Supporting the Research Sector
A Critical Incident is defined as ‘a threat to the operation, safety or reputation of an organisation with an element of surprise and unpredictability, necessitating rapid and effective decision-making’. Critical Incident Management is the process by which an organisation reacts to such an event in order to protect its operations, staff and stakeholders, the wider public and ultimately its reputation.1
Research conducted at the University of Oxford has shown that companies that respond quickly and efficiently to business interruption events ( ‘recoverers’) perform much better, and in stark contrast to those that are slow or inefficient (‘non-recoverers’). 2
Working with global household names, staff from support4rs have developed bespoke structures to ensure that the respective organisation is appropriately prepared to meet the demands of a Critical Incident.
The input includes exploring the full spectrum of developing and maintaining effective Critical Incident Management including:
Where specific threats are identified, we can work with your staff to develop issue specific tactical responses to those threats and encapsulate them within a contingency planning process. Examples of such contingency plans include:
1 Some organisations interchange the term Critical Incident with the words ‘Emergency’ and ‘Crisis’ and, for the purposes of this document, should be construed to have the same definition
2 Source: Knight and Pretty, Templeton College University of Oxford
There is ample evidence to demonstrate that the more prepared you are for critical incidents the less vulnerable you are to the impact they may have.
Inability to appropriately manage a Critical Incident has, in a number of organisations, directly led to loss of reputation and ultimately the failure of the business.
As a business critical activity, it is appropriate to periodically review the provision and, where appropriate, introduce revisions to ensure continued alignment with good practice and address ‘Duty of Care’ responsibilities.
Together we will ensure that your Critical Incident Structures are appropriate and proportionate to the identified threats, thereby promoting organisational confidence, securing organisational brand and reputation, facilitating research or business continuity and ultimately protecting your people.
Any individual, having responsibility for managing Critical Incidents or Crises, developing organisational responses, security managers, or Health and Safety managers within an organisation irrespective of the size.