With NIS2 transposed across EU member states in late 2024, tens of thousands of small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs) are now subject to business continuity management (BCM) obligations for the first time. Most have no dedicated BCMS team and no enterprise-grade budget. This guide helps SMEs pick a BCM SaaS platform that fits their resources, sector and the rigor NIS2 demands.
Why an SME needs a BCM platform in 2026
NIS2 is not scale-aware: if you provide an essential or important service listed in Annex I/II (health, energy, transport, digital infrastructure, financial services, postal, water supply, food, critical manufacturing, research, cloud providers, B2B ICT services…), your obligations are the same as a tier-1 bank. Concretely:
- Documented continuity policies (Article 21).
- Incident notification to your national CSIRT (e.g. ANSSI in France, CCB in Belgium): early warning at 24 h, notification at 72 h, final report at 1 month.
- Cyber risk management aligned with ISO 27001 / EBIOS RM.
- Supply chain mapping (critical ICT subcontractors).
- Provable continuity tests.
SMEs that try to cover this with Excel + Word + email discover three problems: (1) no auditable trail, (2) massive manual redundancy when mapping processes → apps → suppliers → risks, (3) inability to show coherence between artifacts to a regulator or to a client requesting compliance evidence.
8 criteria to choose a BCM SaaS as an SME
Don't fall for the "demo that dazzles". Focus on capabilities that directly map NIS2 requirements and the reality of a 1–5 person compliance team.
1. Full lifecycle coverage (BIA → BCP → exercises → AAR)
A partial platform forces you to buy more modules later. Verify the SaaS covers:
- BIA (Business Impact Analysis) with automated RTO/RPO/MTPD calculation,
- BCP/DRP/IRP/ERP (the 8 plans of the ISO 22301 family),
- Tabletop exercises with scripted scenarios and automated AAR (after-action reviews),
- Internal maturity audit.
See our BIA practitioner's guide.
2. Explicit alignment with NIS2 + DORA + ISO 22301
The SaaS must show a regulatory coverage matrix: which NIS2/DORA/ISO 22301 obligation is satisfied by which artifact. If the vendor cannot show this matrix, walk away.
3. NIS2 incident workflow 24 h / 72 h / 1 month
NIS2 enforces 3 strict timeline phases. The platform must have a pre-wired workflow that reminds you of deadlines, pre-fills the regulator portal content, and traces approvals. See NIS2 incident notification 24h, 72h, and 1 month.
4. EU hosting and GDPR compliance
For a European SME, a BCM SaaS hosted outside the EU = international transfer issue + extraterritorial cloud act risk. Prefer OVHcloud, Outscale, Numspot or other sovereign hosts. Ideally SecNumCloud qualification (French ANSSI).
5. Affordable pricing (< €15K/year for an SME of 50–250 staff)
Enterprise solutions (Riskonnect, Archer, Fusion, Veoci) often charge €40–150K/year, which doesn't make sense for an SME. Target €3,000 to €12,000/year for 50 to 250 employees, with a free trial.
6. Time-to-value measured in weeks, not months
An SME with no dedicated BCM Manager cannot absorb a 6-month implementation project. The SaaS must deliver a first usable artifact (initial BIA, default continuity plan) in less than 4 weeks.
7. AI drafting to cover the missing senior BCM
SMEs have no senior CISO/BCM Manager. The AI must draft first versions of plans, criticality justifications, exercise scenarios, from minimal inputs. See /features/ai-analyst.
8. Light multi-tenant for SME groups / franchises
If your SME has subsidiaries or you're a consultancy serving several clients, the SaaS must handle multiple organizations without exploding pricing.
2026 quick comparison
| Solution | Positioning | SME indicative price | Hosting | NIS2 ready |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excel + Word + Drive | DIY, free | €0 + time | Various | Not auditable |
| Riskonnect / Archer / Fusion | Enterprise (>1000 emp) | €50–150K/yr | US | Yes |
| Drata / Vanta | SOC 2 / ISO 27001 oriented | €8–25K/yr | US | Partial (cyber, not BCM) |
| ResiPlan | SME → mid-cap European BCMS | €3–12K/yr | EU / SecNumCloud (V2) | Yes |
See detailed comparisons: vs Riskonnect, vs Fusion, vs Archer, vs Drata.
Mistakes to avoid
- Don't conflate cyber and BCM. Drata and Vanta are excellent for SOC 2 / ISO 27001 but don't manage business continuity in the ISO 22301 sense (BIA, continuity plans, exercises). NIS2 demands both.
- Don't pick a tool without supply chain mapping. NIS2 holds you accountable for critical ICT suppliers. If the platform doesn't manage a CMDB of suppliers and contracts, you'll be exposed.
- Don't neglect exercises. Untested plans = no plans in a regulator's eyes. The platform must provide a library of pre-written scenarios (10 crisis exercise scenarios).
How ResiPlan addresses the 8 criteria
ResiPlan is a European BCMS platform (Next.js + Convex, OVHcloud hosting) designed from day one for NIS2 + DORA + ISO 22301 compliance, at a price accessible to SMEs. For an SME of 50–250 employees:
- Full lifecycle: BIA, 8 continuity plans, 30+ tabletop scenarios, audits, AAR.
- Multi-framework matrix: see /features/multi-framework-mapping.
- NIS2 24/72/1m workflow integrated, automatic generation of regulator portal content.
- OVHcloud hosting in Roubaix/Gravelines, SecNumCloud in progress.
- SME pricing: from €3,600/year (free 14-day trial).
- Time-to-value 2 weeks: import from Excel, guided initial BIA in 2 h.
- Claude Sonnet AI to draft BIAs, justifications, scenarios.
- Native multi-tenant for consultancies and groups.
Start a free ResiPlan trial — no credit card, initial BIA in 2 hours.