What ISO-22301-Lead-Auditor Questions and Answers feature?

ISO 22301 is the system/standard that brings together all existing standards and a collection of good practices to develop a universal approach to Business Continuity Management (BCM). ISO 22301 is the international standard for Security and resilience — Business continuity management systems — Requirements. It specifies the requirements to plan, establish, implement, operate, monitor, review, maintain and continually improve a documented management system to protect against, reduce the likelihood of occurrence, prepare for, respond to, and recover from disruptive incidents when they arise. ISO 22301 is based on the high-level structure (HLS) that provides a common framework for all management system standards. This helps to ensure consistency and alignment with other standards, such as ISO 9001 (quality management), ISO 14001 (environmental management), ISO 27001 (information security management), etc. ISO 22301 also incorporates the best practices and guidance from other sources, such as ISO 22313 (guidelines for business continuity management systems), ISO 22317 (guidelines for business impact analysis), ISO 22318 (guidelines for supply chain continuity), ISO 22320 (guidelines for incident management), ISO 22398 (guidelines for exercises and testing), etc. ISO 22301 aims to provide a universal approach to BCM that is applicable to all types and sizes of organizations, regardless of their nature, sector, or location. References:

• ISO 22301:2019 - Security and resilience — Business continuity management systems — Requirements1
• ISO 22301 Auditing eBook, Chapter 1: Introduction to Business Continuity Management Systems, Section 1.2: ISO 22301 Standard2
• ISO 22301 - Business Continuity2

According to ISO 22301:2019, Clause 6.1.2, the organization must establish, implement, and maintain a documented process to manage risks related to the continuity of its critical functions and the achievement of its business continuity objectives. The risk management process should include the identification, analysis, and evaluation of the risks that may cause disruption to the organization’s operations, products, and services. The level of risk for an organization should be determined by combining the consequence and likelihood of the events that may lead to disruption, as well as the organization’s risk criteria, risk appetite, and risk tolerance. The consequence of an event is the impact or effect that it may have on the organization’s objectives, reputation, stakeholders, and resources. The likelihood of an event is the probability or frequency that it may occur, based on historical data, statistical analysis, expert judgment, or other methods. The organization should use appropriate tools and techniques to assess the level of risk, such as risk matrices, risk registers, risk maps, or risk software. The organization should also document the results of the risk assessment and communicate them to relevant interested parties. The purpose of risk management for business continuity is to find out what problems an organization may face, and to take appropriate actions to prevent, mitigate, or transfer the risks, or to accept them if they are within the organization’s riskcriteria. References: ISO 22301:2019, Clause 6.1.2; ISO 22301 Auditing eBook, Chapter 4.2.2.

 Evaluation is the process of assessing the performance of an organization, a system, a process, or an activity against a set of criteria, standards, or objectives. Evaluation can be used to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, as well as to measure the effectiveness, efficiency, and impact of the organization’s activities. Evaluation can also be used to compare the performance of different organizations, systems, processes, or activities, and to identify and share best practices and lessons learned. Evaluation is one of the key elements of the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, which is the basis of the ISO 22301 standard for business continuity management systems (BCMS). Evaluation is related to performance evaluation, audit, and benchmarking study, as these are some of the methods or tools that can be used to conduct evaluation. References: ISO 22301 Auditing eBook, Chapter 2: Introduction to Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS), Section 2.3: The PDCA Cycle, Page 17; ISO 22301 Auditing eBook, Chapter 5: Audit Principles, Section 5.1: Introduction, Page 65; ISO 22301 Auditing eBook, Chapter 6: Audit Program, Section 6.3: Audit Program Objectives, Page 75; ISO 22301 Auditing eBook, Chapter 7: Audit Activities, Section 7.1: Introduction, Page 85; ISO 22301 Auditing eBook, Chapter 8: Audit Competence and Evaluation of Auditors, Section 8.1: Introduction, Page 105.