UKbusiness continuitypractitioners have
welcomed the prospect of the first BSI British standard for
business continuity to be published this month.
"The standard will give companies clear guidelines on putting
together a business continuity plan as well as a clear benchmark
they can achieve," said Ian Houghton, continuity manager at Royal
and Sun Alliance.
The certification requirements for the standard, to be known as
BS 25999, are due to be published before the end of November, a
year after the publication of the code of practice. The first
certifications are expected by mid-2008.
Competitive advantage would be one of the biggest benefits of
certification on the new standard, said Keith Tilley, UK managing
director at Sungard availability services. "It will be a quick way
of providing continuity assurances," he said.
Mandy Rustler, head of ICAS Crisis Call, said an independent
standard would ensure that the business continuity industry was
driven by best practice and not by those commercial companies who
could afford to promote their products and services.
Richard Nicholls, associate director, CIO Connect, also welcomed
the standard, but said it remained to be seen whether it would go
far enough, would be able to keep up with current thinking, and
would be a simple certification process that was not bogged down
with excessive paperwork.