Scottish Power is aiming to tighten its response to
business interruptions by applying for accreditation under a new
British Standard for business continuity.
The company said it could "raise the bar" on its business
continuity planning by becoming one of the first organisations to
win external accreditation for its work.
The project will underpin a programme to ensure that the
utility's key suppliers also have robust business continuity plans,
said Gordon Irving, director of group security at Scottish
Power.
"The new standard gives us a finishing line to make sure we are
compliant," he said. "It actually raises the bar. It makes people
ensure they attain these higher standards."
Scottish Power began embedding processes to comply with BS25999
three years ago, while the standard was still in development. The
standard is the first to create a recognised benchmark for business
continuity planning.
Each part of the business is expected to produce a three-year
business continuity plan, which will be updated annually. The
company will test the plans each year by devising disaster
scenarios and working out best-practice responses and then
conducting live tests.
Scottish Power has commissioned consultants to develop software
tools to manage its compliance with the standard. These will allow
managers to develop business continuity plans online and to track
compliance with business continuity principles across the
organisation.
In an emergency, managers will be able to access business
continuity plans and communicate with other parts of the business
through a dedicated website.
Scottish Power plans to work with its main suppliers to ensure
they also meet the standard, and business continuity compliance
will become a condition when contracts are renewed.
"It will give me that level of comfort that people have reached
a certain standard in business continuity. At the moment, the
picture is variable," said Irving.
Secure business: the usual suspects:
www.computerweekly.com/217359
Aims of BS25999
- BS25999 is designed to provide a system based on good practice
for business continuity management
- It serves as a single reference point for most situations where
business continuity management is practised
- It is applicable to both large and small organisations in the
public and private sectors.
www.bs25999.net
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