Business Impact Analysis

Abstract

The purpose of this essay paper is to elaborate on the Business Impact Analysis (BIA), which is designed to assist management in determining which functions are critical to the continued operation of the organization. The organization that Team A selected is the City of Hollister Police Department. Team member Don Magnuson is currently a sworn Police Officer for the department and executes his duties with the dedication to protect and serve the communities in which he patrols. Team A will introduce to you the Hollister Police Department, and demonstrate how the management operates within the guidelines and assistance of the Business Impact Analysis.

The City of Hollister Police Department

"The City of Hollister is a General Law City and is governed by a "Council Manager" form of government." (Hollister Police Department, n.d).

The Chief of Police is Jeff Miller and the department has 20 active officers. The Hollister Police Department is always looking for ways to better utilize our resources and improve service to the community. With this in mind, we have developed a system that allows citizens to report certain crimes without the aid of a Police Officer. The Council, as the legislative body, represents the citizens of Hollister, and is empowered by the Municipal Code to formulate citywide policy, enact local legislation, adopt budgets, and appoint the City Manager and City Attorney. The City Council consists of five Council Members who are elected by district by the citizens of Hollister, and serve staggered four-year terms, with elections held in November of even-numbered years. Additional elected officers of the City are the City Clerk and the Treasurer. The City of Hollister has 175 full time employees and an operating budget of over $30,000,000. The City offices are comprised of many offices which include the, Fire, Police, and Animal Control. (Hollister Police Department, n.d).

The administration and management teams of the Hollister Police department will conduct an analysis of the department using the BIA, and arrive at a solution that will establish which functions are critical to the continued and successful operations of the police department.

What is a Business Impact Analysis

A Business Impact Analysis (BIA) traditionally leads to a report detailing likely incidents and their related business impact in terms of time and dollars. For example, in order to conduct a BIA one need to understand the business operations of one's department, company, organization or business in detail. He or she need to roll up their sleeves and reach out to operational folks to get the real picture. Based on the Business Impact Analysis (BIA) and risk assessment, the organization then plans, writes, tests, and updates a business continuity plan. The plan, in turn, defines the strategies and actions the organization will take to preserve its continuity. One thing to keep in mind is that terminology varies widely among standards. Many refer to business continuity planning as contingency planning or disaster recovery.

Here is a simple step-by-step approach that will help the company in conducting a successful BIA.

1. In many cases the revenue data can be linked to critical systems.

2. Estimate the financial, revenue and non-revenue impacts associated with each system. For non-revenue related systems, note impact. For example, if the payroll system is not working, employees may not get paid on time who may cause other issues.

3. BIA report can be used to request and prioritize resources, and incident-Response activity.

4. Service objectives. (p108 J.F. Broder)...

5. Financial position.

6. Regulatory issues.

7. Identify critical resources of the organization.

8. Gain support for recovery process from senior management.

9. Increase management's awareness of the issues and resources required for a workable program; as well as introducing a basic planning structure to the management group.

10. Potentially reveal inefficiencies in normal operations.

11. Help to justify or allocate better recovery planning budgets.

The Business Impact Analysis will generate interest, support, and momentum in the continuity project as a whole and a risk analysis can greatly reduce the cost of insurance, by identifying and quantifying a potential loss, thereby allowing the risk manager to avoid over or underinsuring the risk. A BIA will allow management to make timely decisions about future business issues. This is accomplished by looking at impacts,