that your company establish a business continuity plan .
We don ’ t require a business continuity plan because the majority of our operations are outsourced
Organizations frequently outsource non-core tasks , which transfers some business continuity risks to external suppliers . Whether organizations follow up with vendors to make sure they implement business continuity plans and that those plans adhere to your organization ’ s standards is a key concern . Without the adoption of BCP , the mismatch between your organization ’ s business continuity needs and third-party vendors ’ capabilities will grow .
Our backup system will protect our crucial files from data loss
Your vital files are protected from data loss via backups . For even more security , you can encrypt the backup file or the storage medium . The easiest , safest , and most dependable approach to recover lost files following a data loss is through backup . Top leadership should , however , pose a few questions . Is the backup current ? Is it in line with your needs for business continuity ? Will it be easily accessible ? Does it fit your IT Disaster Recovery Plan ?
Even if you have a top-notch backup system , there have been reported instances where disruptions have effects beyond merely data loss . This was made clear in the early stages of Covid-19 when a sizable portion of the staff became incapacitated . Other risk occurrences have resulted in the closure of offices , the loss of clients or suppliers , or the disruption of some other missioncritical infrastructure . Thus , a data backup is only one of the elements of business continuity planning ( BCP ), it is not a full BCP .
Our organization has not had a significant disruption in years
As was already mentioned , failing to plan for an unlikely but extremely damaging risk occurrence may result in the total closure of an organization .
Unpredictable occurrences like human error , severe weather , or arbitrary equipment failures are to blame for a lot of tragedies . No amount of time without issues in the past can guarantee the continuation of operations in the future . A look at some of the global and local disruptions in the recent past just confirms organizations that haven ’ t faced a severe emergency in a long time end up in worse shape where there is no BCP because their employees are entirely unprepared to handle the crisis .
It is expensive to integrate business continuity into our operations
Will the “ savings ” cover the possible cost of a loss of life during an emergency , the reputation of your organization , or the inability to deliver services to your business clients if there is a very big disruption ? BCPs are in place to deal with circumstances like these .
Making Sure BCPs Work To Save The Organization
In times of disruption , even BCPs that have been carefully built and are based on best practices and guidelines , have been known to fail . So how do we guarantee that these BCPs work as intended ?
Oversight by top leadership
BCP initiatives need to be given high importance by top leadership . The Board in particular is in charge of establishing the overall business continuity plan agenda , approving BCP procedures and initiatives ( such as employee awareness training ), and allocating funds and resources to create , support , manage , and maintain the various business continuity plan components . Oversighting management should entail making sure they have prepared for Black Swan events , have learned from Grey and White Swan incidents , and have revised the organization ’ s BCP in light of lessons learnt .
The BCP must have a business-centric focus
Many BCPs eventually narrow their scope to just IT infrastructure and resemble disaster recovery plans . The Plans should have a comprehensive approach to all business functions . The top leadership must ensure it has a larger business perspective , and more importantly the rest of the organization should not see Business Continuity Planning as a technology-focused initiative , rather as something that affects all business functions .
The Covid-19 pandemic served as a stark warning for organizations . Few , if any , companies have business continuity strategies that particularly address pandemics .
The BCM process should have a substantive owner and should involve all staff
Depending on who is the internal process champion or driver , the BCM will either succeed or fail . Therefore , it is important to specify who owns the BCM . The lack of sharing of continuity plans is a major contributor to BCP failure . When a BCP is created and communicated to the entire team , everyone is on board . The degree of training and knowledge of the BCP is therefore a determining factor in how successfully the steps in the BCP are carried out . Regular training of your team will help them understand their role in reacting to catastrophes by increasing their awareness of your BCP .
Regular BCP tests and updating of BCP documents
Depending on how frequently and well tests are conducted , the
46 MAL49 / 22 ISSUE