When a cyber incident strikes, time is the one thing you don’t have. Decisions need to be made in minutes, not hours. Yet far too many organizations wait until after disaster hits to realize they don’t have a plan.
Think back to the CrowdStrike outage that grounded flights around the world. Though it wasn’t a cyberattack, it highlighted how quickly businesses grind to a halt when the systems they depend on fail. Now imagine if that downtime had been caused by ransomware or a coordinated attack. Without an incident response plan, leaders are left scrambling—trying to figure out who’s in charge, what to say, and how to recover.
Cyber incidents are no longer a question of “if.” They are a matter of “when.” And the cost of being unprepared is far higher than most business leaders realize.
Why Businesses Underestimate Incident Response
Talk to executives in almost any mid-market company and you’ll hear familiar refrains:
- “We’re too small to be a target.”
- “Our IT team will handle it if something happens.”
- “We don’t have time to plan for every scenario.”
These assumptions are dangerous. Cybercriminals know smaller and mid-size organizations often lack the resources or preparation of large enterprises, making them easier targets. Attackers don’t need to breach a Fortune 500 to profit; they can lock down a regional business with ransomware or steal sensitive client data just as easily.
Even when companies recognize the risk, they often think a written policy in a binder is enough. But an untested plan is almost as risky as no plan at all.
The Real Cost of Being Unprepared
The consequences of cyber incidents hit hard across every corner of a business.
Financial impact: According to IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach Report, the global average cost of a breach is now over $4.4 million. That number climbs even higher when downtime stretches for days or weeks. Costs include legal fees, ransom payments, lost revenue, forensic investigations, and system rebuilds.
Operational impact: Imagine your systems are locked by ransomware. No one can access client records, email, or accounting software. Productivity drops to zero. Orders stop shipping. Vendors can’t get paid. The longer it takes to respond, the deeper the operational damage.
Reputational impact: Customers, partners, and investors lose trust when they hear your company was unprepared. News travels fast, and once your reputation takes a hit, it’s difficult to recover. Clients may leave for competitors who appear more secure.
Regulatory impact: Many industries have strict rules around reporting and compliance. Without proof of preparation and timely disclosure, penalties can pile up. Regulators don’t accept “we weren’t ready” as an excuse.
These costs compound quickly. A ransomware attack that could have been contained with a practiced plan may instead spiral into a multimillion-dollar crisis.
What an Incident Response Plan Provides
An incident response (IR) plan is more than a technical checklist. It’s a leadership framework for navigating chaos. A strong plan defines:
- Roles and responsibilities: Who makes decisions, who communicates, who coordinates with IT, legal, and executives.
- Communication protocols: How information flows internally, to clients, and to regulators.
- Escalation paths: When and how to bring in external advisors, law enforcement, or insurers.
- Step-by-step response: From containment to investigation, recovery, and lessons learned.
With a plan in place, organizations can move decisively when the clock is ticking. Instead of arguing over who calls the shots, leaders know their roles. Instead of drafting press statements in panic, communication templates are ready. Instead of wondering how to isolate systems, IT knows exactly what to do.
Why Practice Matters as Much as the Plan
A document alone won’t save your business. In a crisis, people don’t rise to the occasion—they fall back on what they’ve practiced.
That’s why incident response planning must include simulation and rehearsal. Tabletop exercises and interactive simulations expose gaps, build muscle memory, and give leaders confidence. Teams learn how to handle the pressure of real-time decision-making without the stakes of an actual breach.
At BizCom Global, we run IRx simulations that put leaders directly in the hot seat. In one format, small teams act as the leadership of a simulated company under cyberattack. They’re forced to decide: Do we pay the ransom? Do we inform customers now or later? How do we balance operations with reputation? In another format, panels of business leaders play through scenarios while an audience observes and discusses the outcomes.
The result is eye-opening: leaders walk away with a visceral understanding of how quickly cyber incidents escalate—and how much stronger they feel with preparation.
Managed Support: Why Go Beyond DIY
Even with a solid plan, many organizations struggle to manage incident response on their own. IT teams are often stretched thin, and in the middle of a crisis, they may not have the bandwidth or expertise to handle everything.
That’s where managed support comes in. BizCom Global’s RiskLOK provides proactive readiness, ensuring businesses not only have a plan but also maintain compliance and best practices. Combined with IRx simulations, RiskLOK creates a complete cycle of planning, testing, and improving.
External advisors bring:
- Experience from real-world breaches.
- Best practices across industries.
- Neutral perspective under pressure.
- Support for compliance and reporting.
This outside guidance can make the difference between a controlled response and a spiraling disaster.
Questions Every Business Leader Should Ask
Not sure if your organization is ready? Start with these questions:
- Do we have a written, up-to-date incident response plan?
- Have we tested it in the last 12 months through a tabletop or simulation?
- Do our leaders know their roles and responsibilities in a cyber crisis?
- Can we communicate confidently with customers, regulators, and the media under pressure?
- Do we have trusted external partners to call when we’re over our heads?
If you hesitate on any of these, your organization is likely vulnerable.
The Cost of Doing Nothing
It’s tempting to think of incident response planning as a “nice to have” rather than a business necessity. But the numbers don’t lie: breaches are getting more frequent, downtime is more expensive, and regulators are less forgiving.
Doing nothing is the most costly option. Without preparation, you’re gambling your revenue, your reputation, and your resilience on luck. And in today’s threat landscape, luck runs out fast.
Cyber incidents are inevitable. The only question is whether your organization will be prepared when it happens. An incident response plan is not just about technology—it’s about leadership, communication, and resilience.
At BizCom Global, we help businesses prepare with RiskLOK compliance frameworks and IRx simulations that give leaders real-world practice. Together, they provide the planning and the confidence you need to face cyber threats head-on.
Don’t wait for the next breach to discover your gaps. Preparation today can save millions tomorrow.
👉 Learn more about RiskLOK and IRx and protect your business before the next incident strikes.
