What It Is

ISO 22301:2019 is an international certification standard for Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS). It provides requirements to protect against, reduce likelihood of, respond to, and recover from disruptions, ensuring continuity of critical products/services. Built on a risk-based PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) approach with Annex SL high-level structure for seamless integration.

Key Components

• 10 clauses (4-10 core): context, leadership, planning (BIA/risk assessment), support, operation (strategies/testing), evaluation (audits/reviews), improvement.
• No prescriptive controls; flexible, tailored to organization.
• Core principles: resilience, continual improvement, leadership commitment.
• 3-year certification with annual surveillance audits.

Why Organizations Use It

Enhances resilience, minimizes downtime/financial losses, ensures regulatory compliance (e.g., NIS Directive), builds stakeholder trust/reputation, provides competitive edges like procurement advantages. Addresses cyber, natural disasters, supply chain risks; certified firms report reduced insurance premiums.

Implementation Overview

Gap analysis, BIA, policy development, training, testing, audits. Applies to all sizes/sectors globally. Typical 60 days to 6 months with tools; two-stage certification process.

What It Is

FedRAMP (Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program) is a U.S. government-wide framework for standardizing security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring of cloud service offerings (CSOs) used by federal agencies. Its primary purpose is to enable "assess once, use many times," reducing duplication while aligning with FISMA and NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 via risk-based impact levels (Low, Moderate, High).

Key Components

• **Baselines~156 (Low), ~323 (Moderate), ~410 (High) controls, plus LI-SaaS subset.
• Core artifacts: SSP, SAR, POA&M, continuous monitoring plans.
• Built on NIST 800-53; requires 3PAO assessments and FedRAMP Marketplace listing.
• Compliance model: Agency/Program Authorization, not certification.

Why Organizations Use It

• Unlocks federal contracts ($20M+ potential) and CMMC compliance.
• Demonstrates mature security for commercial clients.
• Reduces risk via standardized controls; builds stakeholder trust.

Implementation Overview

• Phased: Sponsor, preparation, 3PAO assessment, monitoring (12-18 months typical).
• Applies to CSPs targeting U.S. federal market; high complexity/cost ($150k-$2M+).
• Mandatory audits by accredited 3PAOs; ongoing quarterly/annual reporting.