Business continuity management and organizational resilience: A small and medium enterprises (SMEs) perspective

In the current complex and uncertain scenarios, organizations are increasingly subjected to hazardous events and threats, which can be critical for their business operations and performance. In these settings, organizations are likely to experience high-cost impact if they are unprepared when a crisis strikes. This is more challenging for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that, due to their limited organizational and financial resources, are called to be resilient providing an effective response to such threats to safeguard the interests of key stakeholders and protect their reputation and brand. Business continuity management (BCM) is commonly known as one of the most effective processes used by organizations to cope with emergencies to continue or resume business operations, thus contributing to strengthen the organizational resilience (OR). Based on a critical literature review, this study provides an overview of BCM by highlighting the main implementation requirements, challenges, and contribution to enhance the OR. It also proposes a conceptual framework that shows how BCM is functional to and strongly connected with OR, especially for SMEs. Finally, implications for scholars, practitioners, and policy-makers are provided to recall the main research evidence and inspire future investigations.