A Direct Line Blog

By Donya Parrish, MCU VP Risk Management

It’s hard to believe, but it has already been four years since we were in the middle of COVID. One thing about that time is that it was a good test of your credit union business continuity plans, even if it was not something any of those plans could have anticipated at the scale it impacted operations.

Is it time to dust off and update your plan again? The national news over the last week has included flooding, tornados, and more with predictions of heavy snow and severe wind here in Montana. Many of those can disrupt your ability to serve your members.

What is the board’s role in disaster and business continuity planning? The Board Responsibilities channel of InfoSight has a good summary of the oversight responsibility. It notes that the business continuity planning process can include:

• Establishing policy by determining how the credit union will manage and control identified risks;
• Allocating knowledgeable personnel and sufficient financial resources to implement the Business Contingency Plan (BCP);
• Ensuring that the BCP is independently reviewed and approved at least annually;
• Ensuring employees are trained and aware of their roles in the implementation of the BCP;
• Ensuring the BCP is regularly tested on an enterprise-wide basis;
• Reviewing the BCP testing program and test results regularly; and
• Ensuring the BCP is continually updated to reflect the current operating environment.

It’s important that updates are made regularly by the management team and reported to the board, as appropriate. Exams are likely to address the plan, too, especially if it has not been updated or does not fit the complexity of your credit union.

NCUA addressed the board’s role in a May 2022 newsletter article that stated, “the board of directors needs to know the recovery objectives, timelines and processes for the credit union if it experiences a disruption in its normal operations. Management should brief the board at least once a year on the business-continuity test results and any recommendations for improvements to the recovery process or critical systems.”

There are several resources available on the topic to assist your credit union in updating your plan, like the Business Continuity Planning topic in InfoSight. If you need access to InfoSight, let me know. It is a resource available to any director, supervisory committee member, or staff of our affiliated credit unions.