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certification resources
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Framework for Voluntary Preparedness
January 31, 2008 4:32 PM
By Representatives of ASIS International (ASIS), Disaster Recovery Institute International (DRII), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) with the Support of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
In response to the new U.S. legislation to establish a voluntary business preparedness certification program, representatives from leading professional associations came together to form an “Interdisciplinary Team… to develop a mechanism to address verifiable private sector preparedness.” The team consisted of “professional associations that view preparedness from security management, business continuity management, emergency management and enterprise risk management perspectives.” The team consisted of representatives of ASIS International (ASIS), Disaster Recovery Institute International (DRII), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS). Their January 2007 report included the following key points:
1. There is substantial commonality among the various existing approaches to preparedness (security management, enterprise risk management, emergency management and business continuity): The report states that there is a “commonality of the different perspectives and approaches of these disciplines and their established standards, guidelines and best practices.”
2. This commonality can be reflected in a “framework” of common core elements of preparedness present in each of these approaches: The Interdisciplinary Team collaborated to identify a framework of “what core elements must be in place to increase the probability of a private sector company’s continued sustainability and resiliency in light of a disruptive event, regardless of cause.”
3. Many of the existing preparedness standards, best practices and regulations are based on these approaches and reflect this same framework of common core elements in whole or in part: The Interdisciplinary Team “confirmed commonalities with respect to certain core elements contained within … various regulations … standards and proposed standards…[and best practice] documents.”
4. Many companies are already implementing programs in accordance with these existing preparedness standards, best practices and regulations. Thus, these companies’ efforts also reflect some or all of these common framework core elements in one form or another: The team found that “depending on the structure of businesses and organizations in the private sector, many are already pursuing elements or complete programs in preparedness based on the viewpoint of one or more of these disciplines.”
5. Existing preparedness efforts should be built upon and not displaced or disrupted by any new certification program: Per the report, “These businesses need the freedom to develop mature preparedness programs and systems building on their existing models.”
6. Various approaches to preparedness reflect various and sometimes differing needs across the private sector: The report found that “one size does not fit all and therefore, it is important that the private sector have appropriate choices that fit their respective business needs.” Further that “the private sector… should be given the flexibility to choose from various standards, guidelines and best practices that best meet their needs for preparedness.”
7. To the extent that current efforts by businesses conform with existing standards, best practices and regulations that reflect the common core elements of the preparedness framework they should be credited under the new voluntary business preparedness certification program. The report states that “organizations that are in conformity with existing regulations, standards, guidelines or industry best practices that address the core elements of preparedness should be recognized as having achieved the intent of Title IX of PL 110-53, and should be credited for existing practices to the extent such practices address the identified core elements.
8. Voluntary certification can adopted voluntarily as a competitive advantage. The report states that “certification to a specific preparedness standard may be adopted voluntarily by an organization as a competitive differentiator.”
9. Lessons can be learned from the successful voluntary business certification program for environmental management which allows for various ways of certifying preparedness. The report notes that “mechanisms exist for certification to standards…most standards provide for improved performance and demonstrate conformity to the standard in balance with socio-economic needs of the organization. This allows for self-declaration, second-party auditing and contractually enforced conformity, in addition to third party auditing and certification, as mechanisms for organizations to demonstrate successful implementation of the standard to assure interested parties that an appropriate system is in place.”
10. Additional training, tools and practices support is recommended to support greater preparedness and voluntary certification. Per the report, “what is lacking in preparedness management is the rich amount of training materials, case studies, tool sets, technical assistance and peer programs.”
Click here to access this report.