New and growing threats to corporate security – epitomised by international terrorism and Internet-based crime – are underlining the need for organisations to develop and instigate detailed business continuity plans.

More and more organisations are seeking to implement plans that will enable them to recover as quickly as possible from a severe disruption to their operations. That was the clear message from a Reliance Security Services Conference covering business crime which was held on Merseyside just prior to SMT’s Press Day.

Speaking at the event, David Hutcheson (managing director of Glen Abbot and one of the UK’s leading authorities on business continuity planning) suggested that this increase in interest is solely due to the growing threats posed by data attacks on the Internet, international terrorism, flu pandemics and corporate crime.

“Businesses and other organisations are at last beginning to wake up to the fact that they need to put in place detailed recovery plans. Plans that can restore their operability as quickly as possible should an incident occur.”

When outlining how to implement a business continuity plan, Hutcheson stressed that it is important to assess the risks an organisation faces. This assessment needs to take into account several important factors, including the Health and Safety (and welfare) of all members of staff, regulatory issues of the day, corporate reputation, financial safeguards, customer services and, increasingly, environmental concerns that are now playing a vital role.

After assessing the risks, it’s then important to evaluate the impact of a severe disruption. Through this, it should then be possible to mitigate and reduce areas of vulnerability.

Hutcheson suggested introducing a whistle-blowing policy to encourage staff to identify areas of weakness, particularly in relation to corporate crime. He also recommended discussing business continuity measures with other organisations in the area, perhaps as neighbours but also as rivals facing up to similar challenges and threats.

Preparations, urged Hutcheson, should be framed with help from the police service.

When writing the business continuity plan, it’s important to make it pertinent and to the point. Too many plans, said Hutcheson, are weighed down by jargon and over-elaborate detail. “These are components that will hamper any attempts to implement the plan effectively.”

In addition, an incident is often not best managed by an organisation’s chief executive. “They are usually in a strategic role, and do not have the practical knowledge of how their business operates on a day-to-day basis,” commented Hutcheson.

  • Steve Molyneux – counter-terrorism security advisor to the Merseyside Police – offered an insight into how measures were advancing in the fight against terrorism.
Molyneux stated that the major terrorist threat to the UK still arises from Islamist extremism. “However,” added Molyneux, “a more likely threat to the business world is from domestic extremism, and most notably the Anmal Rights factions. We shouldn’t forget, either, that dissident Irish republican groups still aspire to carry out attacks in the UK.

“Businesses have an important role to play in the fight against terrorism. Whether it lies in the storage of information or security officers being extra vigilant, everything helps.”

Source

SMT