Preparing for the Unexpected

We all experience failure at some point and organizations aren't spared these experiences. What sets some organizations and people apart is their ability to bounce back from adversity and move forward. We speak with renown speaker, entrepreneur and author Barry J. Moltz about how some people - the most important component of any organization, are able to Bounce back from failure. Focusing on his book Bounce! Failure, Resiliency, and Confidence to Achieve Your Next Great Success, Barry talks to us about what make some us more resilient that others and how we can become more resilient. Resilience is a topic at the top of many organizations lists and though focus tends to be on systems and processes, we discover how people can become part of and organizations resiliency efforts.

Sometimes you just can't build or manage your Business Continuity Management (BCM) / Disaster Recovery (DR) program because your organization may not have the ability to develop and implement the program or the skillls to do it. When that discovery is made, you might look outside your organization for help; an external vendor or a consulting service. Before you make that final decision, there are some topics you need consider and some questions you might want to ask of the prospective vendor(s)/consultant(s) before you hand the program over them them. It's an important step. This show will identify many topics to consider asking prospective partners before you take that leap and hand over you BCM/DR program to an external source. Remember, you might want to outsource your program but you're still responsible for it. So make sure you consider every aspect before making that final decision.

No matter the level of experience a Business Continuity Management, Emergency Management or Disaster Recovery professional, there are always activities that we can leverage to increase our exposure and knowledge in the industry. We speak with renowned author and award-winning consultant Suzanne Bernier, who will provide us many great tips and tools we can leverage to raise our careers both within our organization and on the local, national or international stage. Suzanne will draw from her own successful rise in the Emergency Management field and provide tips and insights on how we can reach the top. It's a very informative and motivating chat.

A key component of any Business Continuity Management (BC) program is ensuring the mitigation of impacts created when an organization's supply chain is impacted. This week we'll talk to noted supply chain management expert and author of A Supply Chain Management Guide to Business Continuity Betty Kildow. Betty has been working in Business Continuity for over 20 years and we'll learn how to identify our key suppliers - both upstream and downstream - and what we need to consider with regards to our suppliers when disasters occur. We'll also learn how to develop our supply chain continuity strategies and how we can strengthen and maintain those strategies. It'll be an enlightening show for those who want to know more about supply chain management and how to incorporate it into their BCM programs.

One of the key components of any organization, which includes a core component of any Business Continuity/Disaster Recovery Program, is Risk Management.

Risk Management is a process that is one of the first components of creating a successful, fit-for-purpose BCM/DR Program. We'll talk to Alvaro Orrantia, Sr. Director of Global Disaster Recovery, who is also a certified Risk Professional with ISACA and discover exactly what Risk Management is and how it benefits and organization.

We'll touch on the Risk Cycle - from Planning to Monitoring - to the various risk mitigation types and how we can leverage them to strengthen our BCM/DR programs -- and our organizations.

The Continuity & Resilience Today (CRT) conference was held May 29-31, 2018 in Toronto at the Sheraton Downton Hotel. It was the inaugural CRT conference that was originally part of the old World Conference on Disaster Management (WCDM). This show provides a quick overview and summary of some of the sessions held over the 3 days and some of the key points that were discussed and presented to attendees by knowledgeable and experienced presenters.

This show is Part 2 of our conversation with BC experts and authors, David Lindstedt and Marc Armour. We'll continue to discuss Adaptive Business Continuity - A New Approach and what readers, listeners and BC professionals can expect from a new way of thinking about BCM. David and Mark will provide some insight in to what works in today's BCM industry and what isn't working, why it isn't working and what we must due to change it. It's sure to be another eye-opening show.

For decades BCM / DR professionals have performed the Business Impact Analysis (BIA) the same way with the same results; often not quite the results expected. John Jackson, an early visionary in BCM / DR, talks about how the traditional BIA may need to change; change how we ask questions, who we ask information from and what results it needs to deliver if its to be effective for organizations. We'll learn how to increase the value of BCM and DR by simply refocusing our efforts when executing a BIA to provide information that can benefit an organization when developing its BCM strategies and increasing the ability to respond to negative events. John provides allot of great tips and information to increase the value of new and experiences BCM professionals and increase the effectiveness of BCM programs. Hear some first hand examples of how the traditional BIA can be reimagined and executed from an industry pioneer. It's sure to be a great educational experience for all.

No business or community exists in isolation; all have vendors or partners in some form or another and both are needed to help communities and business grow and thrive. It's for that reason we need to assess the BCM / DR capabilities of potential business partners; either upstream or downstream. This episode will focus on questions to ask prospective business partners to find out just how well they might - or have - responded to disasters and major operational interruptions. You want to make sure that if there's a problem experienced by a partner, they have the ability to respond appropriately so you don't become embroiled and hindered by their troubles. Listen in and hear a list of questions to ask prospective partners to ensure you make a well informed decision.

The Business Continuity Institute (BCI) is one of the world's leading promoter Business Continuity and Resilience with chapters around the globe. This show will focus in on the BCI Canada chapter and we'll talk to the BCI Canada Chapter President, Chris Horne. Chris will speak to the objectives BCI Canada and how it offers a benefit to all BCM/DR practitioners and professionals. We'll also learn a bit about the upcoming Business Continuity Awareness Week (BCAW) in May and the events BCI is handling to help promote the week long event (https://www.thebci.org/event-detail/event-calendar/business-continuity-awareness-week--bcaw--2018.html). Chris will also give us some insight into his own experiences throughout the years, which will benefit all listeners, regardless of the level of experience.