Business Continuity Manager

One of the items in June's awareness module is a model job description for a Business Continuity Manager.

It's generic since our customers are unique and we don't know precisely what any of them might expect from a BCM. We do know, however, the kinds of things that a BCM would typically be expected to do, and the personal qualities that make for an effective BCM. Well at least we believe so.

Don't forget that we are providing a security awareness and training service. Its purpose is to support customers' security awareness and training programs. So, the job description doesn't have to be perfect: it has to be stimulating, something that some customers might like to use as a starting point to prompt a discussion with management around whether it might perhaps be worth appointing a BCM.  

It matters to our customers but not to us whether the eventual decision is yes or no. We want them to have a fruitful, informed and productive discussion, leading them to make the decision that's right for them, either way. 

For customers who already have a BCM or a similar role (we're not dead-set on that specific job title), we hope the job description might prompt management to review the role, discuss it with the person in-role and other colleagues, and if appropriate make changes to bring theirs closer into line with good practice. For example, if the current role is defined in terms of recovery, how about pumping up the resilience and contingency aspects to complement recovery? If it is myopically focused on IT or compliance, why not broaden the role to support wider business objectives such as the supply chain aspects? If the person performing the role isn't willing, suitable or able to take on the wider brief, might the role be split among several people, whether full or part-timers?

The BCM job description fills just one side of paper, 400 carefully-chosen words saying enough to be a stimulating awareness piece, hopefully, without being so prescriptive that customers feel coerced into our particular way of thinking. Email me for a copy if this has caught your eye.