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NOTICE:
TIEMS Transportation Safety and Security Workshop January 28-29th 2003
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Welcome to
the
Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management Crisis and Emergency Management
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| January 2003
Volume 3 - Number 4 |
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Links:
Current events
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September 11, 2001 and the Nature of Business
Continuity Planning
John F. Smith
Abstract
Business Continuity Planning has been around for some
time, and as with many other processes we have today, started with the military.
Even to this day, many individuals involved with emergency preparedness,
response, and continuity planning have had their start in either law enforcement
or the military. Whether the ideal business continuity planner is a
business savvy emergency preparedness professional, or an emergency preparedness
savvy business professional, the situations dealt with in Business Continuity
Planning are unique, but represent many of the same challenges as public
sector mitigation, planning, response and recover operations.September 11 was an extreme event in every count, and illustrated to the world how important continuity planning is to every organization, regardless of size, revenue, employees, or location. In fact, smaller organizations with fewer and more concentrated resources have a stronger need for a business continuity plan. The plan itself, however, must be communicated clearly with all employees and tested in an ‘as-real-as-possible’ environment. The 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, in many respects served both as a realistic test for many companies, and the motivation for others to develop and maintain a business continuity plan. Because of the significant impact on the world’s economy by September 11, and the possibility of continued terrorist threats across the globe, businesses must be vigilant in preparing for and recovering from disasters of any nature: accidental or intentional, natural or man-made. The ‘buck’ stops at Business Continuity Planning, as companies can no longer participate in the world’s economy if they no longer exist. Additionally, with limited governmental resources (loans and other sources of recovery funds), businesses must prepare to recover by themselves, which would reduce the strain on local and federal resources in the wake of a disaster. Without the existence of strong, comprehensive business continuity plans, our nation and the world risks even more devastating economic problems, loss of life, resources, money, and unique value that is critical to the nature of business in America and abroad. Without specific legislation requiring organizations to have an enterprise-wide business continuity plan, it is up to the persuasive arguments made by emergency management professionals, business continuity planners, customers, suppliers, and stakeholders. Future efforts to help companies develop, maintain, enact, and recover their business continuity plans without this legislation in place will be challenging at best. Technologies, employee relations, and even the nature of business is changing almost daily, changes that can affect how organizations plan for and recover from disasters. To full paper |