellbeing of an organization’s people.
