A facility certification center is a center that provides the physical infrastructure for testing and certifying the functionality and performance of products, systems, or services. A facility certification center may have specialized equipment, tools, environments, or standards that can simulate real-world conditions or scenarios. A facility certification center may also have qualified staff, experts, or auditors who can conduct the testing and certification process. Verified References: https://www.iso.org/publication/PUB100442.html https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/solutions/hybrid-work/what-is-business-continuity.html

A disaster can also be declared for an illness pandemic where a significant portion of employees are sick. This is true because an illness pandemic is a type of natural disaster that can affect an organization’s ability to continue its normal operations. An illness pandemic can cause absenteeism, reduced productivity, increased costs, supply chain disruptions, customer dissatisfaction, or regulatory compliance issues. Therefore, an organization may need to declare a disaster and activate its business continuity and disaster recovery plan if an illness pandemic impacts its critical functions and processes beyond an acceptable level. Verified References: https://www.ready.gov/business-continuity-plan https://www.csoonline.com/article/515730/business-continuity-and-disaster-recovery-planning-the-basics.html

Risks are diverse and arise from both external and internal sources. This is true because risks are uncertainties that can have positive or negative effects on an organization’s objectives. Risks can arise from various sources that are either outside or inside the organization’s control. External sources of risk include natural disasters, cyberattacks, market fluctuations, customer preferences, competition, regulation, or political instability. Internal sources of risk include human error, fraud, system failure, process inefficiency, organizational culture, or strategic decisions. Verified References: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/businessrisk.asp https://www.thebci.org/training-qualifications/good-practice-guidelines.html

In the event of a disaster, notification shall be given to each employee by either the HR Department Manager or through the firm’s emergency notice system. This is true because communication is a vital component of any disaster recovery and business continuity plan. Employees need to be informed of the situation, their roles and responsibilities, and the actions they need to take to ensure their safety and the continuity of the business. The HR Department Manager or the emergency notice system are the designated channels for communicating with employees during a disaster. Verified References: https://www.ready.gov/business-continuity-plan https://www.csoonline.com/article/515730/business-continuity-and-disaster-recovery-planning-the-basics.html

Tolerating risk is where no action is taken to mitigate or reduce a risk. This is true because tolerating risk is one of the possible strategies for managing risk. Tolerating risk means accepting or retaining a risk without taking any further action to reduce it, either because the risk level is acceptable or because the cost or effort of reducing it is not justified. Tolerating risk may be appropriate for low-priority or low-impact risks that do not pose a significant threat to the organization’s objectives. Verified References: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/the-four-ts.asp https://www.thebci.org/training-qualifications/good-practice-guidelines.html

Operational risk is the type of risk that is related to human error or achievement. Operational risk is the uncertainty or variability of the execution or outcome of an organization’s functions or processes. Operational risk can result from factors such as inadequate policies, procedures, systems, controls, skills, training, supervision, or compliance. Operational risk can affect an organization’s operational efficiency, quality, safety, security, reputation, or profitability. Verified References: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/o/operational_risk.asp https://www.thebci.org/training-qualifications/good-practice-guidelines.html

A formal “disaster” can only be declared by the firm owners or by the IT Department Manager. This is false because a formal “disaster” can be declared by any authorized person who has the responsibility and authority to activate the business continuity and disaster recovery plan. The authorized person may vary depending on the type, scope, and severity of the disaster, but it should be clearly defined in the plan who can declare a disaster and under what circumstances. The authorized person should also communicate the declaration of a disaster to all relevant stakeholders, such as employees, customers, suppliers, partners, regulators, media, or the public. Verified References: https://www.ready.gov/business-continuity-plan https://www.csoonline.com/article/515730/business-continuity-and-disaster-recovery-planning-the-basics.html

The four T’s of risk guidance produced by the Office of Government Commerce are transfer, tolerate, treat, and terminate. They are:

Transfer: This strategy involves transferring or sharing some or all of the responsibility or impact of a risk to another party, such as an insurer, a supplier, or a partner.

Tolerate: This strategy involves accepting or retaining a risk without taking any further action to reduce it, either because the risk level is acceptable or because the cost or effort of reducing it is not justified.

Treat: This strategy involves taking steps to reduce the likelihood or impact of a risk to an acceptable level, such as implementing controls, mitigations, or contingency plans.

Terminate: This strategy involves eliminating or avoiding a risk by discontinuing or changing the activity that causes it. Verified References:https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/the-four-ts.asp https://www.thebci.org/training-qualifications/good-practice-guidelines.html

A Business Continuity Plan (BCP) is designed to ensure an organization can maintain or resume critical functions during and after a disruption. According to Business Continuity Professional standards, such as those from DRI International and ISO 22301, the BCP typically encompasses three core components that address different phases of response and recovery:

A. Emergency response: This component focuses on the immediate actions taken during a disruption (e.g., evacuation, safety measures, and initial coordination). It is a foundational part of the BCP, ensuring personnel and asset safety as a prerequisite to continuity and recovery efforts.

B. Incident management: While incident management (handling and resolving incidents) is critical in broader crisis management frameworks, it is often considered a distinct process under an Incident Response Plan (IRP) rather than a core BCP component. It overlaps with BCP but is not universally listed as one of the three primary elements.

C. Problem management: This is an IT service management process (e.g., under ITIL) focused on identifying and resolving the root causes of incidents. It is not a standard component of a BCP, which prioritizes continuity and recovery over long-term problem resolution.

D. Business recovery: This involves restoring critical business functions and processes after a disruption, ensuring the organization can resume normal operations. It is a central pillar of the BCP, addressing recovery time objectives (RTOs) and operational continuity.

E. Disaster recovery: This focuses on recovering IT systems, data, and infrastructure following a disaster. Often integrated into the BCP, it ensures technological continuity, making it a key component alongside business recovery and emergency response.

The verified answer isA. Emergency response, D. Business recovery, E. Disaster recovery, as these three components collectively cover the lifecycle of a BCP—immediate response, business function restoration, and IT recovery—per established standards. While incident management is related, it is typically supplementary rather than a core BCP element when narrowed to three components.

References:

DRI International Professional Practices for Business Continuity Management (2023), Section 6: Business Continuity Plan Development – Identifies emergency response, business recovery, and disaster recovery as key BCP components.

ISO 22301:2019, Clause 8.4 – Outlines planning for response (emergency), continuity (business recovery), and IT recovery (disaster recovery) as integral to BCP.