“Crisis management and business continuity –  they’re a part of something much greater… it’s about resilience. It’s about having an organization that can truly withstand all types of hazards, threats and vulnerabilities but being able to bounce back.”

In the latest ICMC webinar, we were joined by Jessica Jackson, Manager of HSE Global Services, Crisis Management & Security at Murphy Oil Corporation. During the presentation, Jessica shared with us her recent experience with Hurricane Harvey, the impacts the storm brought to her company and the business continuity plan that passed the test.

Jessica spoke first on crisis management and business continuity framework, how her organization prepares and responds as well as their best practices. She also touched upon how to avoid common mistakes made throughout the industry, such as inadequate planning, failure to bring the business into the planning and absent leadership support.

Hurricane Harvey and How Murphy’s Plan Passed the Test

Jessica’s discussion then shifted to Hurricane Harvey and how the incident fully tested their business continuity plan for the first time. It was a very complex situation, she said, “We knew this was going to be something very different than our company had ever faced before…”  Not only was it a business continuity incident but it was also an operational incident as well.

Jessica covered the biggest insights and successes of the Hurricane Harvey experience. Furthermore, she described in great detail how her company prepared, responded and recovered. In conclusion, the success of their business continuity plan validated several best practices that she shared with us.

Harvey Best Practices:

1.) Automate Everything…

  • But recognize that virtual systems still fail.
  • Avoid Assumptions that virtualized infrastructures are free from service interruptions and plan accordingly.

2.) Test, Test, Test

  • Research from Symantec reflects 22% of companies NEVER test their business continuity plans.
  • Plan, train, test, repeat.

3.) Prioritize Critical Funcitons

  • Perform risk assessments and business impact analysis to prioritize IT applications and Recovery Time Objectives.

4. Consider Relocation Strategies

  • Assess options and conduct research.
  • Consider all scenarios when contemplating Alternate Work Locations.
  • Identify resource needs for relocation.

Check out the short clip of Jessica Jackson’s presentation:

ICMC Professional Member’s have access to all of the Virtual Conference speaker videos and presentation slides. Watch Jessica Jackson’s full length presentation on the video page, HERE. 

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