Business Continuity Specialist

Description summary:

Develop and maintain business continuity and disaster recovery frameworks aligned with ISO 22301, ISO 27031, and SAMA requirements to ensure organizational resilience.

Responsibilities:

• Develop, implement, and maintain the enterprise-wide Business Continuity Management (BCM) framework aligned with regulatory and industry standards.
• Develop business continuity documents:
• Develop and recommend business continuity and recovery strategies (alternate sites, remote working, manual workarounds).
• Define resource requirements (personnel, technology, facilities, third parties).
• Develop and maintain Business Continuity Plans (BCPs).
• Develop and maintain Disaster Recovery Plans (DRPs) with IT teams.
• Define crisis communication and escalation protocols.
• Establish and maintain BCM policy, standards, procedures, and governance.
• Define BCM scope, objectives, and applicability across business units.
• Conduct Business Impact Analysis (BIA).
• Determine:
  • Maximum Tolerable Downtime (MTD).
  • Recovery Time Objectives (RTO).
  • Recovery Point Objectives (RPO).
• Assess financial, operational, regulatory, and reputational impacts.
• Identify single points of failure and mitigation strategies.
• Establish Crisis Management Team (CMT) structure and roles.
• Perform BCM risk assessments covering:
  • Operational threats.
  • Technology threats.
  • Cyber threats.
  • External threats.
• Conduct BCM testing programs (tabletop, simulation, full-scale drills).
• Validate effectiveness of BCPs and DRPs.
• Document test results and track remediation actions.
• Maintain and update BCM documentation and plans.
• Ensure version control and governance of BCM documents.
• Assess third-party and vendor continuity capabilities.
• Ensure vendors maintain adequate BCP and DR arrangements.
• Establish BCM governance committees and reporting.
• Prepare BCM dashboards and reports for senior management.
• Monitor BCM readiness and compliance.
• Ensure alignment with regulations and standards (e.g., ISO 22301).
• Support audits, inspections, and regulatory reporting.
• Conduct BCM awareness and training programs.
• Provide role-based training for crisis and recovery teams.
• Promote business continuity culture across the organization.
• Integrate BCM into:
  • Enterprise risk management.
  • Operational risk.
  • IT risk frameworks.
• Embed BCM into:
  • Strategic initiatives.
  • Digital transformation.
  • New product development.
• Conduct BCM maturity assessments and benchmarking.
• Drive continuous improvement for organizational resilience.

Requirements:

• 5–8 years of experience in Business Continuity Management (BCM), Risk Management, or Organizational Resilience.
• Proven hands-on experience in developing and maintaining:
  • Business Continuity Plans (BCP).
  • Disaster Recovery Plans (DRP).
  • Business Impact Analysis (BIA).
• Strong understanding of key BCM concepts:
  • Recovery Time Objective (RTO).
  • Recovery Point Objective (RPO).
  • Maximum Tolerable Downtime (MTD).
  • Crisis Management.
• Experience working with international standards and frameworks such as:
  • ISO 22301.
  • ISO 27031.
  • Regulatory frameworks (e.g., SAMA CSF, NCA).
• Experience in:
  • Designing and executing BCM testing programs (tabletop, simulation, full-scale exercises).
  • Validating and improving BCP and DRP effectiveness.
• Ability to:
  • Identify risks and single points of failure.
  • Recommend continuity and recovery strategies.
• Experience in third-party and vendor risk and continuity assessment.
• Strong skills in:
  • Reporting and dashboard preparation for senior management.
  • Stakeholder communication and coordination.
• Experience in governance:
  • Developing BCM policies, procedures, and frameworks.
• Relevant certifications are preferred:
  • ISO 22301 Lead Implementer / Lead Auditor.
  • CBCP (Certified Business Continuity Professional) or equivalent.