Imagine This
Imagine this: you’re laid up with a broken leg. Or there’s a family emergency and you suddenly have to drop everything. Could your business keep ticking over without you?
For many small, regional businesses, the answer is no.
Most small business owners start out doing everything themselves, and in many cases, still are. Whether you run a local trade business, a retail store or provide a professional service, there’s a good chance a part of your business runs off memory, old habits and whatever systems you’ve pieced together over time.
But what happens when life throws a curveball? Who steps in? And would they even know where to start?
The reality for regional small businesses
In Australia, 98% of businesses are small businesses, many of them family-run. In regional areas, that number feels even higher. Partners pitch in where they can, and maybe there’s a trusted team member who knows a few things. But usually, the real running of the business falls to one or two people.
Looking at our local area specifically, recent ABS data shows there are over 4,200 active businesses in the Surf Coast region. Of those, 2,666 are non-employing businesses, and a further 1,612 have fewer than 20 employees. Most report an annual turnover between $200,000 and $2 million.
These businesses are nimble and hardworking, but they’re also vulnerable to disruption.
When something unexpected happens, it’s not just your health or family that’s affected. It’s your income, your team, your clients and your ability to bounce back quickly.
And while insurance might help with financial losses, it doesn’t solve the problem of who actually keeps things running. The doing still needs doing.
Where to start
You don’t need to solve it all at once, but here are a few practical things to consider:
- Key Processes – Jot down the essentials of how the work gets done. If someone had to step in, how would they know what to do?
- Access & Info – Store client details, other key contacts and systems access info somewhere secure (and no, not on a sticky note!).
- Communication – Plan out who needs to be contacted (clients, suppliers, team, etc.) and how they’ll be informed.
Sorting out just a few of these can make a big difference, because business continuity planning isn’t just a box to tick, it’s an investment in your business’ long-term resilience.
And if you’re not sure where to begin, you don’t have to do it alone. With the right support, it’s easier than you think to put a simple, practical plan in place, so things run more smoothly when life doesn’t.
Need help putting a plan in place? I offer short-term, practical support to help get your systems and operations sorted, so there’s less risk for you and your team.
