Business Continuity Versus Disaster Recovery

Today I thought I’d go back to the basics and talk about the differences and similarities between business continuity (BC) and disaster recovery (DR).  I’m certain there is much confusion and misunderstanding around what exactly each of these terms means, mainly because they are so often erroneously used interchangeably, so this is definitely a worthwhile discussion to have.

What is Business Continuity and How Does It Relate to Disaster Recovery?

Both terms refer to strategies designed to safeguard business operations, but each one targets a different pillar of this strategy.  Business continuity refers to the plan for maintaining business operations during a disaster scenario, whereas disaster recovery refers to the plan for restoring essential services.  Thus, one is about maintaining, and one is about restoring.  Both are essential, but very different.

Said another way, business continuity outlines exactly how a company will proceed during and after a disaster.  BC plans often involve contingency planning to adapt to less-than-ideal situations while continuing to maintain business operations until the disaster recovery efforts have been completed.  Disaster recovery plans, also known as emergency plans or restoration plans, outline guidelines for responding to a catastrophic event like a hurricane or act of terrorism.

As you can see, there is a lot of overlap between these two concepts.  Let’s take a look at the key similarities and differences.

Similarities:

• Both represent proactive strategies designed to address unexpected emergency scenarios.
• Both are applicable to a wide range of emergency situations, such as natural disasters, system hacking, and pandemics.
• Both require regular reviews to ensure they continuously adapt to an evolving world.

Differences:

• BC focuses on keeping the business operational during an emergency event, whereas DR focuses on restoring access to key services.
• DR plans typically encompass additional employee training efforts, such as exercises and drills.
• Each one has a different goal. BC aims to minimize operational downtime, whereas DR aims to restore key services back to normalcy ASAP.
• Generally speaking, DR plans represent one element of broader BC plans.

So, there you have it – a quick primer of the differences between business continuity and disaster recovery.  I hope you found it informative.