Welcome to the first post in what will be an ongoing series on my path toward earning the CBCI (Certificate of the Business Continuity Institute) qualification.

If you work in operations, risk, IT, or management, you’ve likely heard terms like Business Continuity, Operational Resilience, and Disaster Recovery tossed around constantly. But what does it actually take to master these concepts and apply them effectively in the real world? That is exactly what I’m setting out to discover.

Over the coming weeks and months, I’ll be documenting my study journey right here on paulobrien.com.

What to Expect from This Series

This won’t just be a personal diary—it’s designed to be a practical resource for anyone interested in organizational resilience. Throughout this series, I’ll be sharing:

  • Course & Study Tips: What to focus on, how to tackle the BCI Good Practice Guidelines (GPG 7.0), and effective study techniques for passing the exam.
  • Core BC Concepts Made Simple: Plain-English breakdowns of key frameworks, from Business Impact Analyses (BIAs) to crisis response strategies.
  • Real-World Resilience: Lessons on how theory translates into practical, day-to-day resilience for businesses of any size.

What is the CBCI?

The CBCI is a globally recognized credential administered by the Business Continuity Institute (BCI). It validates an understanding of the fundamental principles and practices required to keep an organization running through disruption—whether that disruption stems from a cyberattack, a supply chain failure, severe weather, or unexpected operational downtime.

The core foundation of the course is built upon the BCI’s Good Practice Guidelines (GPG Edition 7.0). Instead of the older linear lifecycle, Edition 7.0 structures business continuity around a holistic Business Continuity Management System (BCMS) featuring 6 Professional Practices (PPs):

Management Practices

  • PP1: Establishing a BCMS
  • PP2: Embracing Business Continuity

Technical Practices

  • PP3: Analysis
  • PP4: Solutions Design
  • PP5: Enabling Solutions
  • PP6: Validation

Why Am I Pursuing It Now?

Disruptions aren’t a matter of if—they’re a matter of when. Building systems and processes that can withstand, adapt to, and rapidly recover from unexpected events is no longer a luxury; it’s a core requirement for any modern organization.

By pursuing the CBCI, my goal is to deepen my knowledge, refine my practical skillset, and share actionable takeaways that you can apply within your own teams or organization.

What’s Next?

In the next post, I’ll break down the 6 Professional Practices of GPG Edition 7.0 and share my strategy for organizing study notes around the updated Good Practice Guidelines.

Are you currently studying for the CBCI or working in business continuity? I’d love to connect—reach out via the contact page!