In Hindsight: A Compendium of Business Continuity Case Studies

In Hindsight: A Compendium of Business Continuity Case Studies

by Robert Clark
Released June 2014
Publisher(s): IT Governance Publishing
ISBN: 9781849285919

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Book description

"This comprehensive research consistently portrays a set of common factors that precedes each disaster – poor management, a lack of proper planning and weak risk management practices. An eye-opener to all those executives that fail to understand the importance of business continuity and disaster recovery mechanisms."

Luciano Anastasi, MA MBCS CITP, Head of Information Technology at APS Bank, Malta

"I have found 'In Hindsight' to be an interesting, thought provoking and stimulating collection of studies; and I have learned a great deal in reading it."

Phillip Wood, MBE MSc FSyI CPP PSP AMBCI MInstLM, author of Resilient Thinking

"I am constantly amazed by the number of executives who dismiss potential disasters as being too unlikely to consider, or who put off dealing with known risks because they have other things to worry about. This book is full of these people, and what happens in the case studies provides ample evidence to counter their complacency."

Martin Caddick. LLB MBA MBCI MIOR

What causes disasters?

In this book, the authors analyse the causes of some of the major disasters from the last thirty years and explain what could have been done better, before and after the event. Unlike many titles on business continuity and disaster recovery, In Hindsight: A compendium of Business Continuity case studies does not build up from the theory of business continuity planning. Instead, it takes apart real events such as Hurricane Katrina, the terrorist attacks in London, Madrid and Glasgow, and the collapse of Barings Bank, revealing the themes that contributed to each.

Plan for the worst

Using these incidents as case studies, the authors demonstrate the potentially devastating results for organisations that have not planned for the worst. Crucially, the book proposes measures that could have helped to minimise the risks and consequences.

Learn from other people’s mistakes

By showing the potential repercussions of a badly thought-out disaster management and business continuity plan, this book helps you avoid making similar mistakes, reduce risks and enable faster recovery when things do go wrong.

About the editor

A Member of the Business Continuity Institute and an Approved BCI Instructor, Robert A. Clark is also a Fellow of the British Computer Society and a Member of the Security Institute. His career includes 15 years with IBM and 11 years with Fujitsu Services working with clients on BCM related assignments. He is now a freelance Business Continuity Consultant at www.bcm-consultancy.com

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title
  3. Copyright
  4. Dedication
  5. About The Editor
  6. Contributors
  7. Foreword – Martin Caddick, LLB MBA MBCI MIOR
  8. Preface – Phillip Wood, MBE MSC FSYI CPP PSP AMBCI
  9. List of Figures
  10. Contents
  11. Chapter 1: Introduction – Robert Clark
  12. Chapter 2: The MV ‘Full City’ Incident – Norway’s Worst Ever Oil Spill – Jon Sigurd Jacobsen
    1. The incident
    2. The local response
    3. The environmental damage
    4. Supply chain issues
    5. Insurance claims
    6. Lessons learned
      1. Was the incident preventable?
      2. What went well
      3. What could have been done better
      4. What did not go well
      5. Other observations
    7. Conclusion
  13. Chapter 3: Barings Bank Collapse – Owen Gregory
    1. Big Bang Day
    2. Lessons learned
      1. What could have been done better
      2. What did not go well
    3. Conclusion
  14. Chapter 4: Northgate Information Solutions, a Victim of the Buncefield Oil Depot Disaster – Robert Clark
    1. Northgate’s reaction
    2. Communications
    3. Recovery of the Year
    4. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
      4. Other observations
    5. Conclusion
  15. Chapter 5: The Love Parade: Dusseldorf 2010 – Tony Duncan
    1. Duisburg 2010
    2. Pre-event issues – contingency, safety and security planning
    3. Risk management
    4. Government and non-governmental agency/stakeholder engagement
    5. Legal aspects
    6. Communications
    7. The finger of blame
    8. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    9. Conclusion
  16. Chapter 6: Herald of Free Enterprise – Carl Dakin
    1. Dealing with the media
    2. Irreparable reputational damage
    3. Absence of contingency arrangements
    4. A disaster in waiting
    5. Shutting the stable door
    6. The birth of corporate manslaughter
    7. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    8. Conclusion
  17. Chapter 7: The Aztec Chemical Explosion, the Biggest Blaze in Cheshire for 35 Years – Robert Clark
    1. Your competitors can turn out to be your best friends in a crisis
    2. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
      4. Other observations
    3. Conclusion
  18. Chapter 8: Piper Alpha and Alexander L. Kielland: A Comparison of Two North Sea Tragedies – Carl Dakin and Jon Sigurd Jacobsen
    1. Piper Alpha
    2. The Alexander L. Kielland
    3. The common factors
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    4. Conclusion – could tragedies of the PA and ALK magnitude reoccur?
  19. Chapter 9: Bhopal: The World’s Worst Industrial Disaster – Owen Gregory
    1. Background
    2. Circumstances contributing to the enormity of the tragedy
    3. A disaster in waiting
    4. The tragic human legacy
    5. Effects on the local economy
    6. Litigation
    7. Lessons learned
    8. Conclusion
  20. Chapter 10: The Devastating Effect of the SARS Pandemic on the Tourist Industry – Catherine Feeney
    1. The tourist industry – fragility versus resilience
    2. The economic importance of tourism in the emerging millennium
    3. Typical health issues threatening the tourism industry
    4. Background to managing crises in tourism
    5. The SARS pandemic – a catalyst for change
    6. The aftermath
    7. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
      4. Other observations
    8. Subsequent improvements in tourism health crisis management
    9. Conclusion
  21. Chapter 11: Toyota Vehicle Recall – Tony Duncan
    1. Corporation background
    2. The unfolding crisis
    3. Crisis management
    4. Communications
    5. Regulator penalises Toyota
    6. Supply chain management
    7. Risk management failure
    8. Strategic risk management
    9. Reputational risk
    10. External stakeholder engagement
    11. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    12. Conclusion
  22. Chapter 12: The Gloucestershire Flooding, 2007 – Carl Dakin
    1. Background
    2. Flood impact
    3. Acute shortage of potable water
    4. Civil Contingencies Act
    5. Flawed business continuity approach
    6. The value of testing and exercising business continuity plans
    7. Communications
    8. Economic costs
    9. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    10. Conclusion
  23. Chapter 13: Closing the European Airspace: Eyjafjallajökull and the Volcanic Ash Cloud – Robert Clark
    1. Impact on the Icelandic community
    2. Impact on airlines
    3. Impact on business
    4. Impact on tourism
    5. Impact on independent travellers
    6. Impact on climate change
    7. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    8. Conclusion
  24. Chapter 14: The Åsta Train Accident, Norway, January 2000 – Jon Sigurd Jacobsen
    1. Development of the Norwegian Railway Network
    2. Norwegian rail travel safety record
    3. Head-on collision
    4. The unfolding disaster
    5. Subsequent investigation
    6. Trauma management
    7. Corporate manslaughter
    8. Insurance claims
    9. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    10. Conclusion
  25. Chapter 15: A Tale of Three Cities: the Bombing of Madrid (2004), London (2005) and Glasgow (2007) – Neil Swinyard-Jordan, Tony Duncan and Robert Clark
    1. Terrorism overview
      1. Enter the suicide bomber
      2. Terrorism and building design
      3. Terrorist goals
      4. Terrorist threat to transport
    2. Madrid Train Bombings, 2004
    3. London Underground and bus bombings, 2005
    4. Glasgow Airport bombing, 2007
      1. The day of the attack
      2. Glasgow airport’s response
      3. Media
      4. Impact on travellers
      5. The immediate aftermath
    5. The economic cost of terrorism
    6. Lessons learned
      1. It could have been worse
      2. What went well
      3. What could have been done better
      4. What did not go well
    7. Conclusion
  26. Chapter 16: Hurricane Katrina – Owen Gregory and Neil Swinyard-Jordan
    1. Birth of Katrina
    2. Crossing the Gulf of Mexico
    3. The impact
    4. The response
    5. Human impact
    6. Mass exodus
    7. Economic impact
    8. Utilities
    9. Emergency management
    10. Media
    11. Insurance
    12. Operational factors
    13. Technical factors
    14. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. What could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
    15. Conclusion
  27. Chapter 17: Arriva Malta: Business Continuity within a Change Management Programme – Robert Clark
    1. The dawning of the Arriva era
    2. One third of drivers never turned up
    3. Choice changeover dates
    4. Arriva website crashes
    5. Passengers and drivers totally confused by new routes
    6. Why can’t the buses stay on schedule?
    7. It’s just not good enough!
    8. Did the Arriva fiasco cause the government’s downfall?
    9. Racism on the buses
    10. The saga of the ‘Bendy-Bus’
    11. It all ended in tears
    12. The bankruptcy option
    13. Reflection by Transport Malta
    14. What does the future hold for Maltese public transport?
    15. Lessons learned
      1. What went well
      2. Would could have been done better
      3. What did not go well
      4. Other observations
    16. Conclusion
  28. Chapter 18: The Devil is in the Detail – Robert Clark
    1. Have you considered the workforce?
    2. Flooding
    3. Information security
    4. Employee fraud
    5. Succession planning
    6. Fire
    7. Keeping your contact details up to date
    8. Trauma management
    9. The cyber threat
    10. What did the press really say?
    11. Your fiercest competitor could also be your best friend
    12. Safety in numbers
    13. Malicious damage
  29. Chapter 19: Concluding Thoughts – Robert Clark
  30. Glossary
  31. Works Cited
  32. ITG Resources

Product information

  • Title: In Hindsight: A Compendium of Business Continuity Case Studies
  • Author(s): Robert Clark
  • Release date: June 2014
  • Publisher(s): IT Governance Publishing
  • ISBN: 9781849285919