5.1 Gold, Silver, Bronze & MSTA's Special Teams

The use of Gold, Silver, and Bronze teams

Current (2004) practice in business continuity management frequently applies the use of Gold, Silver, and Bronze teams, and these teams are structured in different ways by different bc planners. In MSTA’s view, the clearest use of the Gold, Silver, Bronze convention attributes tasks in the following way:

Gold Team – This is a grouping of the highest ranked individuals that are responsible for the protected organisation or region (in the case of wide-area disasters). Their tasks include reporting to government and industry regulators, overseeing Media contact and monitoring, controlling and facilitating the work of the Silver and Bronze teams.

Silver Team – This team comprises the senior management and directors of the affected organisation(s) and their tasks are similar to those of the Emergency Team, below. They will manage and facilitate the work of the Bronze teams.

Bronze team - There will usually be several recovery teams that belong to the bronze team group. These teams will perform the technical and operational recovery tasks, similar to the business unit recovery teams described in MSTA methodology.

The MSTA bc planning software can be readily applied to the above structure - and may include a Platinum team level, if required.

Regardless of the team structure chosen, recovery from an emergency or disaster requires additional tasks beyond the normal business processes of an organisation. MSTA methodology includes four such additional functions:

5.1.1 Emergency or Crisis Management Team

Senior managers, under the leadership of the general manager or the chief executive, who manage public, corporate, customer and media relations. They will also ensure the availability of signatories / authorisation staff. They will establish procedures to obtain funding for the recovery operation and they will provide moral support to staff during the recovery period.

In MSTA methodology, the manager of each business recovery team is also a member of the Emergency or crisis management team.

5.1.2 Logistics / Recovery Administration Team

Organisation staff who manage the transport of personnel and the purchase of special goods or services required for the recovery operation.
The Logistics Team is also responsible for the administration of the recovery operation. Purchase of air and train tickets, redirection of telephone/fax and postal services. Procurement of additional equipment and special services, such as emergency document treatment and courier services. They are responsible for physical security and access control at the recovery site.

5.1.3 Salvage Team

Specially selected staff who are made responsible for security at the disaster site and for the retrieval of assets, documents, equipment and personal effects from the disaster location. The team should be equipped with suitable clothing and equipment. They should carry pre-marked floor plans of the disaster site, showing the positions of sensitive or valuable items. Audio and video recording of site visits should be kept for later assessment and to support insurance claims. These recordings should include non-damaged areas to assist in the investigation of possible theft of valuable items from the disaster site.

5.1.4 Back to Base Team

Together with the Emergency Team, the Back to Base Team will, on the first day, assess the severity of the disaster and decide if the premises can be repaired and, if so, within what time period. This team will then plan and prepare permanent accommodation for the company, either at the existing address, or at a new address.

If the provision of the permanent accommodation is expected to take longer than six to eight weeks, the back to base team will select and equip a cold site for use until the permanent accommodation is ready.