Business continuity management slowly gaining ground

In the fifth annual survey of business continuity professionals conducted by Deloitte & Touche LLP and CPM Global Assurance, 50 percent of respondents were found to have implemented enterprise-wide business continuity and disaster recovery plans. Though up 20 percent from five years ago, business continuity management continues to be an area of weakness for many companies.

"In our evolving business environment, business continuity plans, which include crisis management and emergency preparedness, are an absolute imperative," said Ted DeZabala, principal and National Security Services Leader, Deloitte & Touche LLP. "Companies that address business continuity from an enterprise management perspective reduce the impact of a variety of interruptions that can hinder any organisation. There may be tremendous competitive advantages associated with active and executable business emergency plans."

In many industries, legislation plays a key role in defining how companies treat financial data or consumer data. In this area, the survey participants indicated that:

• Twenty percent continue to rely on internal audits to manage regulatory compliance;
• Approximately 80 percent indicated their business units were aware of legal and industry issues;
• Thirty five percent said they were fully compliant with industry regulations and have the full support of executive management.

"In order for any business continuity management program to truly be effective, it needs the attention and support of senior management across the organisation," DeZabala said. "In our survey, only a third of the respondents believe they have a comprehensive business continuity management governance structure in place and, remarkably, only half of them include their senior executives in the program management."

The study found that many companies have not developed enterprise-wide business continuity programs, or they do not have the appropriate infrastructure in place to verify that one is properly maintained. This was noted by more than two-thirds of business continuity professionals surveyed. Many companies say that they have placed a renewed focus on contingency planning, yet there are still several factors causing the apparent lack of initiative in this area, including:

• Most organisations lack a senior level business continuity management champion that can influence both the company's culture and financial resources.
• Business units are reluctant to spend the time and money to implement "optional" programs.
• Creating an enterprise-wide business continuity management program can seem overwhelming to many organisations that are already resource-constrained.
• Corporate executives may operate under the belief that "it will never happen to our organisation."

Approximately 200 management representatives from a wide range of industries responded to the survey.

•Date: 1st February 2005 • Region: N.America •Type: Article •Topic: BC statistics
Rate this article or make a comment - click here