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IT Project Management

What is COOP and why do we need it?

Continuity of Operations (COOP) is an effort to ensure an organization’s continued performance of its most essential functions during a range of potential emergencies.  To be successful, a COOP plan incorporates the development of plans, procedures, and provisions for people, resources, and processes.

Threats to an organization’s operations can come from many sources, such as:

·         Acts of nature

·         Accidents

·         Terrorist activities

·         Technology incidents

Such unforeseen events make it vital for an organization to be prepared for any interruption of its operations and protect its resiliency.  This planning enables the organization to respond in a coordinated, efficient manner by following its COOP plan.  Every organization is unique.  Therefore, each COOP plan is unique as well, tailored specifically for an organization’s day to day operations.

What goes into a COOP plan?

A well-developed COOP plan should answer several key questions that must be considered before facing an interruption to ensure continued operations.

·         Do we have alternate facilities from which to operate?

·         How will we communicate with our people?

·         Have we documented all of our critical processes?

·         Do we have plans for alternate information technology (IT) resources?

·         How will we make sure that our people are safe?

·         Do we know who will do what and when in an emergency?


What are the components of a COOP plan?

The foundations of a comprehensive, actionable COOP plan are People, Resources, and Processes.

An organization’s people are essential to its operations, both during normal situations and disruptions.  Keep in mind that during an incident people may need to perform functions different from their normal roles.  Below are some of the people-related issues that need to be considered when building a COOP plan:

·         Leadership

·         Safety Teams

·         Orders of Succession

·         Relocation Teams

·         Delegation of Authority

·         Planning Team

·         Support Teams

 

 Although people are essential, they cannot perform their duties without the right resources.  Resources incorporate a wide variety of supporting infrastructure, technology, and other tangible elements required for a comprehensive COOP plan.  Here are a few resource examples:

·         Alternate Locations

·         IT Systems

·         Utilities (water, electrical)

·         Vehicles

·         Communications

·         Equipment

·         Data and Records

 

 

 Once you have the people and resources in place, an actionable COOP plan defines the essential processes needed to continue operations.  During an event these processes may be performed by people unfamiliar with specific workflows.  Additionally, the sequence and interdependencies of these processes must be considered.  Below are some common processes to consider:

·         Logistics

·         Payroll/Accounting

·         Decision Processes

·         Service Delivery

·         Alerts and Notifications

·         Request Processing

 

 


What is the maturity level of your organizational COOP plan?

Take a few minutes to answer the following questions:

1.      Do we know all of the threats to our organization?

2.      Do we understand the impact to our organization in a disaster?

3.      Will we have alternate facilities from which to operate?

4.      Will we be able to effectively communicate with our people?

5.      Have we documented all of our critical processes?

6.      Do we have plans for alternate information technology (IT) resources?

7.      Do my people know where to report?

8.      Do we know who will do what and when in an emergency?

9.      Will we have access to all our vital records and data files?

10.  Do we have a Business Continuity Plan?

Score

Action

1 – 2

Keep your resume current!

3 – 4

Pay special attention to the weather radio and TV for current events!

5 – 6

Good start but a lot left to be done.

7 – 8

You are so close, so why not go all the way?

9 – 10

Would you like to earn millions in consulting fees?

 

But seriously, if the results of this maturity exam give you pause to reconsider the exposure of your organization to natural disasters; the Center for Advanced Technologies can help.

How can the Center for Advanced Technologies help me?

The Center for Advanced Technologies has extensive experience in the facilitation and development of comprehensive continuity of operations plans.  Members of the Center staff have over 40 years of experience in the field of information technology and understand the broad scope of challenges that face an IT organization on a daily basis.  Let the Center help you develop a Continuity of Operations (COOP) plan so your organization will be able to survive unexpected disasters or emergencies.