The Risk Management Profession in Australia: Business Continuity Plan Practices

Abstract

This study aimed to identify to what extent Australian organizations have any plans to manage business continuity threats, and the nature and content of these plans. Sixty-four respondents who were risk management professionals were surveyed to explore the Business Continuity Practices within their organizations. The ANOVA analysis showed 39 per cent of the organizations had developed an enterprise-wide plan of which just over half stated that the plan was tested. However, 36 per cent of respondents had no plan, an “informal plan,” were developing a plan, or did not know whether they had a plan. Standardized guidelines for a process to manage risks have been developed across many spheres and countries and are brought together in the international risk management standard ISO31000 (ISO, 2009), which presents a process applicable to all organizations and all risks. Human resource practices that promote consistent communication and an organizational culture that allows business continuity plan values, attitudes and beliefs to become embedded and to move across traditional organizational boundaries are therefore important for gaining the cooperation needed to implement plans in an organization's operational areas pertaining to business continuity.