Contingency plan

For the play, see The Contingency Plan.

A contingency plan is a plan devised for an outcome other than in the usual (expected) plan.

It is often used for risk management for an exceptional risk that, though unlikely, would have catastrophic consequences. Contingency plans are often devised by governments or businesses. For example, suppose many employees of a company are traveling together on an aircraft which crashes, killing all aboard. T vnbncnjvjnnbnnbnnbnbkvlcbjjnm b

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has published a contingency planning guide for information technology systems.

In the United States

Cantor Fitzgerald, a financial services company, is a prominent example of a successful implementation of a business contingency plan. In the space of two hours, the firm lost 658 of its 960 New York employees in the September 11 attacks, as well as much of its office space and trading facilities. Despite these significant losses, the firm was able to resume business within a week. It remains a successful company today.

In the United States, all HAZMAT operations require contingency plans.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency, through RCRA and EPCRA, has defined specific formats for Local Emergency Planning and the National Contingency Plan.

See also

• CERT
• Computer security – Protection of computer systems from information disclosure, theft or damage
• Information assurance – Multi-disciplinary methods for decision support systems security
• Information security – Protecting information by mitigating risk
• National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) – Measurement standards laboratory in the United States
• Risk – Possibility of something bad happening
• Risk management – Identification, evaluation and control of risks

External links

• Association of Contingency Planners