[BCM] [SHINE] [E4] [R] [BCS] Report

 Summary for Management Approval

The purpose of this report is to provide senior management with a consolidated, high-level overview of the organisation’s preparedness to maintain and restore its twelve Critical Business Functions (CBFs) during and after disruptive incidents.

As a social service organisation serving children, youth, and families, SHINE operates in an environment where service continuity is essential to safeguard client well-being, meet regulatory and funding obligations, and preserve stakeholder confidence. 

Disruptions—whether operational, technological, environmental, or manpower-related—can have immediate and material impacts on service delivery outcomes. This BCS therefore focuses on ensuring that critical services can continue at acceptable levels and be recovered within defined timeframes.

The BCS is structured into three integrated parts:

Part 1: Mitigation Strategies and Justification – outlining preventive and resilience-building measures designed to reduce the likelihood and impact of disruptions.
Part 2: Recovery Strategies – detailing structured and scalable approaches to restore critical services within agreed recovery objectives.
Part 3: Minimum Resources Required During a Disaster – Identifying the essential people, facilities, systems, and third-party dependencies needed to sustain operations during disruptions.

[P1] Mitigation Strategies and Justification

Part 1 focuses on reducing the likelihood and impact of disruptions to SHINE’s Critical Business Functions through proactive and preventive measures.

The mitigation strategies are designed to address key risk areas identified during the Business Impact Analysis (BIA), including people dependency, facility constraints, technology reliance, and third-party service disruptions.

Key mitigation approaches include:

• People and Capability Resilience
  SHINE mitigates single-point-of-failure risks by implementing staff cross-training, role shadowing, and documented procedures for critical activities. This ensures continuity of essential services, such as counselling, case management, and educational psychology, even when staff are unavailable. Clear delegation of authority and succession planning further strengthen operational resilience.
• Facilities and Work Arrangement Mitigation
  To reduce reliance on a single physical location, mitigation strategies include identifying alternative service delivery arrangements (e.g., temporary relocation or remote service delivery, where appropriate) and preparing for hybrid or off-site operations. These measures support continuity during incidents such as facility damage, access restrictions, or environmental hazards.
• Technology and Information Resilience
  Preventive controls include data backup arrangements, secure access to core systems, and, where possible, reliance on cloud-based or centrally managed platforms. These measures reduce the risk of data loss and prolonged system outages, which could significantly disrupt client records, scheduling, and reporting.
• Vendor and Third-Party Dependency Management
  Mitigation strategies address dependencies on external vendors (e.g., IT service providers, telecommunications providers) by ensuring that service-level expectations, escalation mechanisms, and alternative arrangements are accounted for. This reduces exposure to external failures beyond SHINE’s direct control.

The justification for these mitigation strategies lies in their ability to lower operational risk, reduce recovery complexity, and protect SHINE’s service reputation, regulatory standing, and stakeholder confidence. Investing in mitigation reduces the overall cost and impact of disruptions when incidents occur.

[P2] Recovery Strategies for CBF-1 to CBF-12

Part 2 outlines how SHINE will respond to and recover from disruptions when mitigation measures are insufficient to prevent service impact. 

The recovery strategies are aligned with the recovery time objectives and minimum service levels identified in the BIA for each Critical Business Function.

Key aspects of the recovery strategies include:

    • Phased Recovery Approach

Recovery actions are structured in phases—initial response, stabilisation, and restoration—allowing management to prioritise life safety, client welfare, and critical service continuity before full operational recovery. This ensures a controlled and coordinated response during high-pressure situations.

    • Prioritisation of Critical Services

Not all services are restored simultaneously. The recovery strategy prioritises functions with the most significant impact on vulnerable clients, statutory obligations, and organisational viability. This ensures that limited resources are directed to where they are most needed during a crisis.

    • Clear Roles, Responsibilities, and Escalation

Defined roles for management, BCM team members, and functional leads support faster decision-making and accountability. Escalation paths are established to enable timely approvals and external coordination when recovery is complete and normal operating authority is restored.

    • Flexible Service Delivery Models

Recovery strategies include alternative service delivery methods, such as remote engagement, temporary service adjustments, or scaled-down operations, where appropriate. This flexibility allows SHINE to continue supporting clients even when complete restoration is not immediately possible.

Overall, the recovery strategies aim to minimise service downtime, reduce confusion during incidents, and ensure a structured return to normal operations while safeguarding client well-being and organisational credibility.

[P3] Minimum Resources Required During a Disaster for CBF-1 to CBF-12

Part 3 identifies the minimum essential resources required to sustain SHINE’s critical operations during a disruption. This ensures that management has clear visibility of resource priorities when normal operating conditions cannot be maintained.

Key resource categories include:

• People
  Identification of minimum staffing levels, critical roles, and key skill sets required to maintain essential services. This includes decision-makers, programme leads, frontline staff, and support functions necessary for coordination and reporting.
• Facilities and Workspaces
  Minimum facility requirements include access to safe working spaces, whether on-site, temporary, or remote. This ensures continuity of client engagement, internal coordination, and administrative control during facility-related disruptions.
• Technology and Systems
  Core systems, including client management, communication platforms, data access, and reporting tools, are identified as essential. Ensuring continued access to these systems supports informed decision-making and continuity of care.
• Information and Documentation
  Access to critical documents, policies, contact lists, and procedural guides is necessary to support consistent operations during emergencies. This reduces reliance on institutional memory and supports staff who may be performing unfamiliar roles.
• External Dependencies
  Key external resources, such as IT service providers, telecommunications providers, and essential vendors, are identified to ensure continuity of support during incidents.

By clearly defining minimum resource requirements, SHINE enables faster mobilisation, more apparent prioritisation, and more effective crisis decision-making, even under constrained conditions.

This summary report is intended to ensure that SHINE’s continuity strategies are aligned with organisational priorities, risk appetite, and good BCM practices, and to seek management endorsement for implementation and ongoing governance.

The Business Continuity Strategy presented in this report demonstrates that SHINE Children and Youth Services has adopted a structured, risk-informed, and practical approach to safeguarding its critical services during disruptive events. 

By integrating mitigation, recovery, and resource planning across the eight Critical Business Functions, SHINE strengthens its overall organisational resilience and readiness.

The proposed mitigation strategies proactively address key vulnerabilities, while the recovery strategies clarify response actions, roles, and sequencing to support timely service restoration. 

Identifying minimum resource requirements further ensures that decision-makers have clear priorities during crises, enabling effective allocation of limited resources when they matter most.

Management approval of this BCS will:

    • Endorse SHINE’s strategic commitment to service continuity and client safety
    • Enable the formal implementation of mitigation and recovery strategies
    • Support integration of BCM considerations into operational planning, training, and exercises
    • Provide a foundation for ongoing review, testing, and continuous improvement of SHINE’s BCM capability

Upon approval, it is recommended that the BCS be communicated to relevant stakeholders, embedded into departmental plans, and supported through regular reviews and exercises to ensure continued relevance as SHINE’s operating environment evolves.

This concludes the Business Continuity Strategy Summary Report for management consideration and approval.