Are the NCUA business continuity planning requirements sufficient for your credit union?

The National Credit Union Association outlines basic requirements for business continuity planning, but are they stringent enough to protect your credit union? At Ongoing Operations, we believe that a business continuity plan should cover all contingencies, and below are just a few of our suggestions.

All credit unions must adhere to the NCUA standards for business continuity planning, but those guidelines are a bare minimum for operations. While some jokes about bare minimums come to mind  (e.g. “Q: What do you call the person who graduated last in their class in medical school? A: Doctor”), it bears noting that the punchlines indicate a certain lack of trust placed in the expertise of those doing the bare minimum. If credit unions wish to gain the trust of their members and their board, they should expect to go above and beyond the minimal requirements set forth by the NCUA.

Testing Your Continuity Plan

When you’re testing your business continuity plan, whether it be through a tabletop exercise involving your employees or disaster recovery testing for your technology and processes, it’s important to remember that the NCUA guidelines mandate only general solutions for general problems. At Ongoing Operations, we recognize that not all risks to your credit union will fit under that general mandate umbrella.

 

 

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