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Our consulting team regularly publishes
“perspectives” that touch on some of the strategic issues facing our
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 | Preparedness: Standard of Care Expectations May Be On The Rise
February 23, 2010 by Courtney Bowers |
There has been significant discussion regarding the ‘standard of care’ implications associated with a lawsuit against Pendleton Memorial Methodist Hospital (and their corporate parent, Universal Health Services of Pennsylvania), in which the family of Althea LaCoste, 73, “alleged that the hospital was negligent for having inadequate emergency power systems, evacuation plans and floodwater protection.”1 These allegations stemmed from the hospital’s generators failing during Hurricane Katrina, which ultimately led to the death of LaCoste (who had been admitted for congestive heart failure and was on a respirator).
So, as many have asked, why is the hospital being held accountable in what seems to be a catastrophic natural disaster in which they did not have control? |
 | Service Spotlight: Benchmarking to Support Informed Decision-Making
February 10, 2010 by The Avalution Team |
A number of organizations have halted or significantly curtailed their investments in preparedness measures over the past two years, which includes staffing and solutions investments. As the economy recovers and organizations rediscover their obligations specific to business continuity, how can those personnel with responsibility for business continuity build a business case for investment or reinvestment – time and funding? |
 | Trend Analysis: Juggling Information Security, Business Continuity and Overall Preparedness
February 09, 2010 by Christopher Burton |
Today’s business vocabulary is filled with buzzwords such as “information security”, “business resiliency”, “business continuity” and “disaster recovery”. Most professionals would agree that these concepts are all critical to the long-term success of the modern organization, but who should assume the responsibility of managing it all – or should a single role manage it all? One current trend amongst organizations of all sizes and industries is to combine information security and business continuity in an effort to safeguard against any type of business interruption. This perspective will provide you with insight into business continuity management and the current trends associated with combining business continuity with other disciplines, including information security. |
 | NFPA 1600 2010 Edition: What You Need to Know
January 28, 2010 by Jacque Rupert |
NFPA 1600 is a “Disaster / Emergency Management and Business Continuity” standard published by the National Fire Protection Association that was originally released in 1995. In January 2010, NFPA announced the release of its triennial edition of the NFPA 1600 standard. The 2010 edition has changed significantly – organizationally and in its content.
This article summarizes the major improvements in the 2010 edition of NFPA 1600, in order to assist organizations in determining how the changes will help them achieve a more comprehensive, better-performing business continuity program. |
 | Data Breaches: A Sidewalk Sale of Consumer and Personal Information
December 08, 2009 by Christopher Burton |
Data breach is a growing risk for organizations of all sizes and from all industries. The number of reported data breaches in recent years has skyrocketed, and their cost can be devastating to an organization’s reputation and finances. In addition, effectively responding to a data breach is far more complicated than simply sending a mass mailing to affected customers notifying them of the occurrence. Given the potential impact of a data breach on an organization, cross-functional awareness and preparedness are a necessary addition to an organization’s business continuity program. Continue reading to learn what a data breach is and why your organization needs to be prepared for one. |
 | Risk Assessment Purpose and Pitfalls
November 11, 2009 by Ryan Hutton |
Fire, flood, swine flu, power loss, severe storms, workplace violence, supplier loss, and a myriad of other events threaten the very existence of organizations large and small. Risk management and business continuity professionals are challenged with addressing these threats, with an equal focus on mitigation and continuity planning. Today’s executive demands an equal focus on proactive risk mitigation, as opposed to an exclusive focus on reactive response and recovery planning. A proper, value-added risk assessment process provides a method to bring structure, clarity and focus to the mitigation aspect of the risk management effort. This article aims to make the case for risk assessment process execution and the role it plays in building the foundation of solid risk management, as well as some of the more common risk assessment pitfalls to avoid. |
 | Why is DRI Speaking Out Against Organizational Certification?
November 02, 2009 by Robert Giffin |
Over the last few months, DRI has spent a lot of time spreading a message of caution with regard to organizational certification. Their article on this topic was published in the last issue of DRJ (Are You Really Prepared? Who Says So?), it was the topic of a recent webinar (October 29th), and has also been the message delivered by their executive director in several small group meetings.
What’s interesting about this PR blitz is that the only business continuity standard currently available for organizational certification in the US is British Standard (BS) 25999. The federal government is developing a voluntary certification program (as mandated in law PS 110-53), but that won’t be available for some time. As a result, DRI’s motivation to encourage the status quo is unclear. |
 | Planning AND Awareness AND Execution
October 28, 2009 by Brian Zawada |
As Published in the September/October Issue of Continuity Insights Magazine
I received an e-mail right before the editorial deadline for this issue that made me scrap my original column idea and go in a different direction. That e-mail went something like this: |
 | What Business Continuity Planners Need To Know About Virtualization
September 22, 2009 by Robert Giffin and Stacy Gardner |
All business continuity professionals should be aware of an important new technology that is quickly changing the way many IT organizations operate. Virtualization has become increasingly popular in recent years, enabling IT organizations to reduce costs and recovery times. Avalution takes a closer look at this technology and how it can help disaster recovery. |
 | Preparation & Planning: The US Government’s Advisory on H1N1
September 17, 2009 by Christopher Burton |
With a potential wide-spread outbreak of H1N1 looming, the US Government released two resources last month to provide preparation assistance: the Report to the President on the US Preparations for 2009-H1N1 Influenza and Flu.gov’s Guidance for Businesses and Employers to Plan and Respond to the 2009/2010 Influenza Season.
The Report, provided by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, assessed the Obama Administration’s preparations for this fall’s expected resurgence of 2009-H1N1 flu and outlined key steps officials should take in the coming weeks and months to minimize the disease’s impact.
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 | More than Eighty Percent of Businesses are Unprepared for H1N1 Outbreak
September 15, 2009 by Christopher Burton |
The following article summarizes a recent national survey of American businesses conducted by Harvard University that was published on September 9, 2009. The complete survey can be found on the Harvard School of Public Health’s website via a link at the end of this article. |
 | Business Continuity Not Worth the Bill? You May Want to Reconsider Before It’s Too Late
August 31, 2009 by Andy Debes |
It is often difficult to explain the intricacies associated with business continuity planning to someone who has little experience or knowledge about the topic. The basic concept of business continuity can sound so simple, and in many ways it is, but the real challenges are (1) convincing them why they should care about business continuity and (2) explaining the real value of spending the time and money necessary to develop a sound program. Without being able to convey these messages, business continuity can become an area where organizations choose an easy (and cheap) approach. |
 | Get Involved in National Preparedness Month
August 19, 2009 by Susan Giffin | This September, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will sponsor the fourth annual National Preparedness Month (NPM). During the month of September, DHS works to encourage Americans to prepare to be “Ready” for emergencies in their homes, businesses and communities. DHS will have assistance from the public and private sector organizations who pledge their support by registering as a NPM Coalition Member. |
 | Business Continuity & The Internal Auditor
August 17, 2009 by Susan Giffin |
On Wednesday August 26th, Avalution held a one-hour webinar for internal audit professionals to discuss their role in a business continuity program and how to serve successfully in this capability.
During the webinar, our team introduced internal audit professionals to accepted business continuity practices, as well as emerging (and successful) trends that are occurring in today’s business environment. We also discussed common criticisms that can interfere with internal audit’s... |
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