Business Continuity Planning

There are lots of reasons organizations don't have business continuity plans or don't have working business continuity plans. Maybe the senior leadership isn't interested in putting much money into what they view as a cost center. Perhaps they are suffering from "it-won't-happen-here" syndrome. It's possible that no one has really sat down and identified the potential for disruptions or simply hasn't time or resources to figure out how to recover from those disruptions. Whatever the reason, it's definitely time to correct the situation. This week's articles can help you begin, refine, improve or rethink your plan... read on.

When it comes to a business continuity program, make sure you understand what BC is not. (Item #1)     Assumptions are the IED's (Improvised Explosive Devices) of Business Continuity. (Item #2)     Here are the top ten mistakes IT managers make when performing business impact analyses. (Item #3)    

Right-sizing your business continuity capability is a juggling act between allocating enough resources to plan, to respond and recover effectively when your business is struck by disaster. (Item #4)     What are the 10 things you need to know when developing your business continuity plan? (Item #5)     If your smaller company needs to get started on a business continuity plan, here's a handy business continuity checklist designed specifically for smaller organizations. (Item #6)    

As always, I look forward to hearing about your concerns with regard to business continuity. If there are any topics that you'd like to see covered, email me at [email protected].

Bob Mellinger, President
Attainium Corp



1. Six Mistakes You're Making When It Comes to Business Continuity

Continuous availability of all critical processes in your organization is paramount. A business continuity program for the reestablishment of operations from a business interruption can be critical during outage situations. Many executives, however, misunderstand what business continuity is, or even worse, they misunderstand what it's not, and so choose not to invest in it. Here are some of the main misperceptions and mistakes when it comes to business continuity programs.
https://www.socap.org/knowledge-resources/CRM-magazine/article-view/spring-2015/6-mistakes-you're-making-when-it-comes-to-business-continuity


2. Assumptions: Business Continuity Plan Killers

Regardless of the reason an assumption is made, the effect is always the same: if the assumption doesn't occur exactly as cited, the Business Continuity Plan fails. An assumption is an obstacle placed in a highly visible spot - assuring that the writer can't be blamed if the assumption doesn't occur. A plan with multiple assumptions is an accident waiting to happen. The perfect scenario (where the stars and assumptions align in perfect harmony) is never likely to happen; the plan is almost certain to fail under all circumstances.
https://ebrp.net/assumptions-business-continuity-plan-killers/


3. A business impact analysis checklist: 10 common BIA mistakes

A business impact analysis (BIA) is central to the development of business continuity (BC) and disaster recovery (DR) plans. A BIA is a statement of requirements for recoverability, a hierarchy of priorities, and the value proposition to support senior management's investments in data backups, alternate facilities, duplicate equipment and other resources. It demonstrates an organization's vulnerabilities, and what needs to be done before a disaster to meet the needs of the business and what can be deferred until a disaster occurs. Unfortunately, many people performing BIAs make mistakes.
http://searchdisasterrecovery.techtarget.com/feature/A-business-impact-analysis-checklist-10-common-BIA-mistakes


4. Why many organizations struggle to get business continuity right

For many businesses, right-sizing their business continuity is near impossible to get right. Many organizations diligently allocate budget to business continuity, but most of the time these resources are under allocated, misunderstood or charged to the wrong person to carry out. Technically, right-sizing is not achievable when organizations don't invest enough time, money or capability to get it right.
http://www.continuitycentral.com/index.php/news/business-continuity-news/605-why-many-organizations-struggle-to-get-business-continuity-right


5. BSI's top ten tips for business continuity planning

BSI, the business standards company, has published a list of tips to help those new to the business continuity profession. The BSI's top ten tips for business continuity planning are identified here.
http://www.continuitycentral.com/index.php/news/business-continuity-news/106-bsi-s-top-ten-tips-for-business-continuity-planning


6. A Continuity Checklist for Small Businesses

Is your small business ready to get back up and running quickly after unexpected system downtime? Have you seriously considered all of the events -- from minor accidental deletions to major natural disasters -- that might cause mission-critical systems to go offline? Would you be prepared to get back in business?
http://www.carbonite.com/globalassets/files-white-papers/carb-continuity-checklist-smb.pdf


Quote of the Week:

"That which is not impossible
is inevitable
-- it's simply a matter of when."

--Clive Perkins, professional hunter--

Contact Us:

Attainium Corp
15110 Gaffney Circle
Gainesville, VA 20155
www.attainium.net