Business Continuity Unit

BUSINESS CONTINUITY TOOLKIT

7. BUSINESS CONTINUITY EXERCISES

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

This document provides background information on Business Continuity exercises and explains how to use the sample scenarios.

1. PURPOSE OF EXERCISES

An exercise is to check whether your plans work. It is an opportunity to spot any improvements that can be made to your plan and whether there are any gaps. It’s better to find this out in an exercise, rather than in a real incident. Some of the benefits of an exercise are:

·  Ensuring information in the plan is correct

·  Checking the plan works

·  Rehearsing relevant personnel and deputies

·  Raising awareness of the plan

·  Giving people confidence in their role in an incident

·  Developing team work

2. TYPES OF EXERCISES

Desktop exercises / Theoretically check your plans without any physical actions. This could be a scenario based event
Rehearsals / Practicing specific procedures or technologies with physical actions. Involves following a script.
Technical Test / Check a procedure or technology works where the result is a pass or fail.

3. HOW TO PLAN A REHEARSAL

·  Decide what plan you want to rehearse

·  Agree the objectives

·  Decide what people should be involved

·  Decide what type of exercise is appropriate (see above)

·  If a rehearsal has been carried out in the past, review the report and any follow up actions

·  Devise a simple scenario that would involve putting the plan into action – sample scenarios are included in the document “Business Continuity Exercises – sample scenarios”

·  Carry out a risk assessment

·  Conduct the exercise and write notes and actions

·  Follow up any actions

·  Update the plan as appropriate

4. IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS

·  Exercises should be as real as possible. They should be carried out using the same procedures and methods as would be used in a real event

·  You should use a scenario that is realistic

·  You need to ensure that disruption to the business during a rehearsal is minimised

REMEMBER – if anyone in the rehearsal needs to contact anyone outside the room, they should always state that the phone call is part of a fictional scenario.

5. WHAT TO LOOK FOR DURING A REHEARSAL

Some ideas of what to look for during a rehearsal:

·  Did everyone participate? / ·  Were there things people were unaware of?
·  Did they use the plan? / ·  Any lessons to be learned for next time?
·  Was everything in the plan correct? / ·  Any actions to be undertaken?
·  Did the plan have the necessary information in it? / ·  Were the right people involved?
·  Was the plan user-friendly? / ·  Did people communicate well?

6. SAMPLE REHEARSAL REPORT

Rehearsal

Date: Time: Location:

Attendees

Name / Role / team
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Aims of the rehearsal

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Agenda / scenario

Issues arising / lessons learnt

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Actions Owner Due date

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Record of follow-ups (Rehearsals booked, meetings held or attended, BIA or BCP sessions booked, etc)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

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