BCM Strategy and Plan Development 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which BCP document specifically addresses the sequence in which critical business functions should be restored after a disruption?
- Crisis Communications Plan
- Recovery prioritization matrix (Correct answer)
- Business Impact Analysis
- Incident Response Plan
Correct answer: Recovery prioritization matrix
A recovery prioritization matrix ranks functions by criticality and required restoration sequence based on BIA findings.
Question 2: A Minimum Business Continuity Objective (MBCO) defines:
- The minimum staff count needed to declare an emergency
- The minimum level of services needed during disruption to satisfy stakeholders (Correct answer)
- The lowest acceptable backup frequency
- The minimum insurance payout required for recovery
Correct answer: The minimum level of services needed during disruption to satisfy stakeholders
MBCO specifies the minimum service or product output level an organization must maintain during a disruption to meet stakeholder expectations.
Question 3: When developing a supply chain continuity strategy, which approach BEST reduces single-supplier dependency?
- Negotiating longer contracts with the primary supplier
- Pre-qualifying multiple alternative suppliers (Correct answer)
- Increasing safety stock inventory levels
- Requiring suppliers to carry BCM certification
Correct answer: Pre-qualifying multiple alternative suppliers
Pre-qualifying alternative suppliers ensures the organization can quickly switch sources when a primary supplier is disrupted.
Question 4: In a BCM context, what does a 'reciprocal agreement' between two organizations involve?
- Sharing a common insurance policy
- Each organization agreeing to host the other in the event of a disaster (Correct answer)
- Joint investment in a shared hot site
- Regular joint BCP testing exercises
Correct answer: Each organization agreeing to host the other in the event of a disaster
A reciprocal agreement means two organizations commit to providing each other with recovery space and resources if either suffers a major disruption.
Question 5: Which metric captures how much data loss (measured in time) an organization can tolerate after a disruption?
- RTO
- MTD
- RPO (Correct answer)
- MBCO
Correct answer: RPO
Recovery Point Objective (RPO) defines the maximum acceptable age of data that must be recovered from backup, determining allowable data loss.
Question 6: A business continuity strategy is considered 'viable' when it:
- Costs less than the organization's annual risk budget
- Can restore operations within the RTO at an acceptable cost (Correct answer)
- Has been approved by the board of directors
- Uses only internally owned resources
Correct answer: Can restore operations within the RTO at an acceptable cost
A viable strategy must achieve recovery within the required timeframe (RTO) and be economically feasible for the organization.
Question 7: A BCP for a manual workaround procedure should include which of the following FIRST?
- Estimated cost of the manual process
- Trigger conditions that activate the workaround (Correct answer)
- Names of vendors who can supply temporary staff
- Communication templates for customers
Correct answer: Trigger conditions that activate the workaround
Clearly defined trigger conditions ensure staff know exactly when to switch from normal operations to the manual workaround, preventing delayed activation.
BCM Strategy and Plan Development 3
Which BCP document specifically addresses the sequence in which critical business functions should be restored after a disruption?