[OR] [EWB] [E3] [C1] Starting Your OR Implementation

Introduction to “Starting Your OR Implementation” for EWB

The third instalment of the Operational Resilience Implementation Blueprint: EastWest Banking Corporation marks a critical transition—from planning to execution.

While the earlier eBooks, Understanding Your Organisation and Implementing OR Planning Methodology for EastWest Banking Corporation, established the strategic, governance, and design foundations, this eBook focuses on operationalising those plans into actionable, measurable, and testable outcomes.

For EastWest Banking Corporation, operational resilience is not merely a regulatory requirement but a strategic capability.

In an increasingly volatile environment shaped by cyber threats, system disruptions, third-party dependencies, and evolving customer expectations, the ability to deliver critical business services under disruption is paramount.

This eBook serves as the implementation engine of the entire Operational Resilience (OR) programme. It consolidates structured inputs from business units and translates them into a comprehensive, organisation-wide resilience capability.

Purpose of This Chapter

The purpose of this chapter is to:

• Provide a clear overview of the objectives and scope of this eBook
• Explain how this eBook builds upon the outputs of the earlier phases
• Define the expected contributions from business units
• Establish a common understanding of the six implementation stages
• Position this eBook as a practical guide for execution and submission

This chapter prepares the reader to transition from conceptual understanding to hands-on implementation, ensuring alignment, consistency, and completeness across all submissions.

This eBook represents the execution layer of the three-part series:

• Understanding Your Organisation
  Establishes organisational context, operating environment, and critical services
• Implementing OR Planning Methodology
  Defines the governance, strategy, and planning stages
• Starting Your OR Implementation (This eBook)

While the first two eBooks provide the “what” and “why,” this eBook delivers the “how”—through structured templates, tables, and guided outputs.

Focus on Phase 2 [P2]: Operational Resilience in Action

Phase 2 of the Operational Resilience Planning Methodology is the point at which resilience concepts are embedded in day-to-day operations.

This eBook addresses the six key requirements of Phase 2 as requested by regulators globally,  namely:

1. Outline Detailed Processes (Phase 2 – Stage 1) [DP]
   Translating high-level business services into detailed, end-to-end operational processes that enable service delivery.
2. Map Dependency (Phase 2 – Stage 2) [MD]
   Identifying internal and external dependencies, including people, technology, data, facilities, third parties, and suppliers.
3. Map Processes and Resources (Phase 2 – Stage 2) [MPR]
   Establishing clear linkages between processes and the resources required to support them under normal and disrupted conditions.
4. Establish Impact Tolerances (Phase 2 – Stage 2) [iTo]
   Defining the maximum tolerable level of disruption for each critical business service, aligned with client harm, market integrity, financial stability, and regulatory expectations.
5. Identify Severe but Plausible Scenarios (Phase 2 – Stage 4) [SuPS]
   Developing stress scenarios that meaningfully challenge the organisation’s ability to remain within its defined impact tolerances.
6. Perform Scenario Testing (Phase 2 – Stage 4) [ST]
   Testing the organisation’s capability to withstand disruption and identifying vulnerabilities, control gaps, and areas for resilience enhancement.

Each of these requirements is explored in the context of the organisation’s operating model and service landscape.

This eBook consolidates implementation outputs for the following eight Critical Business Services of the EastWest Banking Corporation:

• CBS-1 Deposit and Account Services

• CBS-2 Payments, Funds Transfer, and Bill Payment Services

• CBS-3 Digital Banking and Customer Access Channels

• CBS-4 Card Issuing and Card Transaction Services

• CBS-5 Retail and Consumer Lending Services

• CBS-6 Corporate and SME Banking Services

• CBS-7 Treasury, Liquidity, and Market-Facing Financial Services

• CBS-8 Customer Service, Complaints Handling, and Incident Communications

Each CBS is analysed through the lens of process mapping, dependency identification, and scenario testing, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of vulnerabilities and resilience capabilities.

Each CBS is examined through the lens of process resilience, resource dependencies, tolerance thresholds, and scenario-driven vulnerabilities, enabling readers to understand not only what needs to be done, but how to do it in a structured, regulator-ready manner.

This eBook is designed for practitioners—risk managers, BCM professionals, operations leaders, compliance teams, and senior management—who are responsible for building, enhancing, or validating operational resilience capabilities.

It serves as both a hands-on implementation guide and a reference artefact, supporting consistency, traceability, and continuous improvement across the OR lifecycle.

This is a complimentary service offered by BCM Institute to organisations intending to implement an Operational Resilience project or enhance an existing Operational Resilience programme.

It is specifically designed to support organisations adopting the BCM Institute’s training-led implementation approach, where learning is directly integrated with real organisational deliverables.

For participants attending BCM Institute’s certification or competency-based training courses, this eBook serves as:

• A practical reference for applying training concepts to live organisational exercises,
• A structured guide for developing implementation artefacts, and
• A bridge between professional development and real-world resilience outcomes.

“Starting Your OR Implementation” represents the execution cornerstone of EastWest Banking Corporation’s operational resilience journey. It bridges the gap between strategy and practice by transforming high-level plans into detailed, evidence-based implementation artefacts.

Through structured submissions, cross-functional collaboration, and rigorous validation, this eBook ensures that operational resilience is embedded, tested, and sustained across the organisation.

Ultimately, this marks the transition from planning for resilience to proving resilience in action—a critical milestone in safeguarding customers, maintaining market confidence, and meeting regulatory expectations.

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