Business Continuity tools are the one set of products and procedures that every business hopes it will never have to use. The other side of that coin, of course, is that they are also the one set that is essential to have in place should anything happen - particularly anything that is beyond the immediate control of the management of the business.

Whether a company is large or small, so long as it has a medium-to-high level of dependence on IT and communications to manage its business operations and, increasingly these days, deliver its products, it will share a common problem with all the others. If there is any discontinuity to the running of the business it will need a recovery plan that, in the broadest terms, consists of two main elements:

- One is that all current and historical data is captured and secured for use as soon as possible.

- The other ensures that the IT and communications services are brought back to operational status as soon as possible.