What is Business Continuity Management?
Business Continuity Management is a process that examines the potential risks to an organisation and their likely impact on its capacity to continue delivering its products or services in the event of a crisis.
The documented Business Continuity Plan that is developed for an organisation as part of the process provides it with a tested response to a crisis, enabling it to resume or continue with its business activities in the face of disruption, safeguarding its future and maintaining the confidence of its customers.
Why is Business Continuity so Important Now?
All organisations need to be prepared for a potential natural or other disaster by having a tested plan in place that will enable them to recover and be up and running in the swiftest possible time frame.
Nobody now believes that floods, earthquakes, ’flu epidemics, fuel shortages or terrorist attacks will never effect their business operations. In addition, business insurance providers are increasingly looking to offer reduced insurance costs to businesses who establish an accredited BCM system meeting BS 25999.
Business Continuity Management governs an organisation’s actions from the time that an incident occurs or a risk is identified through to the mitigation or elimination of the danger.
The British Standard relating to business continuity has been published in two parts, namely, BS 25999 - 1 / BS 25999 - 2, providing an overall picture of Business Continuity and the requirements for implementing a documented system for an organisation.
The Civil Contingencies Act and Suppliers to Public Bodies
Under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, local authorities, transportation and emergency services are required to have a Business Continuity Plan in place. In November 2006, the British Standards Institute published BS 25999 - 1 Code of Practice for Business Continuity Management. This included a requirement for key suppliers or outsource partners of local authorities, transport and emergency organisations to have their own Business Continuity arrangements in place so that members of the public are not let down when serious incidents occur.
Key Suppliers and Outsource Partners
The rule that a Business Continuity Plan must be in place is therefore a legal requirement that affects a large number of businesses of differing types and sizes. If your organisation is classed as a supplier or key partner of a local authority, transport or emergency organisation, you might find that you will not be considered to provide services in future if you do not have a Business Continuity Plan.
All Other Organisations
Even if you are not a supplier or key partner who is affected by the legislation, it is still essential to protect your business by having a framework in place for dealing effectively with threats to the smooth operation or very survival of your organisation when confronted with potential disasters. This will also be of particular importance to your business if it relies on a global supply chain that is more difficult to control and which might be affected by international disasters.
BS 25999 – 1 and 2
Under BS 25999 - 1, an organisation examines its objectives and its people as a whole. A Risk Assessment is undertaken to identify the range of potential threats that could occur and a Business Impact Analysis assesses the impact of possible disruptive events on the ability of the business to perform. As part of this, an organisation can identify the period of time that can elapse before the situation becomes untenable.
Strategies can then be determined that will enable an organisation to continue with its usual activities, possibly using alternative operating methods.
Business Continuity Plans can then be documented, setting out the way in which an organisation can not only survive a major incident but continue to deliver to the satisfaction of its customers. The documentation will include policy and objectives; controls and measures; performance; and continuing improvement. The Plan can be tested for practical purposes by carrying out a Business Continuity Exercise.
The second part of the Standard, BS 25999 – 2, provides the specification for a documented Business Continuity Management System. This was published in 2007 and enables organisations of any size or type to become certified to British Standard 25999 – 2.
Even with a Plan in place, it is essential for an organisation to remain prepared for a crisis by carrying out regular audits and reviews of its Plan and keeping its people aware and trained to respond without warning.
How We Can Help You Achieve Business Continuity Management for Your Organisation
Touchstone Renard’s approach to Business Continuity Management provides a practical framework that enables an organisation’s key contributors to the process to work in an effective and economic way to produce a successful Business Continuity Plan.
If you select Touchstone Renard to lead and guide your organisation and its people to achieve certification under BS 25999 - 2 (or to produce a tested and documented Plan that is suitable for your organisation), we will not allow the process itself to disrupt your day to day activities!
STEP 1 – Understand where your business is vulnerable
We will start by carrying out an audit and gap analysis in discussion with your selected managers and other representatives to provide an assessment of where you are, where you need to be and what you need to do to close the gaps.
STEP 2 – Define your Business Continuity Strategy
Then, if you wish to proceed, we will take you through each step to ensure that policies and plans are tailored to your organisation’s needs, taking away from you as much of the work involved in doing this as we can. We will help you to safeguard the future of your business and position your organisation to bid more successfully for contracts with clients who are concerned about Business Continuity.
STEP 3 – Develop Your Business Continuity Plan
We can work with you to produce a documented Business Continuity Management System and discuss whether you wish to achieve certification under BS 25999 - 2. If you do we can help you reach this final stage.
STEP 4 – Cultural Change
We can train your people, your suppliers or partners in terms of awareness and the part that they must play in the process.
STEP 5 – Rehearse Your Plan
We can lead you through an exercise to test your Plan and better prepare your organisation.
Following initial discussion, Touchstone Renard will give you a fixed price for any work that you commission, keeping cost to a minimum. If you wish us to train your suppliers or partners, you may only have to make a small contribution to the cost on this aspect.
If you would like a discussion on how we can help your organisation, or its suppliers or partners with Business Continuity Management or achieve BS 25999-2, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or via our website at: http://www.touchstonerenard.com/contact/ or telephone +44 (0)20 7866 8123.