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Resilience in Real Time: Experience the Power of Battleground Live | BCI

BCI — Mon, 12 Oct 2026 23:00:00 GMT

Resilience in Real Time: Experience the Power of Battleground Live

13 Oct 2026

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Whether you’re stress-testing critical dependencies, running live scenario simulations from the field, or briefing the Board in real time, Battleground brings your risk data, impact tolerances and crisis-response tools together in one dynamic platform. It gives you the power to respond faster, protect what matters and build an organisation that stays ahead of disruption, anytime and anywhere.

1. Switch on Dark Mode to Work Comfortably Anywhere

Match your display to your environment, day or night. Toggle seamlessly between light and dark modes (or auto-sync to your OS) to review operational data and manage incidents on mobile or desktop without eye strain.

Automatic System Sync: Set Battleground to automatically match your operating system’s default light or dark theme.
Manual Override: Toggle freely between Light Mode and Dark Mode at any time via user preferences.
Optimised Legibility: All dashboard visualisations, charts, and dependency diagrams have been high-contrast tuned for both modes.

2. Map Critical Dependencies and Spot Single Points of Failure Instantly

See exactly how your business connects in real time. Visualise upstream and downstream relationships across critical operations, third-party vendors, and core systems so you can identify bottlenecks before they cause downtime.

Key Capabilities

Resilience Posture Scorecard: Instantly view overall organisational resilience metrics, open critical operations, and vendor criticality distributions.
Single Points of Failure (SPOF) Tracking: Automatically flags high-risk dependencies and single points of failure across systems and third-party vendors.
Interactive Dependency Mapping: Visualise upstream and downstream relationships across critical operations, key dependencies, resources, and impact tolerances in real time.

3. Stress-Test Outages Before They Strike in the What-If Scenario Lab

Simulate real-world disruptions with zero operational risk. Model application failures, supplier collapses, or payment outages to see immediate fallout against your Maximum Tolerable Periods of Disruption (MTPD).

Failure Simulation: Select an asset, vendor, or critical application (e.g., payment gateways, cloud hosting, or key suppliers) to model immediate downstream fallout.
Breach Impact & Tolerance Analysis: View projected financial, operational, and regulatory impact against defined Maximum Tolerable Periods of Disruption (MTPD).
Control Strength Benchmarking: Review which control layers are tested, which are at risk of being breached, and where failover redundancy is required.

4. Get Instant ‘So What?’ Impact Summaries with Built-in AI

Turn complex operational data into actionable intelligence in seconds with optional AI assistant. Ask questions via natural-language chat to reveal the true business consequences of open risks and generate prioritised corrective actions automatically.

‘So What?’ Automated Impact Summaries: Generates concise, plain-English summaries explaining the real-world operational and business consequences of identified risks or gaps.
Contextual Chat Assistant: Query your organisation’s resilience data directly (e.g., “Which Tier 1 operations rely on this vendor?” or “What controls require testing this quarter?”).
Actionable Recommendations: Delivers prioritised corrective action steps based on your current posture and historical incidents.

5. Generate Audit-Ready Board and Regulatory Reports in Minutes

Stop spending hours manually assembling compliance packs. Use a guided setup wizard to produce tailored, executive-level resilience summaries for the Board, Risk Committee, or regulators with single-click PDF export.

Tailored Report Profiles: Generate pre-structured reports for different stakeholder groups, including the Board, Risk Committee, and Regulators.
Guided Setup Wizard: Answer a few targeted prompts (reporting scope, period, key areas of focus, and decision requirements) to produce a structured executive draft.
Export Options: Export clean, board-ready executive summaries or complete technical appendices directly to PDF or editable formats.

6. Convert Any BIA into an Actionable Business Continuity Plan with One Click

Eliminate double-handling between assessments and response documents. Instantly transform completed Business Impact Analyses (BIAs) into fully formatted, print-ready Business Continuity Plans for any department or operational tier.

Instant BCP Generation: Convert approved Business Impact Analyses (BIAs) into comprehensive, formatted Business Continuity Plans with a single click.
Centralised BIA Management: Track draft, active, and archived BIAs across all business units, geographies, and operational tiers.
Print & Export Ready: Distribute digital runbooks or generate hard-copy crisis documentation directly from the module.

7. Build and Run Interactive Crisis Simulations in Minutes Using AI

Design realistic, scenario-based drills without weeks of planning. Let AI construct dynamic injects, from fake media alerts and email threads to live phone injects—and scale your exercises across Crawl, Walk, or Run intensity levels.

Built with AI Assist: The builder analyses your live system dependencies, vendor lists, and critical operations to generate custom scenario injects and realistic timelines.
Flexible Exercise Depth: Select your preferred exercise intensity—from foundational tabletop discussions to complex, multi-channel live exercises (Crawl, Walk, or Run).
Interactive Injects & Channels: Deliver dynamic injects (simulated emails, phone calls, social media alerts, and news broadcasts) during live drills.
Structured Debriefs: Capture decisions, participant performance, and key learnings in real time to feed directly into continuous improvement plans.

Watch the Instant Demo here

For more information about Battleground visit https://www.battlegroundgroup.com/software/resilience-in-real-time-experience-the-power-of-battleground-live/

Contact:

Eli Goldberg

Head of Battleground UK & EMEA

Battleground Group Pty Ltd

+44 7719 225277
eli@battlegroundgroup.com

battlegroundgroup.com

Keep Going in a Crisis | BCI

Brian Runciman — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 23:00:00 GMT

Keep Going in a Crisis

09 Oct 2026
Brian

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We are halfway through the publication run of the Women in Resilience 26 in 26 podcasts – and there have been many insights on career paths, resilience war stories, and motivational comments. Check out the video or audio versions to get the full impact.

We have also enjoyed some lighter moments, so here are some our guests’ views (from the 26 in 26 series and last year’s BCI World podcast) on go-to snacks during a crisis, calming music, motivational music, and fictional characters who would help a crisis management team.

Go to snack

All the main food groups are covered: and a lot of our interviewees clearly try hard to be healthy…

Top mentions: Dark chocolate (the clear winner!), nuts, coffee

Being good: Protein shakes/bars, masala chai, pistachios

Naughty treats: Rhubarb and Custard Squashies, biscuits, dry-roasted peanuts, Marks and Spencer’s cookies, Boost bars, crisps, Snickers bars.

And to bring naughty and nice together: coffee cake.

To reflect the diverse nature of our professionals, there were some outliers. Is red wine a snack? In any case it was specifically mentioned in conjunction with the advice: in moderation. One interviewee said they actually perform better in the absence of food – true self-control.

We also got a full recipe for a healthy chocolate alternative! Here it is:

Take coconut oil, put it in the microwave so it's liquid.
Mix in full strength cacao
Drop in a date and a blob of honey
Put the mixture into a little casing, then the freezer for an hour

It makes you feel like you're eating chocolate - but it's a healthy version. (The BCI is not responsible for the implementation of this recipe… make at your own risk!).

Fictional crisis management team member

Who would be a useful addition to a crisis management team? The top answers were Harry Potter-oriented. The wizard himself was pipped for votes by Hermione Granger, because she was seen as a type A values-driven and organized person.

Beyond the assistance of the supernatural, the professor from the TV series Money Heist was identified as useful because of his dedication to scenario planning and his ability to anticipate potential issues before they occur. His adaptability means he excels at adjusting his plans quickly when reality deviates from the original strategy. And in leadership he demonstrates an exceptional ability to manage diverse personalities, communicating effectively to bring out the best in each team member, even under high-pressure situations.

Honourable mentions:

Zazu from The Lion King
Shaggy from Scooby Do
Donna from Suits
Dwayne Johnson (as The Rock)

Thank you for the music

For music suggestions we had two main categories. The music to help one calm down after an incident, or the music to keep one going during it. For the calming suggestions (and I think there is some irony in some of these) we had:

Pray for Me - The Weeknd
Anything by Capercaillie
Anything by Yo-Yo Ma
Cola - Arlo Parks
Anything by Enya

For motivational music:

Nice for What - Drake
Give me a Reason – NF (parental advisory…)
Sandstorm - Darude
Run Boy Run – Woodkid
The Zootopia soundtrack
The End of the World as we Know It – REM
Mr. Blue Sky - ELO
Tourist album - St Germain
Any good Bollywood tune
Amapiano (the genre itself)
Getta Bloomin’ Move On! (The Self Preservation Society) - Quincy Jones
Since You've Been Gone - Rainbow
Burning Love – Elvis Presley
Formation – Beyoncé
Pass that Dutch - Missy Elliott
Hamilton the musical

We may even do some Spotify playlists… watch this space.

For the more serious side check out the BCI podcasts: The BCI Podcast | BCI

Leading the way to Resilience: The BCI Podcast

Making Resilience Matter at Leadership Level: Advice for Public Sector Practitioners | BCI

Rebecca Mathews — Mon, 05 Oct 2026 23:00:00 GMT

Making Resilience Matter at Leadership Level: Advice for Public Sector Practitioners

06 Oct 2026
Rebecca

Foreword:

This article explores practical ways to strengthen senior leadership engagement in resilience across the public sector.

Drawing on the experiences and recommendations of global public sector professionals, it examines how organizations can build a case for resilience investment and secure lasting leadership support. It concludes with a selection of resources to support resilience practice and ongoing professional development.

Please note that this article is exclusive to BCI Members only. If you are a member please login into your website account to read the full content or find out more about BCI Membership

Resilience Challenges and Strategies Around the World: The South America Experience. Part 2/2 | BCI

Rebecca Mathews — Thu, 01 Oct 2026 23:00:00 GMT

Resilience Challenges and Strategies Around the World: The South America Experience. Part 2/2

02 Oct 2026
Rebecca

Foreword:

In the first article of this series, we explored how organizations in South America are responding to cyber and climate-related risks. In this second part, we turn our attention to supply chain disruption and geopolitical uncertainty.

The risks explored in this article series were identified through interviews with resilience practitioners across South America. Cyber threats, climate-related risks, supply chain disruption, and geopolitical uncertainty were the most frequently cited challenges, reflecting the practical concerns of organizations operating in the region.

Please note that this article is exclusive to BCI Members only. If you are a member please login into your website account to read the full content or find out more about BCI Membership

Our Latest White Paper: Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions | BCI

Rebecca Mathews — Wed, 30 Sep 2026 23:00:00 GMT

Our Latest White Paper: Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

01 Oct 2026
Rebecca

A resilience plan is only effective if it can be put into action under pressure. Yet tight budgets, competing priorities and approaches that struggle to engage participants can limit the value of training and exercising. How can organizations build programmes that prepare their people to respond when it matters?

Our new white paper explores this question through secondary research and in-depth interviews with resilience, business continuity and crisis management practitioners across sectors and regions.

It examines the barriers organizations face, the capabilities worth prioritising and practical approaches to designing, delivering and evaluating training and exercising programmes. Moving beyond theory and compliance, it shares insights into what practitioners are doing today and concludes with recommendations grounded in their experience.

Read the white paper

Read the white paper to discover practical ways to strengthen your organization’s training and exercising programme.

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

White Paper

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

White Paper

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

White Paper

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

White Paper

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

White Paper

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

White Paper

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

White Paper

BCI Global Awards 2026 Shortlist | BCI

BCI — Wed, 30 Sep 2026 23:00:00 GMT

BCI Global Awards 2026 Shortlist

01 Oct 2026

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Congratulations to all of the winners of BCI Regional Awards!

Now that the regional awards have come to an end, we are pleased to announce the shortlist for the 2026 edition of the BCI Global Awards.

Accenture Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Al Ain City Municipality
Allianz Malaysia Berhad (Allianz Malaysia)
Amélie Dufresne CBCI
Ascent Technology Consulting
AUT University
Avalias
AXA Ireland
Bangalore International Airport Limited
Bank of Botswana
Battleground
Brighton Tichaona Njambi MBCI
Bristol-Myers Squibb
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
Cole Brokmann CBCI
Daman Dev Sood FBCI
Daniel Cupitt MBCI
Data Communications Company
Doniella McKoy MBCI
Dubai Municipality
e& Group
Gallagher
Gianluca Riglietti
Gobi Palaniandy CBCI
Helen Lipscombe FBCI
Jaimini Patel
Jed Greenwood MBCI
JSC «BANK CREDIT DNIPRO»
Kenya Revenue Authority
La Caisse
Madhubabu Nadiminti MBCI
Matias Virta AMBCI
Mohamed Hassan FBCI
Mustapha Lamhamedi
National Bank of Egypt (NBE)
Niamh O'Toole
Noura Saleh Al Marzooqi
NTT DATA
Nuclear Transport Solutions
Oxygen Consulting Services Pvt Ltd
Pengurusan Air Selangor
Petrochemical Industries Company
Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA)
Raghuveer H G
Riskonnect
Rocket Companies
Sabelo Nsiba CBCI
Shannon Taylor
Sherri Flynn
State Bank of Pakistan
Syneos Health
TAQA Transmission
Tracey Linnell Hon FBCI
Wipro Technologies
Yara Alkurdi

The winners from each category will be announced during the BCI Global Awards 2026, which will be held during BCI World Hybrid 2026

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

BCI Americas Awards 2026: Winners Announced | BCI

BCI — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 23:00:00 GMT

BCI Americas Awards 2026: Winners Announced

29 Sep 2026

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We are pleased to announce the winners of the 2026 BCI Americas Awards

Category	Name of entry
Collaboration in Resilience 2026 Winner	La Caisse
Continuity and Resilience Consultant 2026 Winner	Sherri Flynn
Continuity and Resilience Innovation 2026 Winner	Resilience by design - La Caisse
Continuity and Resilience Newcomer 2026 Winner	Amélie Dufresne CBCI
Continuity and Resilience Professional Private Sector 2026 Winner	Doniella McKoy MBCI
Continuity and Resilience Professional Public Sector 2026 Winner	Mustapha Lamhamedi
Continuity and Resilience Team 2026 Winner	Rocket Companies
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Ally/Champion of the Year 2026 Winner	Shannon Taylor
Most Effective Recovery 2026 Winner	Gallagher
Most Original Exercise Programme 2026 Winner	Syneos Health

All winners of the BCI Americas Awards are automatically shortlisted for the BCI Global Awards, which will be presented during BCI World Hybrid 2026. Follow the link below to learn more.

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

10 - 11 Nov 2026, United Kingdom

BCI World Hybrid 2026

Conference

Lead Resilience With Insight: Education Month Comes to a Close | BCI

BCI — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 23:00:00 GMT

Lead Resilience With Insight: Education Month Comes to a Close

25 Sep 2026

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The BCI’s education month, the Institute’s annual global celebration of learning, development, and connection in the profession, has wrapped up with a look at leadership.

The content for the week was aimed at practitioners ready to move from applying good practice to shaping it, and for those experienced practitioners ready for strategic leadership using the route to MBCI and the FBCI was also covered.

Highlights

The week covered several leadership areas. In ‘Board Oversight for Organizational Resilience’ today’s challenging corporate environment, with its ever-increasing risks and threats were analysed. These can impact the very survival of an organization, and the list of potential threat is long: geopolitical tensions, trade restrictions, cyber threats, recurring supply chain disruptions, and more. The role of boards to address the risks and build timely and adequate safeguards, alongside leadership that fosters effective oversight that enhances organizational resilience is therefore vital. The aim of the session was to make risk handling, crisis handling capability, the ability to conduct minimum critical business, and effectively managing stakeholder concerns achievable.

Taking a look at the personal level was ‘When Continuity Becomes Human: Designing People-Centered BCM Programs.’ This session explored how people-related dependencies can be built into BCM program design, governance, and review cycles so that resilience becomes operational, not theoretical.

The importance of effective and clear communication was also analysed. In the presentation ‘Why Senior BC Leaders Conflate Risk, Crisis, and Emergency Communication - and What It Costs Them’ there was a clear warning that most business continuity plans use "communication" as a single line item, as if risk communication, crisis communication, and emergency communication were one skill wearing three hats. The event showed that each operates on a different timeline, answers to a different kind of uncertainty, and fails in a different way when treated like the others.

The week was rounded out with useful insight from the BCI’s research programme. Two ‘Lunch and learn’ sessions were run, which delved deeper into recent BCI research: The Vision 2030 report and the Horizon Scan report.

Did you miss anything?

The month’s overall theme was ‘One profession. Three stages. Your pathway’. The programme was designed to look at roads that a career in business continuity and resilience can follow.

This month was deliberately centred on personalising career paths, showing that the BCI Learning Pathway is a clear, stage-by-stage route through an individual’s professional development in business continuity and resilience. It can take you from your first qualification, to advancing your practice, and on to becoming a leader at the highest level of the profession.

The month has followed that path, with week one covering building strong foundations in good practice, week two looking at the practical aspects of applying good practice with confidence, and as already discussed, this third week giving insights into leadership.

If you missed anything, don’t forget that with a BCI web account you can review the webinar recordings at your leisure.

Education Month 2026 | BCI

The Pipeline for the Next Generation of Resilience Professionals? | BCI

Brian Runciman — Wed, 23 Sep 2026 23:00:00 GMT

The Pipeline for the Next Generation of Resilience Professionals?

24 Sep 2026
Brian

A consistent theme in my first year of speaking to resilience and business continuity professionals is the pipeline problem. Where are the next generation of professionals coming from? Allied with that is the interesting discovery (for me, at least) that most resilience pros seem to have landed up in their career by accident.

Whilst the evangelical zeal with which many of these people now promote their chosen career, accidental entry isn’t a long-term plan for the industry’s health.

That is one reason why the Next Generation Network was created. Its stated goal is to create space for connection, capability building, and practical contributions for individuals entering the profession through diverse pathways, including career changers and those new to resilience roles.

But what about the step before that? The NGN talk about ‘shared learning, innovation and active engagement’ – and that came to mind when a member alerted me to a session at AFAC on lived experiences of younger people in disaster-affected areas[1].

This seems to be a reference to Heywire[2] an Australian initiative where young regional, rural and remote students have ‘the opportunity to enter the national discussion, where they are often unheard and under-represented, and to drive projects that contribute to the wellbeing of their peers, their schools, communities and themselves...’ Many of these personal stories include elements of resilience.

This, and other initiatives like it, started with the UN's Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction,[3] which identifies children and youth as ‘agents of change’. [4]

Examples

New Zealand’s National Emergency Management Agency, with the Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake, runs "What's the Plan, Stan?". It's a free resource to support schools, teachers and students to develop the knowledge and skills to prepare for emergency events, with content adaptable to local areas and school curriculums. The service provides lesson plans, fact sheets and classroom activities and ties into the New Zealand school curriculum's goals for young people. The aim is for these young people to be confident, connected, and actively involved in reducing disaster risk. It's even been adapted into an augmented-reality game for children ages 6–12.

The US also has a number of initiatives. The National Strategy for Youth Preparedness Education, developed by FEMA, the Department of Education, and the American Red Cross, sets out nine steps for building youth preparedness nationally. Again, it provides resources, including ‘Student Tools for Emergency Planning (STEP)’, a curriculum for grade 4+ that teaches kids to build emergency kits and family communication plans. There is the ‘Teen Community Emergency Response Team (Teen CERT)’ for high schoolers, and the "Prepare with Pedro" activity book for younger children, available in six languages. FEMA also runs a national Youth Preparedness Council for teen leadership.

Other national and regional efforts

Over the past decade there have been national rollouts of disaster resilience education in Turkey, the Philippines, and Indonesia. In Europe, the EU-funded CUIDAR project (Cultures of Disaster Resilience among Children and Young People) examined the roles ascribed to children in disaster risk reduction policy, including a country study of Portugal. In Latin America and the Caribbean, a UNICEF-produced guide for governments, driven by the Declaration of Santiago de Chile on Disaster Risk Reduction, set out strategies for integrating children, adolescents and youth resilience-building into risk management and climate adaptation planning at local, national and regional levels.

Could it be that the young people who have been associated with these initiatives are a good source for the next generation of resilience? As several of the BCI’s podcast guests have said, sometimes people haven’t even heard of business continuity as a concept – let alone as a potential career. So, if there is a pool of young people with existing knowledge, and if other countries take up this approach, is this the starting point for the pipeline?

To watch or listen to industry professionals discuss their experiences visit The BCI Podcast | BCI

[1] AFAC26 Conference Program - AFAC 2026

[2] Winners - ABC Heywire

[3] Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 | UNDRR

[4] Children and youth | UNDRR

From Plans to Performance: Why Crisis Management Exercises and Simulation are Critical | BCI

BCI — Tue, 22 Sep 2026 23:00:00 GMT

From Plans to Performance: Why Crisis Management Exercises and Simulation are Critical

23 Sep 2026

This is the first in a three-part series exploring how organisations can move from resilience planning to demonstrated capability, and the role that exercising and simulation play in making that transition.

For many organisations, preparedness is still measured by the existence of plans alone. Business continuity plans are reviewed, crisis management frameworks are approved, and response procedures are stored somewhere accessible to those that need to know. Once this work is complete, leaders may assume that the organisation is ready. Crisis management exercises may take place periodically, but are often treated as validation of those arrangements rather than a means of testing organisational capability.

However, a plan is often no more than a statement of intent. It describes how an organisation expects to respond under relatively controlled conditions borne out of assumptions. It cannot demonstrate whether people will recognise an emerging crisis, escalate it quickly enough, make effective decisions despite incomplete information or coordinate action across organisational boundaries. Only regular demonstrated performance can really provide that assurance.

This is why exercising and simulation should not be treated as the final, sometimes optional end stage of resilience planning. They are the mechanisms through which organisations test their ability to respond and translate their documented arrangements into a practical capability.

The limits of the written plan

Plans and the process of developing them remain essential. They provide structure, clarify roles and responsibilities and reduce the cognitive burden placed on teams during periods of disruption. However, even the most comprehensive plan will be built on a series of assumptions or a scenario the organisation has anticipated. However, crises rarely respect these assumptions.

Information is often either scarce and incomplete, or contradictory and continuously changing. Senior leaders may be unavailable or operating remotely. Several teams required to respond may do so using language and terminology that is not clearly understood by all. Teams and individuals may also have competing priorities and parallel reporting structures. Additionally, operational decisions can rapidly create unexpected or unplanned legal, regulatory, financial or reputational consequences elsewhere for the organisation.

Under these conditions, the existence of a plan provides limited assurance and value, if the people expected to implement it have never practised doing so. An exercise exposes the difference between the organisations assumed ability to respond and its genuine capacity to respond effectively.

What assumptions should crisis management exercises test?

Exercises provide an opportunity to deliberately challenge the assumptions on which response arrangements depend before those assumptions are tested by a real disruption. That could include whether:

key decision-makers are available when required
alternative leadership arrangements work when they are not
communications systems remain available and secure
critical information reaches the right people quickly enough
suppliers and other third parties respond as expected
teams understand one another's responsibilities and terminology
the organisation can adapt when an incident develops differently from the scenarios anticipated in its plans

The purpose is not to prove that every assumption is wrong. It is to understand which assumptions are critical to the response and what happens when they no longer hold.

Why crisis management exercises matter more now

The global economy and wider society are moving faster, is more interconnected and far less forgiving, than in the past.

Cyber incidents can disrupt multiple business functions almost simultaneously. Supply-chain failures may spread across organisations, sectors and even legal jurisdictions. Social media can turn an operational issue into a reputational crisis before the crisis management team has even received their first situation report. Artificial intelligence is increasing both the speed at which information is produced and the complexity verifying what is reliable.

At the same time, regulators, customers and boards and investors increasingly expect organisations to demonstrate that their resilience arrangements work. It is no longer good enough to show that plans exist. Organisations must be able to evidence that these plans and importantly the individuals responsible for implementing them, have been tested, any lessons identified and necessary improvements have been implemented.

Exercising international good practice

International good practice reflects this shift. ISO 22398 provides guidance for planning, conducting and improving exercise programmes, while ISO 22361 places exercising within the development and continual improvement of strategic crisis management capability.

Both reinforce a wider point, exercising should not be viewed simply as an isolated validation activity at the end of the planning process. It forms part of the ongoing development of organisational capability. The question for leaders is therefore changing from, “Do we have a plan?” to, “Can our people use our plans effectively when the situation is uncertain, escalating and significantly consequential?”

In Part Two of this series, we’ll look at why crisis management exercises and simulation are critical to moving from plans to performance by testing assumptions, exposing gaps and providing greater assurance that people and plans will work when they are needed most.

News

Resilience in Real Time: Experience the Power of Battleground Live | BCI

Resilience in Real Time: Experience the Power of Battleground Live

More on

Keep Going in a Crisis | BCI

Keep Going in a Crisis

Go to snack

Fictional crisis management team member

Thank you for the music

Leading the way to Resilience: The BCI Podcast

More on

About the author

Brian Runciman

Making Resilience Matter at Leadership Level: Advice for Public Sector Practitioners | BCI

Making Resilience Matter at Leadership Level: Advice for Public Sector Practitioners

More on

About the author

Rebecca Mathews

Resilience Challenges and Strategies Around the World: The South America Experience. Part 2/2 | BCI

Resilience Challenges and Strategies Around the World: The South America Experience. Part 2/2

More on

About the author

Rebecca Mathews

Our Latest White Paper: Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions | BCI

Our Latest White Paper: Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Read the white paper

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Training and Exercising: Current Approaches and Future Directions

More on

About the author

Rebecca Mathews

BCI Global Awards 2026 Shortlist | BCI

BCI Global Awards 2026 Shortlist

BCI World Hybrid 2026

More on

BCI Americas Awards 2026: Winners Announced | BCI

BCI Americas Awards 2026: Winners Announced

BCI World Hybrid 2026

BCI World Hybrid 2026

BCI World Hybrid 2026

BCI World Hybrid 2026

BCI World Hybrid 2026

BCI World Hybrid 2026

BCI World Hybrid 2026

More on

Lead Resilience With Insight: Education Month Comes to a Close | BCI

Lead Resilience With Insight: Education Month Comes to a Close

Highlights

Did you miss anything?

More on

The Pipeline for the Next Generation of Resilience Professionals? | BCI

The Pipeline for the Next Generation of Resilience Professionals?

Examples

Other national and regional efforts

More on

About the author

Brian Runciman

From Plans to Performance: Why Crisis Management Exercises and Simulation are Critical | BCI

From Plans to Performance: Why Crisis Management Exercises and Simulation are Critical

The limits of the written plan

What assumptions should crisis management exercises test?

Why crisis management exercises matter more now

Exercising international good practice

More on