Crisis Communications – Planning for a Data Security Breach

When your company experiences a security breach, whether it’s a result of fraud, theft, or human error how you respond can make a world of difference to your shareholders, your customers, and your overall corporate image. An Identity Theft Resource Center poll states that “failure to communicate clearly in a crisis can increase (customer) turnover… Continue reading Crisis Communications – Planning for a Data Security Breach

Executive Commitment to BCP

Whether it’s the public or private sector, there’s no more important critical factor that determines the quality and success of business continuity and disaster recovery programs than executive commitment. This is even more true in a down economy. Without this support, budgets will be insufficient, education will be incomplete or non-existent, there will be little… Continue reading Executive Commitment to BCP

Testing your BC or DR Plan – What Would Confucius Say?

An exercise of the elements of a business continuity or disaster recovery (BC/DR) plan is an important aspect of an organization’s emergency preparedness. An BC/DR plan exercise validates the plan and procedures, tests/trains responders in simulated real conditions, and provides feedback to the plan developers. An exercise also can explore the ramifications of the crisis… Continue reading Testing your BC or DR Plan – What Would Confucius Say?

How do Mature BCM Programs Stay Ahead of the Game?

Not every business continuity program is exactly the same. There are different programs for different organizational cultures. Knowing that programs do not typically mirror each other, there are obvious trends that become apparent when comparing a “very immature” to a “very mature” program. BC Management’s International Benchmarking Advisory Board selected program maturity as the awareness… Continue reading How do Mature BCM Programs Stay Ahead of the Game?

Proactive Communications for Education, Security and Restoration in the Wake of Pandemic Influenza

With H1N1 now present in all parts of the world and the annual flu season underway, health experts believe as much as 40 percent of the global workforce could be affected at any given time. Not since 1968 have we faced such a bona fide threat from a pandemic outbreak. Obviously, this has prompted business… Continue reading Proactive Communications for Education, Security and Restoration in the Wake of Pandemic Influenza

Seven Reasons You Should Blueprint Your Organization’s Dependencies

  When you imagine the organization you’re working to protect, how do you see it in your mind’s eye?  How do you develop a sense for this complex set of buildings, people, computers, software, vendors and more?  And once you see the big picture, how do you record it and share it with others to… Continue reading Seven Reasons You Should Blueprint Your Organization’s Dependencies

The Essential Components of Data Center Design

The modern data center spans the gamut from the tiny “cargo container” style to gigantic data center campuses that sprawl across hundreds of acres, and from energy gluttons to theorized electricity sippers. The best design is not only focused on energy efficiency but must consider flexibility to meet a constantly changing environment. Since requirements are… Continue reading The Essential Components of Data Center Design

Crisis Communication

Communication failures have historically plagued organizations in their ability to respond to and minimize the human, operational, and financial impact of a crisis. When disaster strikes and every second counts, organizations need to focus on the mission-critical tasks of ensuring the safety of their people and continuing operations. One of the backbones to accomplishing these… Continue reading Crisis Communication

Beyond Mass Notification

Transforming Business Continuity Capabilities by Targeting Actionable Information to Thousands This article will discuss best practices around emergency notification as well as list the requirements an organization should demand before choosing an effective business continuity planning (BCP) or emergency notification system. It covers the downfalls of mass notification which excludes the ability to target actionable… Continue reading Beyond Mass Notification