Exploring Strategic Business Continuity Planning Methods for Small Businesses in the State of Maryland

摘要

Abstract.;Business continuity planning (BCP) is the preparation and implementation of strategic plans that provide for normal continuation of operations with real-time backup of processes and procedures in an event of natural or human error disasters. Disruptive events to business continuity in the state of Maryland include severe winter storms, snowstorms, hurricanes, fires, pandemic diseases, technology threats, and threatening natural disasters. BCP is part of a business continuity management (BCM) process designed to identify business operational risks and vulnerabilities, and to provide processes and mitigating risks. The problem under investigation was that some small businesses in Maryland had not established nor implemented sustainable crisis management measures for BCP necessary to resolve problems of disasters that disrupt continuity of business services. The purpose of this exploratory embedded multiple case study was to explore strategic business continuity planning methods for small businesses in the state of Maryland as perceived by senior managers, the unit analysis of the study. Multiple case study is the proposed research design that utilized a semi-structured interview format to collect data from participants at onsite or offsite business settings, data analysis, and interpretations of relevant data to understand strategic business continuity plan (BCP) implementation by the small businesses with BCP and without BCP in the state of Maryland. The participants in this multiple case study were six senior managers selected from different business industries that meet the criteria of a small business in Maryland. The results of the study represented the outcome of the analysis of the responses from the interviewees, which formed the basis of the prevailing perceptions of BCP among the managers of the small businesses in the state of Maryland. The final findings of the study formed the framework for further research in business continuity planning for small business enterprises in the state of Maryland.