Good Business Continuity Management (BCM) is the foundation for a resilient organisation.
The first five steps to take toward building a business continuity programme include:
- Assess the situation
- Define the organisation’s resilience
- Gather critical data to determine risk
- Gain executive buy-in
- Determine the strategy to resume operations
However, the more vital question to ask is, ‘how can organisations focus on the continuous improvement of their business continuity strategies over the long run?’.
The current COVID-19 pandemic has caused many organisations worldwide to make abrupt changes, especially to shift into working remotely where possible, and with this came the increased reliance on technology and systems to protect organisations’ data and safely enable a remote workforce. Many organisations were not prepared for this kind of disruption, especially one that would last for such a significant period of time. The success of adopting these changes required a serious mindset shift – something else that many were not inclined to. Nonetheless, some changes are predicted to last even after the pandemic is over.
Image Source: Goh, 2020
BCM has greatly evolved from being a protocol to sustain operations during a cyber-attack or natural disaster. While ransomware remains a leading cyber threat, BCM today is an integrated discipline intended to identify and mitigate or quickly remedy a multitude of risks. As more and more businesses overcame the difficulties brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, perhaps more too, have started to prioritise BCM efforts to offer a more refined and structured approach to ensure operations can continue through and after a crisis.
When considering what BCM looks like for your organisation, there are many factors to scrutinise. These can range from a communication failure to an economic recession, and even automation – with technology and innovation constantly evolving, changes can take place at rapid speed. Effective BCM is proactive and is intended to enable businesses to quickly identify the impact or potential opportunity of a disruption. In addition, effective BCM ensures that there are multiple mitigation measures in place for various risk scenarios.
Image Source: Goh, 2020
A significant change for BCM is retaining and maintaining a dynamic corporate continuity platform i.e., adopting electronic storage and cloud computing. Read our article about the benefits of an electronic BCM platform here.
Remain robust in turbulent times through a comprehensive business continuity strategy that enables you to anticipate and prepare for potential outages and disruptions. CURA’s Business Continuity Management software solution empowers you with the operational resilience to survive and succeed through unforeseen incidents.
Sources:
Goh, M. H., 2020. COVID-19: Business Continuity Management in the New Normal. n.d.: BCM Institute.
