4. Business Continuity Planning Tasks

Definitions

Recovery philosophy

In MSTA methodology, the recovery philosophy is a statement of principles to be applied during an emergency. Senior managers will decide which business processes are to be given the highest recovery priority, in a disaster and what image should be presented by the organisation to customers, markets, shareholders, etc.

Recovery strategy

There are three key elements to the recovery strategy. The first element is the choice of the type of recovery site and the second element is the choice of a suitable location. This is the place to which recovery staff, I.T. systems, communications and vital data will re-locate in order to resume the company's business operations, following a disaster. The third element is the choice of technology and procedures for ensuring that the recovery site is supplied with regular updates of vital data and essential resources.

Business impact analysis

An analysis of the financial or business implications of an unplanned, prolonged interruption in one or more business processes.

Its use, in relation to business continuity planning, is to justify expenditure on various provisions of a BC plan and to assist in determining the optimum restart time for business processes.