Recovery order before the pressure arrives

Free business continuity plan builder.

Turn critical technology, accountable roles, workarounds and supplier routes into a practical recovery sequence. Your draft stays in this browser and disappears when the page is refreshed or closed.

Build a recovery sequence

Private working draft

Set the order, ownership and fallback.

Use roles rather than personal contact details. Keep sensitive credentials, recovery keys and confidential supplier information in an approved secure system—not in this draft.

01 Coordinate the disruption

Planning scenario Incident coordinator role Use a role that can make decisions, not a person's name. Alternate coordinator role Who takes over if the primary role is unavailable? When should this plan be activated? Keep the threshold observable and simple enough to use under pressure.

02 Prioritise critical technology

Include only services your organisation genuinely depends on. Recovery targets are planning aims, not supplier guarantees.

Internet and network

Recovery order Target recovery Accountable role Usable workaround Supplier or escalation route

Customer sales and checkout

Recovery order Target recovery Accountable role Usable workaround Supplier or escalation route

Core business application

Recovery order Target recovery Accountable role Usable workaround Supplier or escalation route

Email and collaboration

Recovery order Target recovery Accountable role Usable workaround Supplier or escalation route

Files and business records

Recovery order Target recovery Accountable role Usable workaround Supplier or escalation route

Finance and payroll

Recovery order Target recovery Accountable role Usable workaround Supplier or escalation route

03 Check recovery foundations

Critical backups have a recent successful restore test An approved alternate internet route is available Staff can access an alternate contact channel Supplier routes are available when primary systems are down Recovery credentials are held in an approved secure system The continuity plan was exercised in the last 12 months

Know when to leave the checklist

People, evidence and official routes come first.

Immediate danger

Protect people and follow your emergency procedures. In the UK, call 999 when there is immediate danger to life or property.

Suspected cyber incident

Use a known-good device or channel and follow your cyber response plan. Avoid improvised actions that could worsen the incident or destroy useful evidence.

NCSC Small Business Guide: Response & Recovery

Governance obligations

Use qualified advice for contractual, regulatory, data-protection, insurance and sector-specific reporting decisions. This planner does not determine those duties.

Exercise and review

Test the plan safely, record lessons and review it after material changes to staff, systems, suppliers or premises.

UK government continuity guidance

Common questions

Business continuity planner FAQ.

What should a technology continuity plan contain?

A useful working plan identifies critical services, recovery order, target times, accountable roles, practical workarounds and supplier escalation routes.

What happens to my draft when I leave?

The draft is built in your browser and resets when you close or refresh the page. Print or copy it before you leave.

Does this replace an emergency or cyber incident response plan?

No. It is a technology continuity planning aid, not an emergency, safety, cyber incident response, legal, regulatory or insurance plan.