12th September 2001

Business Response to the Terrorist Threat

In the light of the terrorist attacks in the United States on 11 September and the continuing threat of further attacks globally, AWA is strongly advising companies to review urgently their plans and arrangements for security, emergencies, crisis management, disaster recovery and business continuity.

Such a review should cover not only the possibility of direct attack but also collateral impacts on the organisation’s assets, people and operations and critical dependencies such as supplies, utilities, communications and transportation. Due diligence audits of other parties’ operational risk management (not just credit risk) are also essential before major investment, mergers & acquisitions and major contracts.

It will be especially important for companies to ensure integration of their operational business risk management, security management and business continuity arrangements. An independent second opinion to identify ‘blind spots’ and other weaknesses, such as fragmentation and culturally-ingrained false assumptions about adequacy of arrangements, is usually invaluable.

AWA’s specialist associates Crisis Solutions are headed by Dennis Flynn OBE, a former Deputy Director of the National Crisis Management Centre and Commander of the British Army’s Anti-Terrorist Training Organisation. The group has extensive experience in assisting businesses as well as government and public organisations, in the UK and globally.

In a recently published paper (www.crisis-solutions.com), Dennis Flynn has emphasised that we are all engaged essentially in a psychological war with terrorists whose strategy is to undermine people’s confidence and the will to win. Companies therefore need to focus on the first two of three key principles: (1) Reassurance of staff, customers and other stakeholders that safety, security, emergency and crisis management arrangements are robust; (2) Deterrence and Vigilance to protect the company’s critical assets, processes and infrastructure; (3) Attrition of the Enemy, which is primarily a function of government agencies seeking to block their access to finance and materiel but requires companies to be vigilant about unusual transactions or exports.

For assistance or further information, please contact Dr Alan Waring on 020 8367 1114 or e-mail waringa@awa.demon.co.uk.

For Further Information Please Telephone:
(+357) 24824913
(+357) 99327865
(+44) 208 351 7457

Facsimile:
(+357) 24824913
(+44) 208 351 6562

For Further Information eMail:
waringa@cytanet.com.cy
waringa@awa.demon.co.uk

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