Glossary

An alternate site is a facility or building that can be occupied should an organisation’s primary location become unavailable. Alternate sites are available 24 hours / 7 days a week. Should they be needed, the on-site server is uploaded with the latest backup files so all hardware and applications are available with minimal disruption or data loss. Alternate sites ensure business continuity in the event of a crisis or disaster.

Business continuity includes plans and procedures that ensure an organisation keeps operating should any major disruption occurs. It involves mitigating the impact of loss, transferring risks or activities to third parties, or suspending activities until an incident is over. Business continuity helps organisations get back to normal operations quickly, minimising potential impacts and protecting investment.

A business impact analysis identifies business critical processes and resources such as production lines, service provision, raw materials or components, key suppliers and call centre locations. It then identifies and tries to quantify any potential operational and financial damage that could arise should such infrastructure or services be unavailable – for example loss of sales, increased expenses, regulatory fines, consumer dissatisfaction.

Business resilience is the ability of an organisation to swiftly adapt to disruption and incidents, helping them maintain production and sales or recover operations. A business impact analysis identifies the most important risks to an organisation. Based on that analysis, organisations implement strategies to mitigate the biggest threats to their critical infrastructure, processes or resources thereby strengthening their business resilience.

A command centre is a central facility that initiates, controls and coordinates an emergency response. It is a designated bricks-and-mortar building, a mobile vehicle and/or virtual space that can be securely accessed by the incident response team and other first responders. The command centre has a highly trained, qualified incident commander as its head who has the authority to independently implement and coordinate the incident management process.

Compliance is correctly following and conforming to internal rules as well as external regulations and legislation. These cover many aspects of business, including working procedures, health and safety and data protection. Both individual workers and organisations as a whole have a duty to ensure that all relevant laws, guidelines and regulations are followed correctly. Non-compliance could lead to an emergency or crisis situation as well as possible fines or other sanctions.

Crisis communication encompasses all aspects of messaging during a crisis response – from alert texts to employees and the public to press releases and communications. A crisis communication plan contains pre-approved messaging which is logical, clear and easily understood. Crisis communications start immediately when an incident occurs and frequent updates are sent out. It is important for crisis communications to be honest and open so as to protect corporate reputation.

Crisis management covers the procedures and actions to be followed by a company or organisation during an incident that affects operations. There are three main stages to crisis management: planning, response, recovery. Crisis management includes measures to protect staff, customers, stakeholders and investment and ensure the continuation of operations. A proactive crisis management response limits the severity or duration of an incident or, in certain circumstances, can even avert a crisis entirely.

A crisis management checklist gives detailed instructions on every step when dealing with an unexpected situation. When complete, each step is marked as done and the response moves to the next stage. A checklist could be a physical document or, more often, is part of a software programme to which responders have access and can update when necessary. Following a checklist ensures that most important steps of crisis management are actioned and not forgotten.

A crisis management framework specifies the basic pre-requisites of a crisis response. It defines what constitutes a crisis and who declares it. A crisis management framework sets out the levels of response needed according to severity of the crisis as well as the resources that can be utilised. It also lists the members of staff who have been trained for crisis response and who can therefore be part of the crisis management team as well as possible team leaders.

Crisis response refers to the actions taken by an organisation when faced with an emergency or incident. A response is activated minutes after a situation is declared as a crisis. Crisis response includes alerting those affected by the incident, deploying the crisis management team and taking measures laid out in the crisis management plan to mitigate any negative consequences. By reacting early, companies and organisations can deal quickly and effectively with an unexpected event, reducing disruption and minimising losses.

A crisis scenario is any incident that affects the smooth running of a business or has a detrimental effect on a community. Crisis scenarios range from events such as natural disasters and severe weather to cyber or terrorist attacks and IT outages. A crisis scenario is dealt with through a pre-planned crisis management framework which sets out the steps needed to minimise disruption and, in severe cases, avoids loss of life.

Disaster recovery is an organisation’s pathway to restoring normal operations during and after a crisis or emergency. As IT plays an increasingly significant role in today’s world, disaster recovery not only includes the repair/rebuilding of production facilities and warehousing but also the restoration of IT infrastructure and data volumes. A disaster recovery plan describes the processes and procedures needed to ensure that business is returned to full capacity.

Emergency communication is the way individual members of the response team can exchange information and updates with each other during an incident. Emergency communications cover voice calls, text messages and conference calls. As traditional communication methods may be overwhelmed or unavailable during an emergency, independent infrastructure is used so the response team have reliable, secure channels to talk or message each other.

An emergency plan is a detailed set of actions to manage sudden or unexpected incidents. Its objective is to minimise injuries or loss of life as well as protecting property, infrastructure and the environment. A pre-determined emergency plan means crisis scenarios are stress tested and practiced in advance, improving response times and decision making during an actual emergency. An emergency plan is reviewed regularly to guarantee it is still fit for purpose.

Evacuation planning ensures that areas can be cleared of people quickly. With effective planning, escape routes are clearly marked, are always kept clear of obstructions and furnished with appropriate lighting and automated emergency doors. The number and frequency of escape routes is determined by the amount of people that need to be evacuated. And in order to monitor how many people have left an area, there is a clearly designated meeting / check-in point.

A fire alarm is a system to detect elevated levels of smoke, heat or carbon-monoxide associated with a fire. An alarm is usually activated automatically but can also be set off manually if a person discovers a fire. As well as an evacuation alarm, fire suppression systems, such as water sprinklers, pressurised gas or chemical foam, can be triggered once a fire is detected.

Incident management describes the steps to be taken by an organisation to identify, analyse and then resolve business-critical incidents, which, if left unresolved, could lead to a more severe crisis situation. Quick and effective incident management restores operations to their previous levels while maintaining quality standards and minimising any disruption. The goal of incident management is to always correct incidents and prevent future re-occurrence.

An Incident Response Platform (IRP) is a specialized tool that supports organizations in responding efficiently and effectively to security incidents, aiming to minimize damage and swiftly return to normal operations. It enables centralized management and monitoring of security alerts and responses through a unified interface, enhanced by the automation of processes such as isolating affected systems. The IRP seamlessly integrates with existing security systems and tools, promotes communication and collaboration within the response team, and facilitates detailed analysis and reporting post-incidents to strengthen prevention strategies and meet compliance requirements. Additionally, it offers planning and training tools, as well as capabilities for forensic investigations. Combining it with an alerting platform, which provides rapid notifications and targeted communication, enhances response capacity and minimizes the impact of incidents.

A lone worker is a member of staff who works on their own, usually during unsociable hours or overnight. Lone workers are particularly vulnerable as the usual corporate support infrastructure may not be available to them when they are working. Many jurisdictions have regulations in place that protect lone workers, such as the requirement for employers to conduct risk assessments and have alerting measures in place.

A person of concern is anybody who is affected by an emergency or crisis. The UN High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR) defines persons of concern as refugees, internally displaced people, asylum-seekers or stateless persons. However, in the context of a corporate emergency, persons of concern include staff, customers, stakeholders and the wider public.

PSIM stands for physical security information management. PSIM allows organisations to integrate previously unconnected security infrastructure and systems (such as access control, fire detection, intrusion monitoring, CCTV, etc.) into an automated monitoring and alerting system. PSIM software centralises standard operating procedures, instructions and policies, as well as the tools to resolve emergency situations. Using PSIM, operators analyse and react to incidents and emergencies from a unified dashboard.

Public warning systems are used on a regional or national level to alert thousands or even millions of people during a large-scale emergency. Their use is usually restricted to government departments and public bodies to ensure public safety and provide life-saving information. As well as sending out SMS alerts, public warning systems can deploy cell broadcasts by which messages can be sent to every mobile phone within a cell tower’s footprint, irrespective of the mobile network the phone is registered with.

Remote workers usually perform their roles away from the office – either in a fixed location (such as a home or satellite location) or while travelling (such as delivery workers or sales representatives). Employers have a duty of care to monitor the safety and security of such workers. A dedicated smartphone app can be used by workers to check in regularly and also helps combat the feeling of isolation or loneliness that can sometimes occur.

Severe weather is any meteorological event that has an impact on a local or widespread area. Its severity is usually measured in four levels: very low, low, medium or high. Examples of severe weather includes rain, thunderstorms, wind, snow, lightning, ice, extreme heat and fog. Some events are forecast in advance, although predicting exact locations and severity may be more difficult. Other severe weather incidents, such as flooding, are mitigated and controlled by investing in remedial infrastructure.