Many Business Continuity or Disaster Recovery Plans are in place that have taken hours of people’s time and input to produce and yet the plan is just a paper document if it has not been tested; and furthermore just represents a theoretical recovery capability unless the solution is implemented and the people involved understand their roles and responsibilities in executing the plan and have tested it. ContinuitySA, a specialist in Business Continuity Management (BCM), provides a number of Business Continuity related courses tailored to different audiences (Executive, Management and Operational staff) and their specific BCM needs.

“A Business Continuity Plan is only as good as the people that that use it,” says Tracey Linnell, General Manager: Advisory Services, ContinuitySA. “At the very least, every employee within any given company should be aware of what the plan is and how it will affect them in the event of an interruption, be it as dramatic as a natural disaster, or as banal as load shedding.”

ContinuitySA’s most popular course – the 5 day Complete Continuity Practitioner Programme (CCPP) is targeted at those select staff members (typically a BCM Manager) who are directly responsible for the implementation, management, maintenance and execution of the BCM programme. “The focus of this course is to ensure that the delegates are able to understand the theory behind a BCM programme implementation and even more importantly, practical examples form the foundation of the course to ensure the delegate is able to apply the knowledge once they return to their organisation,” notes Linnell.

Practical examples of how companies have responded in varying crises provides delegates with valuable insights on what works – and what doesn’t – which Linnell says is a significant benefit of the training.

The programme consists of an introduction to BCM, including a view of its origins, a review of trends and observations, while providing context of applicable standards and compliance requirements. All elements of the BCI’s BCM lifecycle are covered in sufficient detail to empower the delegate to confidently implement a BCM programme within their own organisation.

Additional BCM training solutions are available, says Linnell, including a 1 hour BCM session aimed at senior executives, a two day ICT Continuity course for IT managers and CIO’s, as well as customised training based on organisational requirements.

ContinuitySA has scheduled five day training courses (CCPP) and ICT Continuity training for the following dates in 2014:

CPPP:

  • 18 to 22 August – Cape Town
  • 15 to 19 September – Johannesburg
  • 13 to 17 October – Cape Town
  • 17 to 21 November – Johannesburg
  • 24 to 28 November – Gaborone, Botswana

ICT Continuity Two Day Training dates:

  • 1 & 2 September in Johannesburg
  • 20 & 21 October in Cape Town
  • 3 & 4 November in Johannesburg

To register or for more information please visit www.continuitysa.co.za