Business Continuity Management: A Reality Check for Banks in India

The paper discusses the need for BCM in banks and presents a model todesign, implement, operationalize and assess a business continuityplan. The proposed BCM model covers five components relating to theOrganizational Soft issues, Processes, People, Technology andFacilities Management; and, defines a variety of metrics to measurethe "Resilience" and "Vulnerability" of a bank in the event ofbusiness disruptions. The model has been applied to conduct a "realitycheck" of BCM implementation in 8 large and 14 medium/small banks inIndia. The value of the model lies in its ability to identify the gapareas for bank management to take corrective action.