A regional distribution company operating out of southern Alberta had grown steadily over 12 years, expanding from a single warehouse serving local retailers to a network of 3 facilities employing 87 staff and managing inventory for clients across western Canada. The company's general manager had built the operation through practical experience rather than formal planning, and the business had weathered minor disruptions before—a 2-day power outage at one facility, a brief ransomware scare that the IT contractor resolved before any data was encrypted, and the unexpected resignation of the operations supervisor who had managed the Calgary warehouse since its opening.

None of these events had caused lasting harm, but a recent board meeting had changed the general manager's perspective. A director with experience in manufacturing had asked a simple question: if the company's primary warehouse management system went offline for 72 hours during peak season, which clients would be lost permanently, and how much revenue would never be recovered? The general manager could not answer. The financial controller offered estimates but acknowledged they were guesses. The IT contractor, present by phone, noted that the current backup system restored data to a point 48 hours before any failure, but no one in the room could say whether a 48-hour data gap was acceptable or catastrophic.

The board directed management to conduct a formal analysis before the next quarter. The general manager began by listing the company's functions: receiving shipments, updating inventory records, picking and packing orders, dispatching trucks, invoicing clients, processing payroll, maintaining refrigeration for temperature-sensitive goods, and communicating with customs brokers for cross-border shipments. Some of these functions seemed obviously essential, but the interdependencies were unclear. The refrigeration system, for example, depended on continuous monitoring by a contracted technician who worked remotely and whose availability during a regional emergency was uncertain.

The company's largest client, a grocery chain representing 34 percent of annual revenue, had recently added contractual language requiring suppliers to demonstrate business continuity capabilities. The deadline for demonstrating compliance was 90 days away. The general manager now faced the task of determining which functions could tolerate interruption, which could not, what consequences would follow from various disruption scenarios, and what recovery targets the company needed to establish—all before any continuity plan could be written.