How do you measure disaster impact on operations?

1 Business Impact Analysis (BIA)

The BIA is a process that evaluates the potential effects of a disaster on your business processes and functions. It helps you estimate the financial, operational, and reputational losses that could result from a disruption, as well as the recovery costs and resources needed. The BIA involves identifying your key products and services, the dependencies and interdependencies among them, the stakeholders and customers affected, and the legal and regulatory obligations that must be met. The BIA also helps you prioritize your recovery activities based on the severity and urgency of the impact.

2 Criticality Analysis (CA)

The CA is a method that ranks your business functions and processes according to their importance for your operations and objectives. It helps you determine which functions are critical, essential, or non-essential, and how long they can be interrupted without causing significant harm. The CA involves assigning a score to each function based on the criteria of impact, urgency, and frequency. The higher the score, the more critical the function is. The CA helps you allocate your resources and efforts to the most critical functions and processes during a disaster.

3 Recovery Time Objective (RTO)

The RTO is a metric that specifies the maximum acceptable time that a business function or process can be down after a disaster. It helps you set the target for restoring your operations to a normal or acceptable level. The RTO is based on the impact and urgency of the function or process, as well as the expectations and requirements of your stakeholders and customers. The RTO can vary depending on the type and scale of the disaster, and it can be expressed in hours, days, or weeks. The RTO helps you define your recovery strategies and plans, as well as your backup and contingency options.

4 Recovery Point Objective (RPO)

The RPO is a metric that specifies the maximum acceptable amount of data that can be lost or corrupted after a disaster. It helps you set the target for restoring your data to a previous or acceptable state. The RPO is based on the value and frequency of the data, as well as the legal and regulatory obligations that must be met. The RPO can vary depending on the type and sensitivity of the data, and it can be expressed in minutes, hours, or days. The RPO helps you determine your data backup and recovery methods, as well as your data protection and security measures.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?