Testing, Exercising & Evaluation

We’ve said it before... if you haven’t tested your business continuity/disaster recovery plan, you could be in for a big surprise when it doesn’t work. Do you really want the continuation of your business - and possibly the lives of your employees - to rely on a plan that’s never been tested? We think not. Take a look at this week’s articles to see what you can do to see how well your plan works and whether you will be able to count on the plan working when needed.

Here are 19 tips for great desktop exercises. (Item #1) Look your plan over - is it time to dust it off and see if it works? (Item #2) If nobody understands what to do, the plan will fail, no matter how good you think it is. (Item #3)

There are many ways to test the plan, but it must be tested. (Item #4) See what the experts have to say about why plans aren’t tested and how we can improve this situation. (Item #5) Always remember that the people are the most important thing. (Item #6)

Getting Management Buy-in

No matter what the project, management buy-in is critical to its success, and it’s no different with your business continuity plan. A champion on the board or in the executive suite can help keep things on course and make it easier for a project that essentially is viewed as overhead. This week’s articles contain some tips on how to make getting buy-in easier.

Here are some tips on how to persuade execs to consider BC more carefully. (Item #1) When it comes down to it, the bottom line is always the best argument. (Item #2) Buy-in is critical to getting the funding you need for business continuity. (Item #3)

What should management’s role be beyond buy-in? (Item #4) Here’s how to frame BC issues in order to persuade the Board support them. (Item #5) Your management champion can make it much easier to initiate and maintain plans. (Item #6)

Social Media

Do you know the potential benefits and dangers of social media? How they can help in your continuity of operations efforts? How do you deal with the risks? This week's articles can help bring you up to date about this phenomenon that isn't just for kids anymore.

You have to understand and be able to manage social media's role in your organization. (Item #1) Only 25% of businesses currently use social networks as a tool; here's why you should use them. (Item #2) If you're not one of the businesses already using social media as a BC tool, you should be. (Item #3)

If you're going to use social media, then you need to make sure to include it in your plan and test it before disaster strikes. (Item #4) You do have to be able to control the use of social media in your organization in order to minimize the risks. (Item #5) The use of social media guidelines can help prevent problems. (Item #6)

Crisis Communications

With the JetBlue incident last week and a number of other crises in the recent past, we should be thinking more about crisis communication. Do we have a workable plan? Have we tested it? Have we covered everything we should? Whether you're just starting to work on a plan or need to review yours, this week's articles should help your efforts.

What you don't do about crisis communications will surely come back to haunt you. (Item #1) Don't wait for that communications crisis to take place before planning for how you'll handle the fallout when something bad (inevitably) happens. (Item #2) Here are some steps to improve your crisis communications. (Item #3)

A business must be able to respond promptly, accurately and confidently during an emergency in the hours and days that follow. (Item #4) Here are some tips from branding experts on how to handle the public's outrage with grace and style. (Item #5) Have a plan so you can communicate in a quick, credible and effective way with media and other stakeholders affected by the crisis. (Item #6)