KARACHI, Oct 10: It has to be back to business as usual after the dead bodies are counted, the survivors dug out from the underneath of the rubbles and debris and admitted to hospitals for treatment, roads cleared, supply of water, electricity and gas restored and the three days officially declared mourning is over.

The reconstruction work in the affected areas of Muzzafarabad in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Mansehra and Abbottabad in NWFP and the rehabilitation and relief for all the victims of the most devastating earthquake that hit the Northern Pakistan on Saturday will have to go along with the resumption of normal business activities as quickly as possible.

“The primary business of people all over the world is business since times immemorial,” says a senior executive of a well-known private risk management company, ICIL, while asserting that business continuity is closely linked with the life continuity.

“As life continues, the business also continues,” he said. “In early days the business continuity was driven by the basic human instinct which is continuity of life. It is so today also but with a lot of planning and management.”

Business Continuity Management (BCM) skill is now being acquired by big and small companies across the world. Close at home the State Bank of Pakistan and the Securities Exchange Commission of Pakistan have advised the corporations, banks and financial institutions to put in place such a programme.

In fact the State Bank in one of its directive in August 2003 asked the banks to put in place such a business continuity plan (BCP) in next six months. The BCP, it pointed out means the level of readiness in the face of any actual or potential danger, damage or disaster, the BCP being a risk based framework, is a proactive process and deals with operational risk by developing policies, strategies and specific responsibilities for the recovery of critical business functions. Most importantly, it should commensurate with the institution’s nature, scale and complexity of business activities.

Enquiries made on Monday revealed that out of 49 branches of the National Bank of Pakistan in Muzaffarabad area of AJK, the main branch was totally destroyed. The 48 branches were in operational state but were not working because there was no electricity and water and most of staff members did not report for duty because they were digging for dead and survivors under the debris.

Other banks too reported closure of their business in Muzafgfarabad area because of the same reasons. But Mirpur has by and large escaped the wrath of the devastating earthquake and not much damage or loss has been reported.

The Pakistani risk management company is now closely working in association with a British company to get training in a comprehensive Business Continuity Management (BCM). The programme covers risk management, emergency management, IT disaster recovery, facilities management, supply chain management, quality management, environmental management, health and safety, knowledge management, human resources, security and crisis communications and public relations.

The programme aims at assessing, identifying and triaging all threats, as well as evaluating and assessing the impact of each threat. It also gives necessary skills to draw up a contingent plan and identify actions that may eliminate risks, minimize the impact of risks and draw up a fast recovery road map.

It is a mere coincidence and not a conspiracy of events that Andrew N Hiles, with 15 years experience of business continuity planning in Britain and other parts of the world reached Pakistan on Sunday, a day after the devastating earthquake had struck Pakistan’s northern areas.

He is training a team of ICIL executives. These officers will then help Pakistan’s banks, private corporations and public sector entities to draw up business continuity programme with built-in provisions of periodical checks, tests and trials and updating.

“Many companies located at the World Trade Centre in New York that benefited from the business continuity management programmes have recovered from the deadly blow they received on 9/11,” Andrew informed this correspondent on Monday. He mentioned American Express as one such company that was back to normal business.

“BCM solutions are tailor made to each customer’s specific business and needs,” replied the British BCM expert as to how he perceives problems of the Pakistani companies. He said that putting a BCM solution in place minimizes the likelihood of confusion and guesswork when faced by a sudden event and ensures that the necessary procedures will be followed systematically.