This document discusses the risks faced by architecture and construction businesses and promotes business continuity management (BCM) to mitigate those risks. It notes that architects and construction companies can face legal and financial penalties for failing to meet industry standards or complete projects on time. BCM involves identifying vulnerabilities, developing contingency plans, and testing plans to ensure they are effective. The benefits of BCM include keeping damage to reputation, productivity and profits to a minimum during incidents, and demonstrating resilience to customers. The company Resilience Guard offers BCM services tailored to the unique challenges of architecture and construction businesses.

1. A blueprint for
seamless service
Business Continuity &
Rik Management services
for the Architecture and
Construction sectors
Architects, like every other business professional, have an obligation to
meet recognised industry standards and failure to do so could lead to
legal and financial sanctions, as well as reputational damage.
While not an exhaustive list, sector-specific risks include:
. Failing to complete a project by the agreed deadline
. Designing an inherently unstable building
. Inadequate supervision of a building’s construction
. The finished product failing to meet the agreed specification
Similarly, construction companies face their own particular challenges –
the risk of injury or death caused by unsafe working practices, a missed
deadline for completing a stage of work, failure to meet building codes
and equipment breakdown, to name but a few. Failure to meet
accepted building standards can result in civil action and potential
criminal charges.
All these risks, and many others, can be mitigated through
effective business continuity management (BCM), which
takes into account both the impact of the potential threat
and the likelihood of it occurring.
Insurance is no substitute for good BCM – it may
compensate you for losses aſter the event but will not
help you prevent them occurring in the first place.
And no insurance, however comprehensive the cover,
can compensate an architecture practice or construction
company for the loss of their hard won good name.
TM

2. Resilience Guard GmbH, Kreuzplatz 2, CH-8032 Zürich, Switzerland
T +41 (0) 44 266 10 62, F +41 (0) 44 266 10 62, E info@resilienceguard.ch
www.resilienceguard.ch
TM
Mitigating your risk
It is easy to understand why some businesses in the construction
industry believe that BCM does not apply to them. While for an
architects’ practice it is relatively simple to relocate office staff, IT
and telephony to a well-equipped workplace recovery suite, the
working environment of a building site is an altogether different
matter.
Nonetheless, developing a business continuity plan can make
such firms more resilient, improving their ability to handle an
incident or disaster. The starting point for a robust plan that will
work when it is needed most is to identify the firm’s vulnerabilities,
the likelihood of a scenario occurring and the individual(s) who will
be responsible for handling the situation. This is known as a
Business Impact Analysis (BIA).
This will then form the foundation of the business continuity plan,
which should focus on minimising the risk – sourcing backup
suppliers, for example – and then drawing up contingency plans
ready to swing into action should the worst happen. But a recov-
ery plan that hasn’t been tested, either in a rehearsal or ‘under
fire’, is close to worthless. Testing gives companies the opportuni-
ty to refine procedures that appear sensible on paper but don’t
work in real life, highlight skills gaps and address any eventualities
that have not been considered.
Business benefits
An effective business continuity management programme can
help architects and building firms:
1. Keep damage to the firm’s reputation, productivity and
profits to a minimum in the event of an incident, supply
chain disruption or disaster
2. Identify and manage current and potential threats to the
business
3. Take a proactive approach to minimise the impact of
incidents before they occur
4. Keep critical functions up and running during times of
crisis
5. Minimise downtime and improve recovery times
6. Demonstrate resilience to customers, prospects and
suppliers and give your firm a competitive edge. In fact, public
sector tender documents increasingly ask businesses to
provide evidence of business continuity provision before they
can even be eligible to compete. (A number of construction
companies and architectural practices make the decision to
attain ISO 22301 accreditation for this reason).
How Resilience Guard GmbH can help
We will work in partnership with you to understand the unique
challenges facing your business and tailor a bespoke solution to
mitigate potential threats such as:
1. Strikes (Workforce Continuity Management)
2. Supply chain management (Resilience)
3. Construction initial area Risk Assessment (BCM & Engineer-
ing)
4. Service Level Agreement (SLA) commitments
5. Legal Risk Management (contracts & alternative solutions)
6. General Risks to be accepted and the ones to be transferred to
Insurance
7. Project Risk/Project Management/Risk Budgeting
8. Resilient buildings consultancy (promoting the health and
safety of occupants)
Is your business
built on firm foundations?
Take the first step towards enhanced
business resilience by emailing
info@resilienceguard.ch or calling
+41 79 25 25 007 today!