The ability of MINDS to continue delivering safe, reliable, and compassionate care during disruptions depends on a clear understanding of its most critical activities.
As a social service organisation supporting persons with intellectual disabilities, any prolonged interruption to essential services can have immediate and serious consequences for client safety, wellbeing, regulatory compliance, and stakeholder trust.
Identifying Critical Business Functions (CBFs) is therefore a foundational step in establishing an effective Business Continuity Management System (BCMS) for MINDS.
In accordance with ISO 22301 requirements, this chapter focuses on systematically identifying the business functions vital to sustaining MINDS’s core mission, statutory obligations, and operational resilience.
By defining and prioritising these CBFs, MINDS establishes a structured basis for subsequent Business Impact Analysis (BIA), recovery time objectives, and continuity strategies.
This ensures that continuity planning is firmly centred on protecting beneficiaries, supporting caregivers and staff, and maintaining organisational stability during disruptive incidents.
|
Section |
ISO 22301 Alignment |
Description (Context for MINDS) |
|
Chapter Purpose |
Clause 8.2.2 – Business Impact Analysis |
This chapter identifies and documents the Critical Business Functions (CBFs) of MINDS that must be prioritised to ensure continuity of care, safety, and essential services for persons with intellectual disabilities during disruptive incidents. |
|
Scope of Analysis |
Clause 4.3 – Scope of the BCMS |
The scope covers all core service delivery, residential care, vocational training, safeguarding, governance, and enabling support functions across MINDS centres, facilities, and programmes. |
|
Definition of Critical Business Function (CBF) |
Clause 3 – Terms and Definitions |
For MINDS, a Critical Business Function is any activity whose disruption would result in unacceptable impact on client safety, wellbeing, legal compliance, reputation, or the organisation’s ability to deliver essential services. |
|
CBF Code |
Critical Business Function |
Description of Function |
Primary Impact if Disrupted |
ISO 22301 Relevance |
|
CBF-1 |
Client Care and Support Services |
Provision of daily care, supervision, therapy, and psychosocial support for persons with intellectual disabilities across MINDS centres and programmes. |
Risk to client safety, wellbeing, and dignity; potential safeguarding incidents. |
Clause 8.2.2 – Impact assessment |
|
CBF-2 |
Residential and Community Living Services |
Operation of residential homes and community-based living services, including 24/7 care, accommodation, and daily living support. |
Immediate safety risks, regulatory non-compliance, and harm to residents. |
Clause 8.2.3 – Prioritisation |
|
CBF-3 |
Special Education, Training, and Development Programmes |
Delivery of education, skills training, vocational preparation, and life-skills development for beneficiaries. |
Long-term developmental setbacks and service delivery failure. |
Clause 8.2.2 – Impact over time |
|
CBF-4 |
Health, Safety, and Safeguarding Management |
Ensuring medical support coordination, emergency response, safeguarding of vulnerable persons, and compliance with care standards. |
Serious harm, legal exposure, and reputational damage. |
Clause 8.2.2 – Consequence analysis |
|
CBF-5 |
Family, Caregiver, and Stakeholder Engagement |
Communication and coordination with families, caregivers, volunteers, donors, and partner agencies. |
Loss of trust, misinformation, and breakdown of care coordination. |
Clause 7.4 – Communication |
|
CBF-6 |
Workforce Management and Staff Deployment |
Availability, rostering, competency, and well-being of trained caregivers, educators, and support staff. |
Inability to deliver care and meet duty-of-care obligations. |
Clause 7.2 & 8.2.3 |
|
CBF-7 |
Governance, Compliance, and Regulatory Reporting |
Oversight, policy compliance, statutory reporting, and adherence to social service and care regulations. |
Regulatory breaches, funding risk, and organisational exposure. |
Clause 4.2 & 8.2 |
|
CBF-8 |
ICT Systems Supporting Care and Operations |
Systems supporting client records, care plans, scheduling, communication, and operational coordination. |
Loss of critical information affecting care delivery and decision-making. |
Clause 8.2.2 – Resource dependency |
|
CBF-9 |
Facilities, Transport, and Environmental Support |
Safe operation of centres, residential facilities, transport services, and essential utilities. |
Disruption to service access and safe care environments. |
Clause 8.2.3 – Resource prioritisation |
|
CBF-10 |
Financial Management and Funding Administration |
Management of payroll, procurement, grants, donations, and financial sustainability. |
Inability to sustain operations and staff support. |
Clause 8.2.2 – Financial impact |
|
Continuity Objective |
Related CBFs |
BCM Consideration |
|
Protect the safety and well-being of beneficiaries |
CBF-1, CBF-2, CBF-4 |
Highest recovery priority with minimal tolerance for disruption |
|
Ensure uninterrupted care delivery |
CBF-1, CBF-6, CBF-9 |
Requires staffing, facilities, and logistics resilience |
|
Maintain trust and stakeholder confidence |
CBF-5, CBF-7 |
Requires timely communication and governance continuity |
|
Sustain organisational viability |
CBF-8, CBF-10 |
Dependent on the system's availability and financial controls |
|
BCM Output |
Description |
Next Chapter Linkage |
|
Identified Critical Business Functions |
Prioritised list of MINDS’s essential services and enabling functions |
Business Impact Analysis (BIA) |
|
Impact Awareness |
Understanding of safety, regulatory, and service impacts |
Impact Over Time & MTPD |
|
Recovery Prioritisation |
Basis for recovery time objectives and strategies |
Business Continuity Strategies |
|
Organisational Resilience Foundation |
Alignment of care continuity with ISO 22301 |
BC Plans, Testing & Exercising |
The identification of Critical Business Functions provides MINDS with a clear and shared understanding of which services and activities must be preserved or rapidly restored in the event of a disruption.
For an organisation entrusted with the care of vulnerable individuals, this clarity is essential to ensuring that continuity decisions are guided by safety, duty of care, and service impact rather than operational convenience.
The CBFs identified in this chapter reflect both MINDS’s direct service delivery responsibilities and the enabling functions that support sustainable care.
This chapter forms a critical bridge between organisational understanding and detailed continuity planning.
The defined CBFs will serve as the primary inputs for Business Impact Analysis, impact-over-time assessments, and the development of recovery strategies in subsequent chapters.
By anchoring its BCMS on well-defined and prioritised critical functions, MINDS strengthens its ability to respond effectively to disruptions while continuing to fulfil its mission of enabling persons with intellectual disabilities to live meaningful and inclusive lives.
Implementing Business Continuity Management for MINDS: Ensuring Continuity of Care and Services
|
|||||
| eBook 1: Understanding Your Organisation: SHINE Children and Youth Services | |||||
| C1 | C2 | C3 | C4 | C5 | C6 |
| C7 | C8 | C9 | C10 | C11 | C12 |
To learn more about the course and schedule, click the buttons below for BCM-300 Business Continuity Management Implementer [BCM-3] and BCM-5000 Business Continuity Management Expert Implementer [BCM-5].
|
Please feel free to send us a note if you have any questions. |
||