Information Systems Control Journal, Volume 1, 2001

The Definitive Handbook of Business Continuity Management

Edited by Andrew Hiles and Peter Barnes
Reviewed by Emani Sarathy
Volume 1, 2001

The aim of this book is to tackle the principles of business continuity management from both executive and operational perspectives. It provides comprehensive conceptual and practical guidance for managers and businesses who want to establish a strategy for protecting their organization from disruption and disaster.

This book is organized in two sections, each containing several chapters. Each chapter is contributed by a different author with tremendous practical experience in the area of the topic.

Section 1 gives an executive overview of achieving and maintaining business continuity. Starting with the purpose for planning, it further defines a business continuity planning strategy. Continuing with a crisis management perspective of business continuity, it addresses multilateral continuity planning. It further poses and responds to two interesting questions: Is marketing protection the justification for funding a total asset protection program? And, why have a disaster if you don't have to?

Section 2 is a how-to guide for business continuity planning. It takes the systematic approach of explaining business continuity planning methodology first, then exploring it further. As with most projects, business continuity planning includes project initiation and management, risk evaluation and control, and business impact analysis. The book also covers continuity strategies for the business, manufacturing, logistics and communications. It continues with information on developing and implementing a written plan, awareness through auditing, training and testing, maintaining plans, selecting the tool to support the process and coping with people in recovery. Finally it gives hints on commonly missing elements.

There are several appendices, which cover:

• More than 20 case studies. These highlight real events that have set companies reeling. Each of the case studies is explained with a brief background, description of the problems, evaluation of the impact, description of the outcome and review of resulting lessons learned.
• General guideline notes on risk, back-up, the role of insurance, the impact of Year 2000, consultancy without tears, financing business continuity and protecting data
• Certification standards for business continuity practitioners

The intended audience for this book is business continuity planners for organizations, including executive management and systems/operations personnel.

There are many contributors to the book, each regarded as an expert in the business management continuity world. The case studies are dealt with in an extremely interesting manner. Though the editors admit that some of the case studies and contributions are geography-specific, with worldwide advances in technology, the similar experiences will soon be occurring everywhere.

The Definitive Handbook of Business Continuity Management, edited by Andrew Hiles and Peter Barnes, is available now from the ISACA Bookstore.

For information, visit www.isaca.org/pubs1.htm, e-mail bookstore@isaca.org, fax +1.847.253.1443 or phone +1.847.253.1545, ext. 401.