Hallmarks of Pitfalls and Problems

 

Seeing potential problems takes experience

We recognise the hallmarks of problems, practical difficulties, risks, and obstacles

 

BCM problems

We are here to help you.

These problems are obvious to us, but in case you miss them, we can help you to avoid wasting time, effort, and money

Our 30 years of global BCM experience puts us in a privileged position to spot problems, predict risks, anticipate obstacles and take evasive action before it impacts your BCM program

We will help you reduce risks, and efficiently achieve your objectives the first time

Do you recognise any of these issues?

These are the most common and recurring BCM challenges faced by organisations, both large and small.  

Fragmented and siloed solutions

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid silos fragmentation governance framework

BCM lacks structure and is ineffective

Issue

BCM is siloed into separate emergency management, crisis management, business continuity, and IT disaster recovery initiatives with inadequate integration, structure, or accountability.

BCM is unbudgeted, is reactive to recent events, is treated as a one-off project, and no senior person is responsible for the BCM program.

Solution

Strong BCM governance and framework with well-defined accountabilities and adequate regular funding.

Administration focus

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid paper plans administration compliance audit

Too much emphasis on paper plans

Issue

Major emphasis on paperwork as the only tangible deliverables – analysis, and plans that read like reports.

Plans start with version control, introduction, scope, objectives, risk framework, approach, etc.

Management, in conflict with ‘people first’ values, does not recognise the intangible capability of training, rehearsals, and tests.

Solution

Use the FastTrack approach to quickly implement robust, pragmatic, and tested solutions that minimise paperwork and instill genuine confidence they will work.

Takes forever

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid slow approach delegating no training struggle unclear objective

An aimless program with no end in sight

Issue

A lack of clear BCM objectives, low priority, and delegating a complex high-profile program to a junior and inexperienced person who has no BCM background or knowledge, lacks confidence and credibility, and without training or expert guidance, struggles to complete the work.

Solution

Use the FastTrack approach and resources to help your team to drive a structured practical process and train internal resources to become self-sufficient, engaged, and accountable.

Confused terminology

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid vague terminology poor understanding lack of framework

No framework and poorly defined terms

Issue

Vague terminology (where everything is a “BCP”) breeds a lack of BCM understanding and impedes management control and decision-making.

Solution

Design and implement a clear, simple, and pragmatic BCM framework that is quick and easy to understand, and simple to apply, and get it socialised at all levels.

Poor management buy-in

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid low confidence commitment boredom lack of structure

Lack of commitment and low confidence

Issue

Management does not take BCM seriously, fails to dedicate enough time to understand the discipline, the structures, the terminology and what is required of them and their team.

Solution

Use simulations to engage senior management in a positive and enjoyable manner, take ownership of their role, identify preparations they need to make and be motivated to follow through.

No accountability

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid loss of ownership commitment blame

Lack of clear ownership and skin in the game

Issue

Contractors, consultants and auditors hired to prepare plans for the organisation.

Management assign ownership to the plan author and blame them when the plan fails to work, or they don’t understand how to use them.

Solution

Facilitate a process that engages the plan owners and pushes BCM responsibility back to them to ensure their solutions are more likely to work

Academic plan templates

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid wastage templates unworkable plans

Wasting time on plans that won’t work

Issue

All plans are unique. While a templated plan looks like it will save time, they actually just waste time and effort and produce deficient and unworkable plans

Using a template, planners focus more on filling in the document gaps rather than stepping back to check it makes sense and it will work in practice

Solution

Use a ‘clean sheet’ approach. Facilitate the preparation of simplified action-focused plans that are practical, fully customised, and proven to work.

No confidence

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid doubt uncertainty lack of confidence risks

You know it won’t work, but unsure why

If there’s doubt, there’s no doubt

Issue

Clients often invest significant time and resources to develop response and recovery plans and other capabilities to meet a range of perceived risks and threats.

Solution

We develop crystal clear team structures, that align with crisis issues, and role definitions that are fast to assimilate and easy and flexible to apply.

Unclear team structures

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid ineffective teams with no structure integration roles weak performance

Lack of team integration, role clarity and labelling

Issue

Non-existent or ineffective crisis team structure, often relying on BAU management team, with poorly defined roles, resulting in weak exercise / real incident performance.

Solution

Design crystal clear team structures, that align with crisis issues, and role definitions that are fast to assimilate and easy and flexible to apply.

Ineffective crisis leadership

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid poor leadership weak performance no coaching disciplines tools

Wrong nominations, no coaching or guidance

Issue

Management lack knowledge of and confidence in the formal crisis team structure, so they simply resort to business as usual management techniques that lack the special functions and disciplines required and as a result under-perform.

Solution

Design simple crisis teams with clear roles backed up by coaching, simulation rehearsals, and practical action-focused response plans.

Executive walkout

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid poor facilitate exercise abandoned walk out high risk exercises need safe hands

Simulation abandoned mid-way

Issue

Crisis simulations are high-risk, your executive’s time is valuable, so when exercises are poorly prepared and run by inexperienced consultants, they can quickly get out of control and trigger an embarrassing management walk-out. It happens within minutes and has serious reputational repercussions.

Solution

We are the most experienced simulation facilitators, with a proven track record, and will carefully plan, prepare and facilitate plausible, objectives focused, professionally delivered simulations.

In over 600 simulations, we have never experienced a walk-out, so your executive will be in good, experienced and safe hands.

Poor stakeholder communication

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid imbalance single focus on media need holistic coverage scope

An imbalanced approach

Issue

Clients often lack crisis communications match fitness and preparation, including rehearsals. Instead, they mainly focus on responding to the media, and neglect other key internal and external stakeholders. Controlled, balanced, and prioritised communication is time-critical, demanding, and resource-intensive.

Solution

We use a simple stakeholder analysis tool to assist the crisis team to prioritise stakeholder communications through the appropriate channels and to develop useful samples and supporting information.

Basic crisis tracking

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid poor crisis tracking recording team actions visibility needs software tools

Inadequate crisis recording and tracking

Issue

Crisis Teams revert to handwritten notes on whiteboards or butchers paper, producing poor quality records that are difficult to interpret, maintain and are only visible to people in the room.

Solution

We guide you on the selection and implementation of the most suitable user-friendly crisis tracking tool to load your business information, plans and to record crisis / recovery actions.

Slow accounting for people

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid slow complex account for people staff contractors workforce stress uncertainty

The number 1 priority that’s slow and complex

Issue

In a physical disaster, accounting for people is the highest priority task. Conducting the task is slow, resource-hungry, and complex, creating stress and uncertainty.

Solution

We guide you on the selection and implementation of a user-friendly crisis communications tool to quickly account for people and to issue instructions to your personnel.

Too compliance focused

FastTrack BCM BCP avoid academic compliance focus tick the box lowest cost

Fixated on box ticking and not on substance

Issue

Management has to ‘tick the compliance box’ at the lowest possible cost with minimum disruption to satisfy academic policy requirements, resulting in smart-looking but ineffective plans that won’t work.

Solution

Focus on developing a cost-effective workable and proven solution first and then top up the more academic requirements to meet all the compliance needs.

 

Stop struggling

We are here to help you.