ISO 22301 Societal Security - Business Continuity Management Systems - Requirements

 

Overview

 

Disasters can strike any time. They range from large-scale natural catastrophes and acts of terror, to technology-related accidents and environmental incidents. The causes of hazards may be different, whether human negligence, malevolence or natural disasters, but their likelihood (and seriousness) is real. However, most incidents are small in scale, but can have a significant impact and that makes business continuity management relevant at all times.

 

When a business is faced with the threat of sudden disruption to its operations, being able to respond quickly and effectively is the key to its survival. A robust Business Continuity Management System (BCMS), based on ISO 22301, can help organizations in both, public and private, sectors to reduce risks, and increase their resilience.

 

The ISO 22301 Standard

 

“The standard”, specifies requirements to plan, establish, implement, operate, monitor, review, maintain and continually improve a documented BCMS to protect an organisation against, reduce the likelihood of occurrence, prepare for, respond to, and recover from disruptive incidents when they arise.

 

The above requirements are generic, and intended to be applicable to all organizations, or parts thereof, regardless of their type, size and nature. The extent of application depends on the organization's complexity and operating environment.

 

Organizations implementing ISO 22301 are able to demonstrate to legislators, regulators, customers, prospective customers and other interested parties, that they are adhering to good practice in BCM.

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The standard may also be used:

• Within an organization, to measure itself against good practice

• By auditors wishing to report BCMS status to management.

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ISO 22301 assists organizations in the design of a BCMS that is appropriate to their needs and meet their stakeholders’ requirements. These needs are shaped by legal, regulatory, organizational and industry factors, the organization's products and services, its size and structure, its processes, and its stakeholders.

 

ISO 22301 is published in alignment with the new ISO format for writing management systems standards. This eases understanding and ensures consistency with other management systems, such as ISO 9001 (quality management), ISO 14001 (environmental management) and ISO/IEC 27001 (information security management).

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Certification to ISO 22301

 

Checking that the Business Continuity Management System (BCMS) is correctly implemented, and is effective in meeting the set objectives, is very important. To ensure that the BCMS is functioning properly, it is strongly recommended that an organization performs regular internal audits.

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ISO 22301 may be used for third-party certification as well as for self-assessment. To help users get the best out of the standard, it includes short and concise requirements, describing the central elements of Business Continuity Management.

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It is a business decision to:

• Invite an independent certification body (registrar), to verify that the organisation's BCMS is in conformity to the ISO 22301 standard; however, this is not a requirement.

• Invite its clients to audit the BCMS for themselves.

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Our Training Courses

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We provide ISO 22301 training at five (5) knowledge and

competence levels:

• Introduction

• Foundation

• Lead Implementer

• Internal Auditor

• Lead Auditor.

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For course details please follow one of the above links.

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Prerequisites

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The following are general prerequisites for attending our training courses:

• Proficiency in the English language

• Consideration for other course participants

• Willingness to actively participate during the training sessions, and an open mind to learn.

 

Training Delivery Options

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N.B. Although, primarily, we deliver training to corporate clients, we also train small-size (min. 3 delegates) groups of individual learners, who are interested in updating, or upgrading their knowledge and skills, and advancing in their careers. This training is delivered online (virtual classroom) and is instructor-led.

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We do deliver on-site, close group training, as well as online instructor-led training, for corporate/ business clients (B2B).

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Book now to reserve, as applicable, an on-site or online instructor-led training event of your choice.

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For more details about our:

• List of training courses please click here.

• Consulting services please click here

• Workshops please click here.

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For queries, including non-obligation quotes, please contact us.