Business Continuity Planning
Our typical approach to Business Continuity Planning and
BCM Plan Development is to work closely with the client organization's
staff to develop a comprehensive plan based on a five-phase
project plan as follows:
1. Business Impact Assessment (BIA)
2. Business Continuity Plan (BCP) development
3. Staff Training
4. Business Continuity Plan Validation: Drills and Exercises
5. Program Effectiveness Evaluation & Monitoring
Description of Project Phases
Phase 1: Business Impact Assessment
A joint client and All Hands team will identify, review,
evaluate and prioritize issues that pose potential crises
and/or negative impact for the client's business operations.
The joint team will also analyze the client's current overall
business continuity management planning efforts. The BIA is
a diagnostic survey that consists of issue analyses, risk
identification, and assessment of potential business impacts
and crisis situations. The diagnostic survey assists us to
determine the client current capabilities, level of training,
and categorization of potential business disruption situations.
The review of current initiatives will include:
1. Current Business Continuity Plan/Program Review
2. Corporate Office Capabilities (Assignment of Responsibility)
3. Identification of Resources (Internal, External)
4. Categorization of Potential Issues, Threats, Risks, Business
Impacts and Crisis Situations
5. Crisis Communications Systems (including media & security)
6. Current Level of Training
7. Interface Mechanisms
Our approach generally will be to:
Interview Key Personnel: The personnel interviews
will review business operations, current business continuity
initiatives, general information on business continuity management
and emergency preparedness, incident scenarios, policy, compliance
initiatives, crisis media response, internal/external interfaces
(infrastructures), business risks, strategic direction, documentation
and training.
Review Current Written Business Continuity Plans and Materials:
This review will consist of a comparison of the present Business
Continuity Plan Manuals and Supporting Materials against applicable
corporate policies, procedures and applicable requirements.
Recommendations for improvements will be made as a part of
this review.
Phase 2: Business Continuity Plan Development
Our approach is to assist the client's management in designing,
developing and implementing a Business Continuity Plan, as
follows:
1. Develop draft BCP materials.
2. Review the draft materials with key personnel.
3. Prepare final BCP materials.
We concentrate on assisting client management in developing
a Business Continuity Management Plan to facilitate response
to a variety of potentially disruptive situations faced by
the client.
Phase 3: Key Staff Training
We assist the client in the development and implementation
of staff training based on the Business Continuity Plan developed
in Phase 2, as follows:
1. Develop draft BCP Training Program.
2. Review the draft material with key client personnel.
3. Develop final BCP Training Program.
4. Schedule and Conduct BCP Training.
Phase 4: Plan Validation: Drills and Exercises
We assist the client in the validation of the Business Continuity
Plan through the development and implementation of a comprehensive
drill and exercise program, as follows:
1. Develop draft Business Continuity Plan Drill Scenarios.
2. Review the draft material with key client personnel.
3. Develop final Business Continuity Plan Drill Scenarios.
4. Develop draft Drill Participant, Controller, Evaluator
Training Program.
5. Review the draft material with key client personnel.
6. Develop Drill Participant, Controller, and Evaluator Training
Program.
7. Schedule and Conduct Drill Participant, Controller, Evaluator
Training
8. Schedule and Conduct Drills and Exercises.
Phase 5: Program Effectiveness Evaluation and Monitoring
Upon completion of the initial four phases of the Business
Continuity Plan program, All Hands assists the client through
periodic third party assessment and monitoring of the effectiveness
of the Business Continuity Plan, Level of Training and Plan
Validation process. The evaluation program, presented herein,
is designed to assess the ability of management and response
personnel to complete the sequence of critical tasks, under
a business disruption condition, using available resources
as outlined in the plan and associated materials.
The findings in relation to the client organization's ability
to meet the criteria for "All Hazards" preparedness
is based upon the evaluation of nine Essential Element of
Analysis (EEA). These are:
1. Administration (BCMP and Supporting Materials)
2. Incident Management/Response Organization
3. Training and Retraining Program
4. BCMP Facilities and Equipment
5. BCMP Implementing Protocols
6. Coordination with External Entities
7. BCMP Validation: Drills and Exercises
8. Communications
9. Ongoing Hazard/Vulnerability/Risk Evaluation
Summary
This plan is subject to revision based on client needs and
preferences. The entire project plan is modular and can be
modified as mutually agreed upon with the client. All
Hands is a network of qualified and experienced business continuity
and emergency management professionals who stand ready to
meet any business continuity needs including assessments,
planning, training, and emergency response and recovery.
|
