Business Continuity Management and Resilience Challenges

Introduction

Volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA) is a concept that describes the unpredictable nature of various environments, such as business, military, and emergency management (Ahmad et al., 2024). It emphasizes the need for adaptability and responsiveness to rapidly changing situations (Stiehm & Townsend, 2002). Uncertainty, on the other hand, refers to the lack of predictability and the need for risk management. Complexity, involving interconnected factors, requires holistic and systemic thinking to manage the situation. Ambiguity, on the other hand, is characterized by a lack of clarity about the meaning of events or situations, making informed decisions challenging. It underscores the need for improved information and intelligence (Bennett & Lemoine, 2014; Marchese et al., 2020; Nteka, 2021; Taskan et al., 2022).

Brittle, anxious, nonlinear, and incomprehensible (BANI) is a term used to describe the complex and unpredictable nature of modern challenges in business, crisis management, and organizational adaptation (Coronado-Maldonado et al., 2023). BANI signifies the fragility of systems, processes, or organizations to sudden disruptions, emphasizing the need for resilience (Nataliia & Olena, 2023). Anxiety refers to the heightened stress, tension, and uncertainty experienced during crises or rapidly changing situations, emphasizing the importance of managing anxiety for effective decision-making. Nonlinearity refers to the nonlinear relationships within a system, making it difficult to predict outcomes accurately. Incomprehensibleness implies a lack of clear understanding or predictability in certain situations or events, often due to the complexity and interconnectedness of the factors involved (Bundy et al., 2016; Kaplan & Mikes, 2016; Linnenluecke et al., 2020).

VUCA and BANI are essential concepts in business continuity management and resilience (Galaitsi et al., 2023). VUCA emphasizes the need for organizations to adapt to complex environments, requiring agility and flexibility in emergency response strategies. BANI opposes rigid bureaucratic structures, which can hinder adaptive decision-making in unpredictable situations (Bennett & Lemoine, 2014). To effectively address these challenges, organizations must adopt a multifaceted approach, implementing dynamic and resilient organizational structures that enable swift decision-making and coordination while acknowledging the complex nature of crises. This approach acknowledges the complexity of emergencies and the need for adaptability and flexibility.

Crisis management in a VUCA and BANI presents several distinct challenges. In a VUCA environment, rapid changes in market conditions and technology can lead to unforeseen crises (Militar et al., 2018). In BANI, brittleness implies that systems are susceptible to sudden, catastrophic failure, posing a significant risk (Stacey, 2011). To address these challenges, organizations need to adopt agile and adaptive strategies that prioritize resilience, invest in robust communication systems, and develop contingency plans that account for the volatile and unpredictable nature of crises in VUCA and BANI contexts (Taskan et al., 2022).

In view of the challenges that VUCA and BANI environments subject organizations to, the following sections will write about the concepts associated with Business Continuity Management (BCM) and Organizational Resilience, as well as identify the main lessons learned and best practices.