Corporate Crisis Management Blog

The President of the United States just called out your company in a tweet.

It’s an experience shared by an increasing number of companies. Just ask Nordstrom, Toyota and Amazon, among many others.

As companies of all kinds rely more and more on digital information and network-enabled devices, cybersecurity will only continue to grow in importance. Consider the fact that nearly a quarter of business-disrupting events are related to cybersecurity incidents in a given year, according to a study by the Business Continuity Institute. Now think about your own organization: How would the business perform if it were hit by a cyber attack tomorrow?

 So who would have thought a tweet from the President of the United States is one of the biggest risks facing your organization?

In the past few weeks, such tweet s have led to swift changes to the plans of the entire US automobile industry, thrusting such companies as Ford, GM, Toyota and Fiat into the headlines and posing an economic threat to the country of Mexico.

Of the more than 27 million U.S. businesses in operation, an incredible 99 percent are small businesses with fewer than 500 employees. These smaller firms are arguably the most vulnerable to emergencies. In fact, nearly 40 percent of small businesses close following a disaster. This is proof that small businesses need to be effectively prepared for any crises that may hit. 

The 2008 financial crisis has had a lasting impact on the way financial institutions think about risk. Today, there is a significant push to incorporate enterprise risk management (ERM) capabilities that will not only protect financial providers from potential business-impacting crises, but also shield shareholders, customers, and the industry at large from any ripple effects.

With every passing year, cybersecurity becomes more of a concern for business continuity planning initiatives. Participants in the 2016 Business Continuity Institute Horizon Scan ranked cyberattack as their No. 1 threat, with data breach a close second. Over the last few years, these two categories have climbed the ranks in terms of most significant threats—an indication of how rapidly cybersecurity has become a key concern of business continuity professionals across the globe.

Creating an effective business continuity (BC) plan can be a challenge, especially at a large or fast-growing organization. But here’s the harsh truth: The long and often difficult road of establishing a plan and getting it approved is just half the battle.

U.S. retailers lose a staggering $60 billion a year due to customer and employee theft, fraud, and other challenges. But these aren’t the only threats facing retail companies: Like any other organization, they are also vulnerable to a wide range of disasters, from fire and flooding to social media crises and supply-chain disruptions.

Operational resilience is always evolving, particularly as it becomes increasingly enmeshed with technology. And as technology advances, organizations like yours only stand to benefit from new innovations for coping with and recovering from all types of crises.

Today, we’re taking a look at some of our 2017 predictions for operational resilience systems: