CONTINGENCY PLANNING Is your organisation prepared for the worst?


With the headquarters of major banks and financial institutions all in close proximity and the Stock Exchange, Bank of England and Old Bailey all located within the Square Mile, the presence of your company or employer in the City of London makes it almost certain that you would be seriously affected by an emergency such as a terrorist attack if one were take place here.


Contingency planning is crucial to ensure business continuity - and even survival.


Terrorism is perhaps the threat foremost in everyone’s mind, but it is equally important to prepare for the impact of a major fire, flood, cyber attack, power failure or pandemic.


The average business suffers 11 virus attacks per day, any one of which could


have a crippling long-term impact. Periodic concerns over the expected arrival in Britain of pandemics such as avian influenza have heightened awareness of the vulnerability of businesses if key personnel are incapacitated for long periods at the same time.


On a more mundane level, a prolonged transport strike or spell of bad weather could present serious challenges if the businesses affected have not made adequate provision for consequent loss of staff or revenue.


All City of London organisations of whatever size should establish emergency plans that include impact assessment, a testing out and review process, compliance with ISO 17799, establishing liaison points with local authorities and the emergency services.


At the most basic level, the plan should define who-does-what responsibilities, earmark temporary office accommodation and your means for protecting assets for the duration of an alert, and outline how communications such as phone lines and email will be secured.


Having a disaster-recovery plan which will, if necessary, help to relocate the entire business within days of an emergency will not only aid your company in riding out the emergency, it will also send out a strong, positive signal to your customers. Being seen to be a resilient organisation will give your company a competitive advantage.


For information and advice regarding business continuity issues, visit the Business Continuity Institute web site at www.thebci.org


14


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24