Page 34 - Insurance Times July 2019

with stakeholders and mitigation strategies should get organisation to continue operating during and after a
devised with appropriate monitoring and control. disaster. BCPs (business continuity plans) are an essential
element of a BCMS.
d) Risk Awareness :- Sensitization and awareness creation
of risk management across the company are must for BCPs typically detail how to manage incidents that affect the
Risk Aware Culture. organisation's business-critical processes and activities, from
failure of a single server all the way through to complete
My Risk Mantras for Risk Awareness is-
loss of a major facility. Best practice for business continuity
1) Propagate ERM as "Everyone is a Risk Manager",
planning is set out in ISO 22301.
2) Educate stakeholders to be "Be Risk Aware, Be Data
Disaster recovery planning usually takes place within the
Aware and Be Secure",
BCMS framework. Disaster recovery plans are often relatively
3) I work to "Integrate Risk Management with Strategy &
technical and focus on the recovery of specific operations,
Performance".
functions, sites, services or applications. A single BCP might
contain or refer to a number of disaster recovery plans. Best
How Important is Business Continuity
practice for disaster recovery is set out in ISO 22301.
Management in Today's Environment?
BCM involves planning for any
"Globally, corporate governance regulations
potential disaster by identifying
potential threats to an organisation require directors to "exercise reasonable care, skill
and analysing their impact on its day-
and diligence" to mitigate risks facing the
to-day operations.
organisation"
Effective BCM ensures the business can
provide a minimum acceptable service
in the event of a disaster, and helps preserve corporate Fraud in Indian Insurance Industry has been a
reputation, image and revenue. Major Cause of Concern. Why Insurance fraud is
A growing body of legislation requires businesses in essential Continuing to Grow and Insurers have not been
areas to implement effective business continuity able to Cap it Fully. Do you Think IRDAI Should
arrangements. Globally, corporate governance regulations Come Out With a Comprehensive Policy?
require directors to "exercise reasonable care, skill and
Insurance fraud is one of the most serious problems
diligence" to mitigate risks facing the organisation. threatening viability of insurance companies. Insurance
Implementing effective BCM is the best-practice approach frauds are driving up the overall costs of insurers and
to effectively manage business interruptions and incidents, premiums for policyholders.
and to meet the directive's requirements. It encompasses a wide range of illicit practices and illegal
The current cyber threat landscape has made business acts like
leaders more aware of the risks of cyber-attacks, and the 1) Insurance Claims Fraud - Deadman Insurance etc.
importance of being able to respond to and recover from 2) Bogus Business - Non Existence of Insured and
such attacks. Insurance Policy is being issued etc.
Effective BCM, based on international best-practice 3) Medical Impersonation - Health Misrepresentation etc.
standards such as ISO 22301, can protect organisations from 4) Dual Employment- Person working in two organizations
widespread business disruption in the event of a successful at a time etc.
cyber-attack.
Insurance companies have witnessed increase in the
An effective BCMS (business continuity management system) number of fraud cases since couple of years. Risk
is centred around the BCM lifecycle, which involves management has been acquiring monumental importance
identifying threats, performing a business impact analysis, in insurance industry. Insurance business is of dynamic
designing and implementing a business continuity plan, nature that puts an additional onus on risk management.
compiling documentation, measuring and testing So insurance companies need comprehensive risk
performance, and maintaining and improving BCM processes. management strategies that involve fraud risk assessment
and fraud prevention.
Business continuity planning involves developing, testing
and maintaining business continuity plans that enable an

34 The Insurance Times, July 2019