Agilient Security Consulting
MENU

Business Continuity Plan Template

Leadership team in a meeting reviewing a business continuity plan template

Free template

Business continuity plan template

A simple, editable Word template aligned with ISO 22301.

This free business continuity plan template gives an organisation a simple, editable starting point for a plan that its people can actually use in a disruption. It is a Word document of about five pages, aligned with the structure that ISO 22301:2019 expects of business continuity plans, and it covers activation, the response team, critical activities and recovery times, response actions, communications, contacts and an incident log.

By Mark Bezzina, Managing Director and CEO of Agilient, who has more than 20 years’ experience running security and resilience companies and has led over 300 projects. Last updated 29/10/2026.

Get the template

The template is a streamlined, entry-level plan. For most organisations with straightforward operations it provides a sound level of preparedness when kept current and tested once a year. Regulated organisations, those delivering critical services or operating across multiple sites, and those seeking ISO 22301 certification will generally need a more comprehensive, tailored plan.

Enter your details and the download link will appear straight away. A copy is also emailed to you.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Free call
What is inside

What is in the business continuity plan template?

  • About this plan: purpose, scope and objectives.
  • Activating the plan: triggers, who can activate it and the first steps.
  • Business continuity team: roles, responsibilities and named alternates.
  • Critical activities and recovery priorities: maximum tolerable period of disruption, recovery time objective, minimum service level and dependencies for each activity.
  • Response and recovery actions: checklists for the first hour, the first 24 hours and until normal operations resume.
  • Resources and alternate arrangements: people, premises, technology and suppliers.
  • Communications and contacts: who needs to know what, when and from whom.
  • Stand-down, exercising and maintenance: how the plan is closed, tested and kept current.
  • Incident and decision log: a record of events and decisions during a response.
How to use it

How do you fill in a business continuity plan template?

  • Start with the impact, not the template. Identify your critical activities and how long each can be disrupted before the harm becomes unacceptable. That is the business impact analysis, and it feeds section 4. The guide to creating a business continuity plan explains the method.
  • Name people, not departments. Every role in the team needs a named person and a named alternate who knows they are in the plan.
  • Write triggers in terms of time and impact. “Loss of the main site for more than four hours” is easier to act on than “a major incident”.
  • Keep a copy that does not depend on your systems. A plan stored only on the network that has failed cannot be used.
  • Test it. Run a tabletop exercise within a few months of finishing the plan, and at least once a year after that.
Beyond the template

When is a template not enough?

A template suits a small or medium organisation building its first plan. Larger and regulated organisations usually need more: a full ISO 22301 business continuity management system, board-approved tolerance levels under APRA CPS 230, or continuity arrangements that support a critical infrastructure risk management program under the SOCI Act. In those cases the template is a useful checklist, but the analysis behind it matters more.

Agilient’s business continuity consultants build and test plans for government, critical infrastructure and private sector organisations. To see where your arrangements stand now, try the free business continuity readiness check.

Want help with your plan?

A short conversation will show what your organisation needs, from a single plan and exercise to a full continuity program.

Talk to AgilientBusiness continuity consulting
FAQs

Business continuity plan template FAQs

What is a business continuity plan?
A business continuity plan is a documented set of procedures an organisation uses to keep its critical activities running, or restore them within agreed times, when a disruption affects its people, premises, technology or suppliers. It names who leads the response, what triggers the plan and what each person does.
Is this template compliant with ISO 22301?
The template follows the structure ISO 22301:2019 expects of business continuity plans and procedures. A plan on its own does not make an organisation compliant: ISO 22301 describes a full management system, including a business impact analysis, risk assessment, exercising and continual improvement.
How long should a business continuity plan be?
As short as it can be while still being usable. The core plan should fit in a few pages that the response team can follow under pressure, with detailed procedures and contact lists kept in appendices.
How often should a business continuity plan be updated?
At least once a year, after every exercise or real activation, and after any significant change to the organisation, its sites, systems, suppliers or obligations. APRA-regulated entities must also run an annual business continuity exercise under CPS 230.
What is the difference between a business continuity plan and a disaster recovery plan?
A business continuity plan keeps the whole organisation operating through a disruption, covering people, premises, suppliers and critical activities. A disaster recovery plan is the narrower plan for restoring technology systems and data. The continuity plan sets the recovery priorities the disaster recovery plan must meet.
References

  1. International Organization for Standardization, ISO 22301:2019 Security and resilience, Business continuity management systems, Requirements, iso.org
  2. Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, Prudential Standard CPS 230 Operational Risk Management, apra.gov.au