Your business continuity management team or BCM Team is a group of individuals appointed by Executive Management to implement and execute the BC Plan.
The size and makeup of an organization’s Business Continuity Management (BCM) team is dependent upon how you plan to roll out the project. It is best to start out small in the beginning and then progress in size. The initial team will lay the groundwork for the project by setting up oversight, coordinating training, building disaster plans, helping to sharpen the focus of what each plan should contain, etc.
The core team should consist of:
- The Sponsor
- Business Continuity Manager
- Assistant Continuity Manager
- Administrative Assistant
This group will prepare standards, training, and processes to make the project flow smoother. Eventually, several key people will need to join the BCM team as they are needed. This may include the following people:
- Building Maintenance or Facilities Manager – they can answer what mitigation steps are already in place for the facility, fire suppression, electrical service, etc.
- Facility Safety and Security – they should already have parts of the disaster plan in terms of fire, safety, limited building, and room access, theft prevention, etc.
- Human Resources – HR people have ready access to up-to-date information about the individuals who are important to the plan.
- Line Management – they tend to know the most about what is critical for getting work done in their areas of responsibility.
- Community Relations – a disaster may affect more than just your operations. An organization may need help from the community while recovering from a disaster.
- Public Information Officer – this is the voice to the outside world. This role is crucial in getting accurate information out to customers and vendors.
- Sales and Marketing – they know the organization’s customers the best and can provide insight on what level of service is required.
- Finance and Purchasing – they know vendors the best and can provide insight into what kind of support the organization can expect while recovering.
- Legal – the legal team can provide important insight into the legal ramifications of activities performed in response to an emergency.
Your business continuity management team is not just functionally responsible for directing the development of the Business Continuity Plan, they are also responsible for declaring a disaster and providing direction during the recovery process, both pre-disaster and post-disaster.
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