Immediate Resource Mapping

While a function of the Business Continuity Management Plan, and in particular the resource and interface management plans, there can be value in providing a succinct resource mapping component to the IMP to ensure that managers are quickly directed to the most appropriate and reliable internal and external resources to help them to best manage a crisis event—especially at the local levels. Resource mapping should identify both usable and unavailable resource options so as to avoid time wasted pursuing those response groups that have been proven to be unreliable or unavailable during the contingency planning aspect of the risks management plan, as illustrated in Exhibit 1. Immediate resource mapping may cover a range of service areas, including but not limited to:

• Critical commercial support (utilities, power, medical, security, legal, etc.).

• Armed response or quick reaction forces.

• First line or surgical medical support.

• Medical evacuation support.

• Repatriation services.

• Emergency materials and resources.

• Transportation services (air, land, and maritime).

• Legal services.

• Explosives detection and clearance services.

• Kidnapping and ransom response services.

• Safe havens.

• Stress trauma support.

• Firefighting and emergency services.

• Security and guard services.

• Liaison and interpreter support.

Exhibit 1: Incident Management Plan Immediate Resource Mapping

Immediate resource mapping will also take into account the interface plan as well as the resource management plan, as they relate specifically to incident management. It is typically the crisis management elements that might mobilize the most significant resources to support the needs of a complex or large‐scale crisis, and the IMP may therefore require a scaled‐down version to enable the first stages of a crisis situation to be brought under control. Such simple reference guides may be placed onto an operations center wall, or within a simple flip chart as a reference document. They need to strike the right balance between providing sufficient guidance to reach the correct level of understanding and decision making versus providing so much data as to overwhelm and confuse incident managers.