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Career overview · SOC 13-1199

Business Continuity Planners

Develop, maintain, or implement business continuity and disaster recovery strategies and solutions, including risk assessments, business impact analyses, strategy selection, and documentation of business continuity and disaster recovery procedures. Plan, conduct, and debrief regular mock-disaster exercises to test the adequacy of existing plans and strategies, updating procedures and plans regularly. Act as a coordinator for continuity efforts after a disruption event.

Also called: Business Continuity Administrator (Business Continuity Admin) · Business Continuity Analyst · Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Consultant · Business Continuity Consultant · Business Continuity Coordinator · Business Continuity Professional

Median pay (national)
$81,270
$46,230–$147,830 (10th–90th)
Employed (US)
1,128,200
BLS OEWS, May 2024
Outlook 2024–34
+3%
~108,200 openings/yr
Typical entry
Bachelor's degree

What the numbers say

Refit analysis ·Pay for business continuity planners shows an unusually wide range: the top 10% earn $147,830 versus $46,230 at the bottom 10% — 3.2x. The median of $81,270 leaves roughly 82% of headroom to the 90th percentile, which is where seniority, specialization, and the skills below tend to pay off.
Refit analysis ·Employment is projected to change +3% from 2024 to 2034 — about as fast as the 3% all-occupation average. Even so, BLS projects about 108,200 openings a year, mostly to replace workers who retire or change careers.
Refit analysis ·Where you work moves the number a lot. Across the 53 states with released data, District of Columbia pays the most for this role (median $106,810, +31% vs the national median), while Puerto Rico sits lowest at $45,510 — a 135% spread for the same job title.
Refit analysis ·O*NET rates Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension as the highest-importance skills here — so a resume aimed at this role should lead with evidence of those, not a generic skills list. On the tools side, O*NET flags Atlassian JIRA, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft PowerPoint as in-demand technologies for this role.

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Top skills employers ask for

Ranked by O*NET importance for this occupation.

  • Active Listening
  • Critical Thinking
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Writing
  • Speaking
  • Active Learning
  • Monitoring
  • Learning Strategies
  • Mathematics
  • Science

What they actually do

Core O*NET tasks for this role.

  • Develop emergency management plans for recovery decision making and communications, continuity of critical departmental processes, or temporary shut-down of non-critical departments to ensure continuity of operation and governance.
  • Test documented disaster recovery strategies and plans.
  • Develop disaster recovery plans for physical locations with critical assets, such as data centers.
  • Establish, maintain, or test call trees to ensure appropriate communication during disaster.
  • Identify opportunities for strategic improvement or mitigation of business interruption and other risks caused by business, regulatory, or industry-specific change initiatives.
  • Maintain and update organization information technology applications and network systems blueprints.
  • Review existing disaster recovery, crisis management, or business continuity plans.
  • Analyze impact on, and risk to, essential business functions or information systems to identify acceptable recovery time periods and resource requirements.
  • Write reports to summarize testing activities, including descriptions of goals, planning, scheduling, execution, results, analysis, conclusions, and recommendations.
  • Create or administer training and awareness presentations or materials.

Tools & technology

  • Atlassian JIRA
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft PowerPoint
  • Microsoft SharePoint
  • ServiceNow
  • Atlassian Confluence
  • Microsoft SQL Server
  • Microsoft Visio
  • Oracle Primavera Enterprise Project Portfolio Management
  • Structured query language SQL
  • Teradata Database
  • Actuate BIRT
  • Business continuity software
  • CA Clarity PPM
  • Computer operating systems

Knowledge areas

  • English Language
  • Public Safety and Security
  • Administration and Management
  • Customer and Personal Service
  • Computers and Electronics
  • Education and Training
  • Communications and Media
  • Administrative