This course complements the Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity comprehensive program with a dedicated, hands-on planning session: building a business continuity plan from scratch, working through ICS-NIMS-aligned emergency management frameworks, and stress-testing the plan against realistic scenarios.
You'll leave with a plan structure and documentation approach that holds up under auditor or insurer review, not just a filed-away document.
What You'll Learn
- Build a business continuity plan using recognized emergency management frameworks
- Apply ICS-NIMS structure to a facility-level incident response
- Stress-test a continuity plan against realistic failure scenarios
- Document a plan that satisfies auditor and insurer expectations
Course Modules
BC/DR Planning Frameworks
Structuring a plan around recognized emergency management standards.
ICS-NIMS for Facilities
Applying incident command structure at the facility level.
Plan Stress-Testing
Running a continuity plan through realistic failure scenarios.
Audit-Ready Documentation
Documenting a plan that holds up under audit or insurance review.
Why This Matters in a Data Center
A business continuity plan is only useful if people can follow it under pressure. Many plans are written once for an audit and never tested, so contact lists are out of date, recovery steps assume staff who have left and nobody has practiced who makes decisions when the building is inaccessible.
This course is a hands-on planning session. It starts from a business impact analysis, which identifies the processes that matter most and how long each can be down, and builds a plan around those priorities. It uses the Incident Command System (ICS) and the National Incident Management System (NIMS), the same frameworks fire departments and emergency agencies use, so your facility's command structure lines up with responders. You then stress-test the plan and document it in a form auditors can review.
Who This Course Is For
Audience: Operations and risk managers building or updating a formal business continuity plan.
Course Details
Frequently Asked Questions
What is ICS/NIMS and why use it in a data center?
The Incident Command System is a standard way to organize people during an emergency, with clear roles such as incident commander, operations and logistics. NIMS is the U.S. national framework built around it. Using the same structure as local responders makes handoffs smoother during fires, floods or other major events.
How does this course relate to Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity?
Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity is the 8-hour comprehensive program covering RTO/RPO, redundant sites and DR testing. This course complements it with a dedicated, practical session on building and stress-testing the continuity plan itself.
What is a business impact analysis?
A business impact analysis (BIA) identifies critical business processes, the systems they depend on and how long each can be interrupted before the damage becomes unacceptable. It sets the priorities and recovery targets the rest of the plan is built around.
Does this course lead to a business continuity certification like CBCP?
No. The CBCP is awarded by DRI International and the CBCI by the Business Continuity Institute, each through its own exam and requirements. This course awards a certificate of completion and teaches practical planning skills (frameworks, ICS/NIMS, plan stress-testing and audit-ready documentation) that help whether or not you go on to one of those certifications.