The plan sits in a folder nobody opened? Business impact analysis, RTO and RPO, DR plan, tabletop exercises, board
What You Will Learn:
- Build a business continuity program: take 100+ procedures, templates, checklists and matrices from the lectures
- Run a business impact analysis and set RTO and RPO
- Assess continuity risks and choose continuity strategies
- Write a business continuity plan and an IT disaster recovery plan
- Prepare a crisis communication plan and manage third-party risk
- Run tabletop exercises and after-action reviews
- Measure the program with BCM metrics and an ISO 22301 gap analysis
- Brief the board on continuity readiness
- Use 20 working files, including a BIA workbook, a disaster recovery runbook and a tabletop exercise builder
- Learn with Mike, the #1 HR instructor on Udemy: 1,800,000+ enrollments, 170,000 students, about 200 books on Amazon
Overview: Beyond the Dusty Binder
In my years in the tech sector, I’ve seen my fair share of “disaster recovery plans” that were essentially expensive paperweights. You know the type—a 200-page PDF buried in a SharePoint folder that hasn’t been updated since 2018. When I stumbled upon Mike’s course on Business Continuity Management (BCM), I was skeptical. Most BCM training is either dry academic theory or a sales pitch for expensive consulting software. However, this course takes a radically different, hands-on labs approach to ISO 22301 compliance.
What sets this apart isn’t just the lecture content; it’s the shift from “what should we do” to “how do we actually build it.” Mike addresses the reality that most businesses face: complexity. He breaks down the intimidating wall of Business Impact Analysis (BIA) and turns it into a functional workflow. Instead of just talking about RTO (Recovery Time Objective) and RPO (Recovery Point Objective) as abstract concepts, the course forces you to define them using industry-standard tools. It’s an honest, no-fluff guide to ensuring a company doesn’t go belly-up when the primary data center goes dark or a cyberattack hits. This isn’t just about passing an audit; it’s about survival in a high-stakes digital economy.
Prerequisites
While the course is marketed as beginner to advanced, don’t expect to sleepwalk through it. To get the most out of the 150+ tools provided, you should have:
- A foundational understanding of how your organization’s departments interact.
- Basic proficiency in Excel (essential for the BIA workbook and BCM metrics).
- A “security-first” mindset and an interest in risk management.
- No prior experience with ISO 22301 is required, but a general awareness of IT infrastructure will help you grasp the IT disaster recovery (DR) sections much faster.
Skills & Tools
This is where the course earns its keep. You aren’t just watching videos; you’re building a portfolio of job-ready skills. You’ll walk away with a toolkit that would take a consultant months to build from scratch. Key tools and skills include:
- The BIA Workbook: A comprehensive spreadsheet to map out critical processes and dependencies.
- Disaster Recovery Runbooks: Technical, step-by-step guides for restoring resilient infrastructure.
- Tabletop Exercise Builder: Frameworks for running real-world projects where you simulate a crisis to test your team’s response.
- ISO 22301 Gap Analysis: A roadmap to see exactly where your current program fails to meet international standards.
- Crisis Communication Templates: Pre-written scripts for stakeholders, the media, and the Board of Directors.
Career Benefits & Job Roles
If you’re looking for career growth, mastering BCM is a massive lever. In an era of constant ransomware threats and supply chain instability, companies are desperate for professionals who can prove continuity readiness. This course serves as excellent certification prep for those eyeing the CBCP (Certified Business Continuity Professional) or similar credentials.
Typical job roles that benefit from this training include:
- IT Disaster Recovery Manager: Specialized in keeping the lights on for tech stacks.
- Risk & Compliance Officer: Ensuring the company meets ISO 22301 and regulatory requirements.
- Operations Manager: Streamlining business resilience across non-tech departments.
- Information Security Analyst: Integrating BCM into a wider cybersecurity strategy.
- Management Consultant: Charging a premium to implement these 150+ procedures and templates for clients.
Pros
- Massive Resource Library: The “150+ tools” isn’t hyperbole. The 20 working files, including the BIA workbook and the DR runbook, are worth the price of admission alone. These are templates you can actually use in a professional setting tomorrow.
- Executive Communication: Mike spends time teaching you how to “Brief the Board.” This is a critical soft skill that most technical courses ignore—translating technical RTO/RPO metrics into business value.
- Instructor Authority: Mike is a heavy hitter on Udemy for a reason. His delivery is clear, professional, and backed by a massive track record of 1.8 million enrollments. You’re learning from a practitioner, not a narrator.
Cons
- Information Overload: Because the course is so comprehensive, it can feel overwhelming for a true beginner. The sheer volume of templates and checklists requires a significant time investment to customize for your specific organization. It’s not a “plug and play” solution; it’s a framework that requires you to roll up your sleeves and do the work.