BS25999
BS25999 (here's the BS25999 Pocket Guide) is the new Business Continuity Standard from BSI.
BS25999, the Business Continuity Standard, is of real importance to everyone from Board directors, corporate executives and IT managers through to facilities managers and business continuity professionals. Service disruptions, delays in responding to customer requests, inability to process transactions in a timely manner or being unable to resume business in the face of a disaster can all have significant impacts on an organization's effective operation. Recent natural disasters as well as terrorist activities have shown that an organization's resilience to a disaster and its being able to resume business quickly and efficiently were directly related to its preparedness to respond to unforeseen events. This site provides a comprehensive range of BS25999 Business Continuity resources.
BS25999 Certification (registration)
BS25999 is a two-part standard:
- BS25999-1 is a Code of Practice for Business Continuity Management, which has been available since 2006.
- BS25999-2:2007 is a Specification for a Management Scheme, officially launched by BSI on 30 October 2007, and available with effect from 20 Nov 2007.
Part 2, the management scheme specification, makes it possible for organizations to have their business continuity management arrangements independently certified by external auditors and, thereby, provide stakeholders, customers and insurers with a real degree of comfort about the rigour with which the business continuity efforts were developed.
This is a development of major importance for all organizations. The Route Map to Business Continuity Management: Meeting the Requirements for BS25999 is the best-selling guide to certification under this new standard and the BS25999 Introductory Kit is probably the best introductory collection available.
At IT Governance, we are supporting organizations pursuing BS25999 in every way possible.
BS25999 Support Services
- Buy BS25999-2:2007 online (or, if you don't already have BS25999-1, buy our BS25999 Standards Kit);
- Buy our BCM & BS25999 Implementation Set;
- Buy our Best Practice Business Continuity Kit;
- Buy books from our Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery Bookstore;
- Attend one of our 'Mastering BS25999' workshops;
- Ask for BS25999 consultancy support or telephone +44 845 070 1750)
International BCM Standard
An international Business Continuity Planning Management standard is also under development. A number of nationally-originated standards and guidelines are being considered as part of the internationalisation process. These include:
- BS25999 - Business Continuity Management
- NFPA 1600 - Standard on Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity (NFPA: National Fire Protection Association, recognised by ANSI in the USA), which I believe relates to ISO IWA 5:2006 ‘Emergency Preparedness’ from ANSI
- HB 221 - Business Continuity Management (Australian standard, published in 2004)
- Israeli Contributions on Security Management Systems: Management Standard and Accompanying Family of Standards – only issued as guidelines, with no easy reference number
- Japanese Guidelines for the Establishment of Framework on Emergency Preparedness – only issued as guidelines, with no easy reference number
It is not yet clear what the final form of the international standard will be, or the date by when it will finally be available. Experience indicates that it may take more than a year; the BS25999 management scheme is therefore likely to set the standard globally for externally certifiable BCM standards.
BS25999 has a critical relationship with ISO27001.
