---
title: [OR] [MAS] [E1] [C7] Challenges in Understanding and Defining Resilience
description: [OR] [MAS] [E1] [C7] Challenges in Understanding and Defining Resilience
image: https://blog.bcm-institute.org/hubfs/MAS%20Graphic%20Folder/MAS%20E1%20Morepost/%5BOR%5D%20%5BMAS%5D%20%5BE1%5D%20%5BC7%5D%20OR%20Challenges%20and%20Definition.jpg
---
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###### Achieving Operational Resilience in Singapore’s Financial Sector: A Practical Guide to MAS Compliance and Implementation
![BB OR \[D\] 6](https://blog.bcm-institute.org/hs-fs/hubfs/BB%20OR%20%5BAi%20Gen%20Blog%20Photo%5D/OR%20Pictures%20A/BB%20OR%20Folder%20D/BB%20OR%20%5BD%5D%206.jpg?width=2000&height=1333&name=BB%20OR%20%5BD%5D%206.jpg "BB OR [D] 6")
# \[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C7\] Challenges in Understanding and Defining Resilience
[](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/23a20024-f0ef-49c9-b977-9368b9e21491)
While operational resilience has become a central regulatory expectation under the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), many financial institutions continue to face **practical challenges in understanding and defining what resilience truly means in implementation terms**.
Drawing from MAS guidance such as *“Achieving Operational Resilience for Financial Institutions in Singapore”* and the **BCM Guidelines (2022)**, this chapter highlights four key challenges:
- Ambiguity between **Business Continuity Management (BCM)** and operational resilience
- Difficulty in defining **Critical Business Services (CBS)**
- Organisational silos
- Regulatory interpretation challenges
These challenges must be addressed to move from **conceptual understanding to effective execution**.
[](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/af4e7abf-3775-4632-811f-7d71e11f8bca)
[Moh Heng Goh](https://blog.bcm-institute.org/ebook-or/author/moh-heng-goh) Apr 27, 2026
###### Operational Resilience Certified Planner-Specialist-Expert
### [](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/97502c2e-fa28-4958-9771-0b307990443a)
### eBook 1: Chapter 7
### Monetary Authority of Singapore's (MAS) Challenges in Understanding and Defining Resilience
#### **Purpose of the Chapter**
While operational resilience has become a central regulatory expectation [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C7\] OR Challenges and Definition](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/5494fefd-50c9-49f3-9aa8-a94151e68031.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/5494fefd-50c9-49f3-9aa8-a94151e68031)under the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), many financial institutions continue to face **practical challenges in understanding and defining what resilience truly means in implementation terms**.
Drawing from MAS guidance such as *“Achieving Operational Resilience for Financial Institutions in Singapore”* and the **BCM Guidelines (2022)**, this chapter highlights four key challenges:
- Ambiguity between **Business Continuity Management (BCM)** and operational resilience
- Difficulty in defining **Critical Business Services (CBS)**
- Organisational silos
- Regulatory interpretation challenges
These challenges must be addressed to move from **conceptual understanding to effective execution**.
#### **Ambiguity Between BCM and Operational Resilience**
##### **Overlapping Concepts**
One of the most common challenges is the **confusion between BCM and operational resilience**.
MAS guidelines build on BCM but extend beyond it. BCM traditionally focuses on:
- Recovery planning
- Business continuity plans
- Meeting Recovery Time Objectives (RTOs)
Operational resilience, however, emphasises:
- **Continuous delivery of critical services**
- **End-to-end service integrity**
- **Adaptability under disruption**
MAS explicitly requires institutions to adopt a **service-centric, end-to-end approach**, rather than a purely plan-based recovery mindset .
##### **Practical Confusion in Implementation**
Financial institutions often struggle because:
- BCM teams continue to operate in a **plan-centric mindset**
- Operational resilience is perceived as **“BCM plus additional requirements”**
- There is no clear distinction in **roles, ownership, and scope**
This ambiguity leads to:
- Duplication of effort
- Misaligned priorities
- Inconsistent implementation across business units
##### **Bridging the Gap**
To overcome this challenge, institutions must:
- Reframe BCM as a **component of operational resilience**, not the whole
- Shift focus from **process recovery to service continuity**
- Align BCM outputs (e.g., RTOs, plans) with **service-level resilience outcomes**
#### **Difficulty in Defining Critical Business Services (CBS)**
##### **Conceptual Complexity**
MAS requires financial institutions to identify **Critical Business Services (CBS)** that are essential to customers and financial stability.
However, defining CBS is challenging because:
- Services are often **interlinked and overlapping**
- Organisations are structured around **products or functions**, not services
- The concept of a “service” may differ across departments
MAS emphasises that CBS must be identified based on **its impact on customers, safety and soundness, and systemic risk**.
##### **Practical Challenges**
Common issues include:
- Confusing **products, processes, and services**
- Over-identifying (too many CBS) or under-identifying (missing critical ones)
- Difficulty in defining **service boundaries and scope**
- Lack of consensus across business units
##### **Impact on Resilience Implementation**
Poor CBS definition leads to:
- Misaligned **recovery priorities**
- Ineffective **resource allocation**
- Incomplete **dependency mapping**
Since CBS is the **foundation of the operational resilience framework**, any weakness here cascades across the entire implementation.
##### **Addressing the Challenge**
Institutions should:
- Adopt a **customer-centric perspective**
- Focus on **end-to-end service delivery outcomes**
- Conduct **cross-functional workshops** to validate CBS definitions
- Regularly review and refine CBS as operations evolve
#### **Organisational Silos**
##### **Structural Fragmentation**
Financial institutions are typically organised into:
- Business units
- Technology functions
- Risk and compliance teams
- Operations and support functions
Each operates with **different objectives, metrics, and reporting lines**.
##### **Impact on Operational Resilience**
Operational resilience requires **end-to-end coordination**, but silos create:
- Fragmented **risk visibility**
- Inconsistent **data and reporting**
- Gaps in **dependency mapping**
- Delays in **incident response and escalation**
MAS guidelines stress the need for **end-to-end dependency mapping across people, processes, technology, and third parties**, highlighting the importance of breaking down silos .
##### **Cultural and Governance Barriers**
Silos are often reinforced by:
- Lack of shared accountability
- Competing business priorities
- Limited cross-functional collaboration
This results in resilience being treated as a **compliance exercise**, rather than an **enterprise-wide capability**.
##### **Overcoming Silos**
To address this challenge, institutions must:
- Establish **cross-functional governance structures**
- Assign **clear ownership of CBS across departments**
- Promote **collaboration between business, technology, and risk teams**
- Embed resilience into **business-as-usual operations**
#### **Regulatory Interpretation Challenges**
##### **Principles-Based Regulation**
MAS adopts a **principles-based approach**, providing flexibility in how institutions implement operational resilience.
While beneficial, this creates challenges:
- Lack of **prescriptive guidance**
- Need for **interpretation and judgement**
- Variability in implementation across institutions
##### **Uncertainty in Application**
Financial institutions often struggle with:
- Determining the **appropriate number of CBS**
- Setting **realistic and justifiable recovery objectives**
- Defining **acceptable levels of disruption (impact tolerance)**
- Aligning global frameworks with **Singapore-specific requirements**
MAS expects institutions to adopt a **risk-proportionate approach**, tailoring implementation to their size, complexity, and risk profile.
##### **Supervisory Expectations**
Despite flexibility, MAS expects:
- Clear **documentation and justification of decisions**
- Demonstrable **effectiveness of resilience measures**
- Evidence of **continuous testing and improvement**
Institutions must therefore balance:
- **Flexibility in design**
- **Accountability in outcomes**
##### **Managing Interpretation Risks**
To address regulatory interpretation challenges, institutions should:
- Develop **internal standards and frameworks** aligned with MAS guidance
- Engage in **industry benchmarking and regulatory dialogue**
- Maintain **strong documentation and audit trails**
- Continuously refine practices based on **regulatory feedback**
#### **Integrated View of Key Challenges**
The challenges in defining operational resilience are interconnected:
| Challenge | Impact on Implementation |
| --- | --- |
| BCM vs Resilience ambiguity | Misaligned frameworks and duplication |
| CBS definition difficulty | Weak foundation for resilience planning |
| Organisational silos | Fragmented execution and coordination gaps |
| Regulatory interpretation | Inconsistent and uncertain implementation |
These challenges highlight that operational resilience is not just a technical exercise, but a **strategic, organisational, and cultural transformation**.
#### **[](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/5404effa-ac11-44ba-a782-31a19cc7ef69)**
Understanding and defining operational resilience remain among the most significant challenges for financial institutions in Singapore.
While the Monetary Authority of Singapore provides a robust framework through its BCM and related guidelines, the **principles-based nature of regulation requires institutions to exercise sound judgement and organisational alignment**.
Ambiguity between BCM and resilience, difficulties in defining critical business services, organisational silos, and challenges in regulatory interpretation all contribute to the complexity of implementation.
Addressing these challenges requires a shift from **compliance-driven thinking to a holistic, service-centric, and enterprise-wide approach**, enabling financial institutions to build resilience that is both effective and sustainable in an increasingly complex operating environment.
***[](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/af4e7abf-3775-4632-811f-7d71e11f8bca)***
| **eBook 1** | **C1** | **C2** | **C3** | **C4** |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] ebook Cover](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/727b3faf-7a0f-4839-a05e-ba6681ad3b49.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/727b3faf-7a0f-4839-a05e-ba6681ad3b49) | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C1\] Introduction](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/d528e243-0bd5-46c5-b3d0-45a95969a7ba.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/d528e243-0bd5-46c5-b3d0-45a95969a7ba) | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C2\] MAS Regulatory Landscape](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/aee1f513-fa82-4696-890a-077c846564b1.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/aee1f513-fa82-4696-890a-077c846564b1) | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C3\] Key OR Principles](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/f30956fd-74b3-4130-a316-1777e0ad5de3.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/f30956fd-74b3-4130-a316-1777e0ad5de3) | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C4\] Operating Environment for FI](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/b4d80326-7dea-4476-90fb-e4e7bf28e419.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/b4d80326-7dea-4476-90fb-e4e7bf28e419) |
| | **C5** | **C6** | **C7** | **C8** |
| | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C5\] Governance and Accountability](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/cc5821a7-433a-40c6-b2d5-9f1bb4eee3a6.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/cc5821a7-433a-40c6-b2d5-9f1bb4eee3a6) | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C6\] OR Framework Overview](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/3000fe16-3eb6-4ef5-bc10-ce2ee71b0b6e.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/3000fe16-3eb6-4ef5-bc10-ce2ee71b0b6e) | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C7\] OR Challenges and Definition](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/5494fefd-50c9-49f3-9aa8-a94151e68031.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/5494fefd-50c9-49f3-9aa8-a94151e68031) | [![\[OR\] \[MAS\] \[E1\] \[C8\] Key Takeaways](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/648124e5-630e-4510-bd01-b46c94544d56.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/648124e5-630e-4510-bd01-b46c94544d56) |
Gain Competency: For organisations looking to accelerate their journey, BCM Institute’s training and certification programs, including the OR-5000 Operational Resilience Expert Implementer course, provide in-depth insights and practical toolkits for effectively embedding this model.
#### More Information About OR-5000 \[OR-5\] or OR-300 \[OR-3\]
To learn more about the course and schedule, click the buttons below for the OR-300 Operational Resilience Implementer course and the OR-5000 Operational Resilience Expert Implementer course.
| [](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/3530eccb-515d-401e-afc2-3469e26d7fbf) | [](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/fdd4fa9c-ed69-40c1-925f-4eb6a1c5c255) | [](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/77a34b84-0a6d-44f8-b8d6-6ab04cdf5edd) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/6e5c0cda-39b9-4bbd-b3d4-4cf46a790b14) | [](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/a68a08aa-36d3-4216-9551-202c9fde06ea) | [![ \[BL-OR\] \[3-4-5\] View Schedule](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/d0d733a1-16c0-4b68-a26d-adbfd4fc6069.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/d0d733a1-16c0-4b68-a26d-adbfd4fc6069) |
| [![\[BL-OR\] \[3\] FAQ OR-300](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/f20c71b4-f5e8-4aa5-8056-c374ca33a091.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/f20c71b4-f5e8-4aa5-8056-c374ca33a091) | If you have any questions, click to contact us.[![Email to Sales Team \[BCM Institute\]](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/3893111/3c53daeb-2836-4843-b0e0-645baee2ab9e.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/3c53daeb-2836-4843-b0e0-645baee2ab9e) | [](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/3893111/7f2718a4-ea80-4f84-a319-dc2d4df37a46) |
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