Business Continuity Awareness Week – the journey

Carol Moffitt and Jay Grove summarize last week’s Americas & Australasia Business Continuity Awareness Week and look ahead to next year's.

With 20 years experience in our industry (and that’s not combined!), we are still amazed at how ‘youthful’ our industry is. Even after all the recent and not so recent events, multi-nationals through to start-ups still admit to having a long ways to go to implement appropriate solutions that will position their people and their organizations to survive and manage through the inevitable. For we all know;

The next event is coming…
It will be different, and…
No one is exempt!

To participate in Business Continuity Awareness Week (BCAW) activities this year, we have had the privilege of attending the Continuity Insights conference and seeing/hearing first hand from the survivors of Hurricane Katrina. First, let me say how much respect we have for the people of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. They are an incredible example of human resilience, determination and heart! We can learn so much from them and that is what Awareness Week is all about – learning and sharing.

The beginning
Business Continuity Awareness Week’s roots are in the UK with an initiative that was started up by the Business Continuity Institute to raise awareness in business but also with a strong focus on engaging partnership with local, regional and federal government. A few years back a collaboration of Canadian affiliated business continuity groups decided to take it to the next level in Canada and it quickly spread to include the US and most other regions around the globe. It is intended to be an initiative that promotes the industry and discipline of business continuity (and all its related disciplines/titles) and not one particular industry group. We continue to take a collaborative approach to reach out to our community while leveraging those industry groups to help us promote, learn, and share with our colleagues, clients, vendors/suppliers and the public-at-large.

Today
Our focus has not changed. The goal is to promote business continuity awareness around the globe. Like our discipline, the concept is simple, the implementation can be complex. Our approach has been to reach out to our colleagues to share their experiences – a virtual conference if you like! It is through networking and sharing that we grow as individuals, organizations and an industry.

As with anything, it is up to us to make a difference, if we choose too. The BCAW volunteer group has chosen to continue to reach out and share the learning’s of our industry but it can only continue to happen with your assistance and commitment! Compared to 2005, we experienced a decline in participation in 2006.

We, as practitioners in our chosen field, must take the torch of light and keep it raised and burning bright. With our knowledge we can assist one another. Help our neighbour…whether it is next door, across the province, around the state, or around the globe…we all have a stake at hand. We have the knowledge, we have been trained, we have had first-hand-experience, and we know the hours it takes and the re-work it takes to get a plan off the ground…from thought to paper to planning to implementation and if necessary, execution. The road can be long, the curves can be many, the boulders can be large, BUT, together we will keep the flame alive.

Continuing the journey
BCAW2007 will be May 6 through 12, 2007. This is your opportunity to participate, learn and give back to the industry and hopefully contribute to making a difference in how an individual/organization may respond to the next event!

Global resiliency includes you
We want you to help us, help YOU! Start your planning and make a choice to be a part of BCAW 2007. To expand our sharing of information, the techniques that flourish, the secrets of success, we want your story, a presentation technique that gains the business continuity buy-in a budget time, or a hilarious learning from a unpleasant disaster….please send them to us. It is open season – all learning’s are welcomed! Our mailbox is always open BCAW2007@yahoo.ca and your colleagues want to hear from YOU!

Jay Grove and Carol Moffitt are certified business continuity professionals. Both have been heavily involved in the promotion of BCM through BCAW as well as volunteering in various capacities globally with organizations such as BCI, DRIE, DRII and have spoken at many industry events. Jay and Carol may be contacted as follows: jay.grove@directenergy.com and cmoffitt@rim.com

•Date: 17th May 2006 • Region: Various • Type: Article •Topic: BC general
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