Many a times, newly appointed or experienced IT DR professionals will ask themselves about what is the most appropriate level of training is needed for them. To answer this question, BCM Institute has designed its training syllabus for all of its courses to assist professionals in upgrading their competency using the Know, Do and Manage level of expertise.
These three levels is applicable to the respective areas within the IT DR domain.
IT DR Competency
The course combines the "
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" IT DR competency into one comprehensive course. The course is staged so that the knowledge or competency, is grounded on the first day of the course. The second part of the course focus on the competency, which is to have a good understanding of the planning process to implement the detailed plan. This includes the IT risk assessment, application impact analysis, strategy development and the content of a typical IT DR plan. The final two days will include the management of the IT project and program. This is the competency.
"Know" IT DR Competency 
Novice: For those who are new to IT DR but are IT professionals, the "Know" competency will allow the participants to have an insight into the IT DR knowledge domain. The clarity in the terminology used is essential when you are starting the IT DR program. It sets the foundation to the IT DR learning journey. This will relieve the "fear" that as a IT DR novice, the course is too advanced for you.
With Experience; For the experienced professional, you will ask the question on "why should I attend a basic course again"? This module will provide a gap analysis and update of your knowledge. This is in view of the ever changing IT trends and technology. An example is the deployment of cloud has change the landscape of recovery and tolerable down time by organisation. Another major concern is the new threats of cyber security incidents.
"Do" IT DR Competency 
Novice: In this module, you will be guided on the IT DR planning methodology with actual hands-on of the "good practice" methodology. These not only include the planning process but the templates used for the implementation. The key learning is to have a complete overview of the entire IT implementation process and its deliverable at each stage.
With Experience: Most experienced professionals would have inherited the IT DR plan from their predecessors. In this module, you will be conducting a gap analysis of your existing planning methodology, plans and procedures. The value add is identify the key features to enhance your IT DR program and plans upon returning to your organisation.
You can opt to attend the "Know-Do" two-day intermediate IT DR implementer course or course code: "DRP-300". Unless you just need the IT DR knowledge, it is recommended that you complete the two-day intermediate course which includes the hands-on.
Should you just want to reach the :Know-Do" competency level, we would recommend that your read "Attend the Intermediate Level IT Disaster Recovery Implementer Course" instead.
"Manage" IT DR Competency 
Novice: It is important to understand the entire process of managing the IT DR project or program even though you do not have the experience yet. Many a time, organisation will nominate and send their appointed Organisation IT DR team leader or member to this course when they have completed their IT DR implementation. The common feedback during these sessions were "I should have known of these processes and knowledge before we were implementing the IT DR processes?" As discussed, hindsight is "20/20."
Experienced: Often, the IT DR program is already implemented when the professional is recruited to the organisation. The value add of an experienced person is not to introduce what is implemented in your previous organisation to this new organisation. It is essential that a critical review with full understanding of what is good practices used as a benchmark or baseline to enhance the existing IT DR program. The learning from this course is from the sharing by BCM Institute's facilitators with yourself. It is useful for you to know that the facilitators are IT DR implementer themselves or are directly involved in their organisation IT DR program management
You can opt to attend the "Know-Do-Manage" four-day advanced level IT DR expert implementer course or course code: "DRP-5000". Should you have a budget or time constraint, the DRP-5000 course can be attended as two installments. You may want to attend the two-day DRP-300 course first and follow-up with the two-day DRP-400 course or the third and fourth day of the DRP-5000 course. You can learn more about the DRP-400 course by reading the "Next Module to Complete Your Advanced Level IT Disaster Recovery Training"
Are You Appointed As An IT DR Coordinator or A Member of the IT DR Team?
Often, the question asked is "I am new to IT DR, should I attend the foundation course from BCM Institute? It is important to establish what is your IT DR responsibilities first and also the expectation from your management. If it is just for the IT DR knowledge, it is recommended that you start with the two-day intermediate course.
From past course participants' feedback, most "novice' IT DR professionals who had completed the "intermediate" level course, felt that they should have decided on day one to pursue to focus on acquiring the complete set of knowledge and skill set, which is the "Know-Do-Manage." Only then will they slowly upgrade their professional certification from the Planner/ Specialist level (DRCP/ DRCS) to the expert level (DRCE) as they gain the necessary experience.
What Certification Will Be Awarded to Me?
Should you be a "novice" professional, the major difference comparing to an experienced IT DR professional, is that the "novice" IT DR professionals who does not have the required (one to three) years of IT DR planning experience will need to accumulate the necessary experience before they are awarded with the "Specialist" or “Expert” level certification.
Lastly, if you would like to continue to know more about your IT Disaster Recovery journey, click "Building Your IT Disaster Recovery And Resiliency Management Program"
