[OR] [AB] [E2] [P1 to P3] [C1] Overview of Operational Resilience Planning Methodology

eBook 2: Chapter 1

Introduction to Alliance Bank’s Operational Resilience Planning Methodology

Operational resilience has become a strategic imperative in the face of an increasingly complex and unpredictable risk landscape.

For Alliance Bank, ensuring resilience is not merely about recovering from disruptions but also about maintaining stakeholder trust, protecting critical operations, and sustaining long-term performance.

The Operational Resilience Planning Methodology provides a structured, phased approach to proactively manage disruption risks while embedding resilience across the enterprise.

This methodology is built on three progressive and interdependent phases—Plan, Implement, and Sustain—each comprising five distinct stages.

Together, these phases create a comprehensive lifecycle that enables Alliance Bank to anticipate, withstand, respond to, and recover from operational disruptions.

Purpose of the Chapter

The purpose of this chapter is to provide readers with a clear understanding of the overall structure, intent, and strategic importance of Alliance Bank’s Operational Resilience Planning Methodology.

It aims to help the reader grasp the rationale for the three-phase approach and appreciate how each phase and its respective stages contribute to building a resilient and sustainable organisation.

By reading this chapter, the reader is expected to gain the necessary context to navigate the detailed methodology in subsequent chapters and understand how operational resilience is holistically planned, implemented, and sustained within the Bank.

Phase 1: Plan – Laying the Foundation

The Plan phase is the cornerstone of the Operational Resilience Planning Methodology.

It establishes the strategic framework and governance necessary to drive resilience initiatives across the Bank.

This phase ensures a solid understanding of current capabilities, gaps, and alignment with organisational risk tolerance.

The five stages of the Plan phase are:

Assess Capability and Maturity (Plan Phase - Stage 1)

Conduct a thorough evaluation of current resilience capabilities, including policies, frameworks, and processes.

This assessment benchmarks maturity against industry standards and regulatory expectations.

Analyse Gap (Plan Phase - Stage 2)

Identify critical gaps between the current state and the desired resilience posture. This includes evaluating risks, vulnerabilities, and the ability to respond to disruption scenarios.

Develop Strategy and Roadmap (Plan Phase - Stage 3)

Create a forward-looking resilience strategy and a detailed implementation roadmap aligned with business objectives, regulatory requirements, and enterprise risk management.

Confirm Risk Appetite (Plan Phase - Stage 4)

Define and validate the Bank’s operational resilience risk appetite. This stage ensures alignment with the Bank’s overall risk management framework and informs tolerance levels.

Develop and Embed Governance (Plan Phase - Stage 5)

Establish clear governance structures, accountability, and oversight mechanisms to guide and monitor resilience initiatives. Governance will be embedded within existing enterprise-wide structures to ensure sustainability.

Phase 2: Implement – Building Resilience in Practice

The Implement phase translates strategic plans into actionable capabilities.

This phase focuses on identifying and protecting the Bank’s most critical business services and stress-testing the organisation’s ability to withstand and recover from disruption.

The five stages of the Implement phase are:

Identify Critical Business Services (Implement Phase - Stage 1)

Determine the essential services that, if disrupted, could cause significant harm to the Bank’s customers, reputation, or financial stability.

Map Processes and Resources (Implement Phase - Stage 2)

Map the end-to-end processes, people, technology, facilities, and third parties that support critical services. This mapping provides a clear view of dependencies and potential vulnerabilities.

Set Impact Tolerance (Implement Phase - Stage 3)

Define maximum acceptable levels of disruption for each critical business service. These thresholds guide prioritisation and response strategies.

Conduct Scenario Testing (Implement Phase - Stage 4)

Design and execute realistic disruption scenarios to test the Bank’s ability to operate within its impact tolerances. These tests help identify weaknesses and validate response plans.

Improve Lessons Learnt (Implement Phase - Stage )

Capture insights from scenario testing and real-world events. Use these lessons to continuously enhance plans, controls, and preparedness.

Phase 3: Sustain – Embedding Resilience as a Culture

The Sustain phase ensures that operational resilience becomes an enduring part of Alliance Bank’s culture rather than a one-time initiative.

This phase integrates resilience into everyday practices, ensuring continuous improvement and long-term viability.

The five stages of the Sustain phase are:

Introduce Cultural Change (Sustain Phase - Stage 1)

Foster a resilience-first mindset across the organisation through leadership engagement, role modelling, and integrated values.

Develop Communication Strategy (Sustain Phase - Stage 2)

Implement a structured communication approach to ensure that stakeholders understand their roles in resilience and remain informed about developments.

Implement Training and Awareness (Sustain Phase - Stage 3)

Deliver ongoing training programs and awareness campaigns to build knowledge and reinforce behaviours that support resilience.

Provide Self-assessment (Sustain Phase - Stage 4)

Establish mechanisms for business units to regularly assess their resilience posture, maturity, and readiness against defined criteria.

Conduct an Independent Quality Review (Sustain Phase - Stage 5)

Perform third-party or internal audit reviews to validate the effectiveness and integrity of the operational resilience program, ensuring continuous improvement and regulatory alignment.

This chapter introduces Alliance Bank’s Operational Resilience Planning Methodology, a structured, three-phase approach designed to ensure the Bank’s ability to prepare for, withstand, and recover from operational disruptions.

The methodology is divided into three key phases: Plan, Implement, and Sustain, each comprising five distinct stages that collectively build a comprehensive and adaptive resilience framework.

The Plan phase focuses on assessing current capabilities, identifying gaps, establishing governance, and aligning strategy with the Bank's risk appetite.

The Implement phase operationalises the strategy by identifying critical services, mapping dependencies, defining impact tolerances, and conducting scenario testing.

The Sustain phase embeds resilience into the Bank’s culture through continuous education, communication, self-assessment, and quality review.

Together, these phases enable Alliance Bank to create a resilient operating environment that safeguards its customers, reputation, and regulatory standing. The chapter sets the foundation for understanding how each phase contributes to enterprise-wide resilience.

To learn more about the course and schedule, click the buttons below for the OR-300 Operational Resilience Implementer and OR-5000 Operational Resilience Expert Implementer courses.