| Little things do count Business continuity must look at both the global big picture and the fine grains of a local process says John Glenn. “For want of a nail, a shoe was lost.
So goes the classic as I vaguely recall it.
* We know that without the computers and the related infrastructure, we can’t crunch numbers, but we forget that the people who enter the numbers to be crunched and who deal with the results need a place to work and a few basic office necessities - desks, chairs, light. * We know that we need call-trees to get the teams doing what they practiced, but we fail to figure out what to do if the phones - wire and cellular - don’t work, if the pager tower is down (or simply shut down). * We carefully put the business continuity and disaster recovery plans on line but forget to copy the information to the backup tape. Business continuity must look at both the global
big picture and the fine grains of a local process. It is indeed
a profession where we work from the middle toward both ends. One of the reasons that Tampa Bay enjoys a high degree of success is that its emergency managers - public sector business continuity planners, if you will - look at local situations in light of the overall scheme. Evacuation is staged, with one county moving its people out of the way so residents of the neighbouring county can move away from danger. Evacuations also are called before evacuation routes flood - I-75 south of Tampa has some low spots that, had emergency management personnel been involved, would have been elevated. It’s the little things. A dip in a defense highway that makes it at times impassable was not a consideration when the road was built. It’s fine for a B-52 runway - the United States’ Interstate system is designed with straight stretches sufficient for a B-52 bomber to land and take off - but not necessarily as an storm evacuation route. Perhaps business continuity planners should hang up a sign that reads THINK SMALL so that we will remember that little things do count, especially when they are unavailable. Ever try to fill out a paper form without pen
or pencil? If you ever came back from a foreign port on a jumbo
jet, you can understand how valuable pens and pencils can be - 400-plus
people filling out Customs declarations and only 50 pens available.
It’s the little things that can disrupt the best laid plan.
What if sessions need to include as many people as possible, preferably with “munchies” which help people get into a talkative mood. At this point, the object of the exercise is to find out what people really need. In most cases, specifics usually are not critical but beware of the specifics which ARE critical. Make certain to take every suggestion to its conclusion. * There are never ‘dumb’ suggestions
or ‘dumb’ questions. In addition, monitoring one or more professional Internet discussion lists and subscribing to one or more professional journals, including some which are ‘peripheral’ to the primary interest, are easy ways to learn from others’ experiences. The old expression, ‘the devil is in the details,’ applies to our profession. Unless we delve into the minutia - the nail securing the shoe on the horse on which the rider sat - our client or our company could be left unable to provide the required minimum level of service to stay in business.
John Glenn, CRP, Certified Business Continuity Planner, is currently seeking permanent and contract employment opportunities. http://johnglenncrp.0catch.com/
•Date:
14th November 2003 •Region: N.America / World
•Type: Article •Topic:
BC gen. |
