April 29 2008
The bulldog spirit hits the web
Ragnar Lofstedt, Professor of Risk Management, King's College London offers some Churchillian advice on creating recession resilient websites
In times of crisis, retailers rely more on the strong resilient actions of their staff, rather than a detailed business continuity plan, a new study by BT Global Services has revealed. The research, among employees of UK companies and public sector organisations, suggests that bosses are counting on team spirit to save their businesses in a time of crisis rather than putting proper measures in place and communicating them to all staff members.
73 percent of workers in the sector believe UK organisations rely on the dedication of their staff rather than detailed plans to get them through a disaster. Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) did not know if their company had a business continuity plan, by far the highest level of ignorance of any sector, and a further 18 percent said they didn’t understand it or had not taken the time to read it.
Laurie Bowen, Managing Director, Commercial & Brands, BT Global Services UK, said: “The research has highlighted a lack of understanding among UK retail employees when it comes to how they and their organisation can best cope with a disaster. Senior management will need to communicate comprehensive business continuity plans and their associated risks to staff more effectively to ensure minimum impact on the business should such an event arise.”
The research also revealed that the resilient ‘Bulldog spirit’ of the British is still very much in evidence. Nearly three-quarters (71 percent) of retail workers said they would want to return to work as soon as possible after a disaster such as flooding, fire or IT failure, if it meant their company were adversely affected.
However, workers in the sector felt the least responsible towards helping their companies get up and running again after a disaster; 51 percent compared with a national average of 61 percent.
Ragnar Lofstedt, Professor of Risk Management, King's College London, who worked with BT on the study, said: “The spirit of resilience is clearly alive and well, showing that employees of UK firms are prepared to battle on in adversity. However I am concerned that, positive though this resilient streak is, it is actually exacerbating the problem by making employees blasé to the threats that exist in the post 9/11 world.
“Corporations understand the threats, but they need to communicate them better to their staff. The fact that so many either cannot be bothered or cannot comprehend their business continuity plans is seriously worrying. Organisations must realise that this resilient spirit is not enough and ensure that all the checks and fail safes of risk management are firmly in place.”
Laurie Bowen, added: “This ‘Bulldog spirit’ is something UK retailers should harness. Explaining business continuity roles and responsibilities to employees will focus their loyalty and resilience on areas that will be of most use in the event of a disaster.”
The research also revealed that staff can easily be responsible for security breaches. Nearly a quarter (20 percent) of those questioned did not believe that losing a mobile device containing sensitive data was a disaster.
The types of disaster people worry most about include a possible natural disaster (24 percent), a major technology failure (24 percent), a major incident or interruption e.g. terrorist threat/ avian flu epidemic (19 percent), and a major power or utility failure (17 percent).
