Continuity Consulting

The purpose of Business Continuity Consulting Services is to help departments and units at the University of Louisville prepare for, respond to, and recover from disruptions to operations. These services provide expert guidance, planning tools, and support to ensure that critical functions can continue during emergencies such as natural disasters, cyber incidents, or infrastructure failures.

Overview of Service

Business Continuity Consulting is managed by Information Technology Services (ITS) in collaboration with university risk management and emergency planning teams. The service includes assessments, strategy development, documentation, and testing of continuity plans tailored to departmental needs.

Key Features:

• Risk and impact assessments for IT systems and operations
• Development of business continuity and disaster recovery plans
• Identification of critical systems, personnel, and dependencies
• Support for continuity documentation and compliance
• Coordination with data backup, recovery, and failover services
• Tabletop exercises and scenario-based testing

Benefits:

• Increased resilience against operational disruptions
• Reduced downtime and faster recovery during emergencies
• Improved coordination across departments and services
• Compliance with institutional and regulatory requirements
• Enhanced confidence in continuity planning and preparedness

Intended Audience:
Deans, department heads, financial and operational coordinators, administrative units and service owners responsible for maintaining critical operations and systems.

Service Details

• Core Activities:

  • Conduct business impact and risk assessments
  • Facilitate continuity planning workshops and consultations
  • Assist in documenting continuity and recovery procedures
  • Identify and prioritize critical systems and services
  • Coordinate with ITS infrastructure and data protection teams
  • Support testing and refinement of continuity plans

• Performance Metrics:

  • Completion of continuity plans
  • Participation in testing and exercises
  • Recovery time objectives (RTO) and recovery point objectives (RPO)
  • Stakeholder satisfaction and preparedness ratings

• Collaboration:
  Managed by ITS in partnership with university emergency management, risk compliance, and departmental leadership.

Boundaries and Constraints

• Services are limited to university-owned systems and operations.
• Plans must align with university-wide emergency and IT policies.
• Continuity planning does not replace incident response or cybersecurity services.
• Departmental participation is required for effective planning and testing.

Eligibility

All University of Louisville departments and administrative units are eligible for business continuity consulting services. Requests must be submitted by authorized personnel.