Business Continuity Management: A Critical Management Approach

In this review of Business Continuity Management: A Critical Management Approach the authors Ethne Swartz and Dominic Elliott present a thoughtful, research-driven textbook for managers and planners. The bottom line: this edition is best for practitioners and students who want a rigorous, theoretically grounded treatment of continuity informed by real cases; its single biggest reason to buy is the blend of empirical research with updated practical chapters, including new material on digital resilience and risk principles tailored to smaller companies.

Key Features

• Theoretical rigor: The book offers a research-based framework that helps readers understand continuity management beyond checklist thinking.
• Empirical case studies: New cases such as South Africa Bank, Lego and Morgan Stanley Dean Witter illustrate how organisations actually respond to disruptions.
• Updated content: All chapters are revised to reflect post-2002 events and include discussion of the New York City power outage of August 2003.
• Focus on smaller firms: The text explicitly considers the impact on smaller companies, making guidance more applicable to a range of organisational sizes.
• Digital resilience chapter: New material on digital resilience addresses contemporary threats to operations and continuity planning.

Who It's For

This book is aimed at business continuity professionals, emergency planners, senior managers and graduate students who need a thorough, academic yet practical treatment of continuity management. Practitioners who value empirical evidence and theoretical structure will find the approach useful for designing or auditing continuity programmes.

Those seeking a short how-to workbook, quick checklists or a purely practitioner handbook may prefer a more operational manual; this title is stronger on analysis, case evidence and principles than on step-by-step templates.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Strong theoretical foundation supports principled decision-making in continuity planning.
• Relevant, updated case studies provide real-world context for complex events.
• New chapters on digital resilience and risk management broaden the book's modern applicability.
• Explicit attention to smaller companies increases practical relevance for many readers.

Cons

• Not a quick reference guide; readers looking for ready-made templates may find it too academic.
• Depth and revision focus on analysis rather than stepwise implementation, which could limit appeal for front-line staff needing immediate tools.

Specifications

Our Verdict

Business Continuity Management: A Critical Management Approach is a valuable, well-researched resource for those who need conceptual depth and case-based learning; it is good value for managers and students who want evidence-backed guidance and modern material on digital resilience, though those needing quick templates should supplement it with a practical handbook.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this edition include new case studies?
Yes; the second edition adds cases such as South Africa Bank, Lego and Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, plus incidents tied to 9/11 and the 2003 NYC power outage.

Is the book suitable for small businesses?
Yes; chapters are revised with particular attention to the impact on smaller companies and offer principles applicable to smaller operations.

Does it cover digital threats?
The book includes a new chapter on digital resilience and discusses risk management principles relevant to contemporary digital risks.