ISO 22301:2019 — Business Continuity (BCMS)-CQI & IRCA Lead Auditor Training

Build Professional Skills for Business Continuity, Resilience and Management-System Auditing

What happens when a critical business process suddenly stops working?

A power failure, cyber incident, equipment breakdown, supply-chain disruption, fire, flood, security incident, technology failure, or other unexpected event can interrupt operations and create significant pressure on an organization.

Business continuity is therefore not simply about having an emergency plan. It is about developing structured systems that help organizations understand disruption risks, prepare for significant incidents, respond effectively, recover critical activities, and continually improve their resilience.

That is the focus of ISO 22301:2019, the international standard for Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS).

MAXIMEDGE GROUP invites professionals, auditors, risk managers, business continuity practitioners, compliance personnel, consultants, operations managers, IT professionals, and other interested participants to join our ISO 22301:2019 — Business Continuity (BCMS) CQI & IRCA Lead Auditor Training Course.

This specialized training is designed to develop practical knowledge of business continuity management systems and the principles and techniques involved in auditing them.

Training Schedule

Evening Batch

📅 14–22 September 2026

Morning Batch

📅 21–25 September 2026

Training Format: Professional Instructor-Led Training

Availability: Limited seats.

Important date notice: The advertised September 2026 batches have passed as of October 2, 2026. Please contact Maximedge to confirm the next available ISO 22301:2019 CQI & IRCA Lead Auditor training batch before registering.

What Is ISO 22301:2019?

ISO 22301:2019 provides a framework for establishing, implementing, maintaining, and continually improving a Business Continuity Management System (BCMS).

A BCMS helps an organization take a systematic approach to preparing for disruptive events and maintaining or restoring important activities within an appropriate timeframe.

The standard addresses areas such as:

Business continuity planning
Organizational context
Leadership and management commitment
Business impact analysis
Risk assessment
Continuity strategies
Business continuity objectives
Incident response
Recovery planning
Exercises and testing
Performance evaluation
Internal auditing
Corrective action
Continual improvement

The goal is not to predict every possible disruption. Rather, business continuity management provides a structured way of preparing an organization to respond to disruption and protect critical activities.

Why ISO 22301 Lead Auditor Training Matters

Business continuity systems need to be tested and evaluated—not simply documented.

An effective auditor needs to determine whether the organization's BCMS is properly established, implemented, maintained, and capable of supporting continuity objectives.

ISO 22301 Lead Auditor training can help participants develop the ability to:

Understand ISO 22301:2019 requirements
Plan and conduct BCMS audits
Evaluate business continuity processes
Review documented information
Assess business impact analysis processes
Examine risk and continuity strategies
Gather objective audit evidence
Identify nonconformities
Prepare audit findings
Evaluate corrective actions
Conduct follow-up activities
Report audit conclusions professionally

This makes auditing more than a checklist exercise. It becomes a structured assessment of whether the organization's business continuity arrangements are functioning as intended.

Who Should Attend?

This training is suitable for professionals involved in business continuity, risk management, auditing, compliance, operations, information technology, security, and organizational resilience.

It can be particularly relevant to:

Business Continuity Managers
Business Continuity Officers
Risk Managers
Enterprise Risk Professionals
Internal Auditors
Lead Auditors
Compliance Officers
Quality Managers
Operations Managers
Crisis Management Professionals
IT Managers
Information Security Professionals
Disaster Recovery Professionals
Project Managers
Management Representatives
Corporate Security Professionals
Consultants
Business Resilience Professionals
Process Improvement Professionals
Management-system professionals

It can also benefit professionals who want to expand their auditing knowledge into business continuity and organizational resilience.

What You Will Learn

The course provides structured learning around ISO 22301:2019 requirements, BCMS implementation concepts, and auditing practices.

Module 1: Fundamentals of Business Continuity Management

Participants will begin by exploring the foundations of business continuity and organizational resilience.

Topics include:

Business continuity concepts
Organizational resilience
Disruptive events
Business continuity principles
Business continuity management systems
The importance of preparedness
Roles and responsibilities
The auditor's role

Participants will develop a foundation for understanding why organizations need structured continuity arrangements.

Module 2: Understanding ISO 22301:2019 Requirements

Participants will examine the key requirements of ISO 22301:2019 and how they relate to a functioning BCMS.

Areas include:

Organizational context
Interested parties
Scope of the BCMS
Leadership
Policy
Organizational roles
Planning
Objectives
Support
Operational requirements
Performance evaluation
Improvement

The focus is on understanding how the requirements work together rather than viewing individual clauses in isolation.

Module 3: Business Impact Analysis and Risk Assessment

Understanding what is critical to an organization is an essential part of business continuity planning.

Participants will explore concepts associated with:

Business Impact Analysis (BIA)
Critical activities
Dependencies
Resources
Disruption impacts
Recovery priorities
Risk identification
Risk assessment
Risk treatment
Business continuity priorities

Auditors can use this knowledge to evaluate whether an organization's continuity planning reflects its actual operational priorities.

Module 4: Business Continuity Strategies and Solutions

Once critical activities and disruption risks have been identified, organizations need appropriate continuity strategies.

Participants will examine considerations such as:

Continuity options
Recovery strategies
Resource requirements
People
Premises
Technology
Information
Suppliers
Infrastructure
Communication
Alternative arrangements

The training helps participants understand how auditors can evaluate whether continuity strategies are appropriate for identified risks and business requirements.

Module 5: Business Continuity Plans and Procedures

A business continuity management system needs practical arrangements for responding to disruption.

Participants will explore:

Business continuity plans
Response structures
Roles and responsibilities
Escalation processes
Communication arrangements
Incident response
Recovery procedures
Resource requirements
Documentation
Coordination

The emphasis is on evaluating whether plans are practical, maintained, communicated, and aligned with organizational needs.

Module 6: Incident Response, Recovery and Exercises

Business continuity arrangements need to work under pressure.

Participants will learn about the importance of:

Incident response
Activation procedures
Communication
Crisis coordination
Recovery activities
Exercises
Testing
Lessons learned
Review and improvement

Auditors will consider the evidence demonstrating whether continuity arrangements have been exercised and evaluated appropriately.

Module 7: Monitoring, Measurement and Performance Evaluation

A BCMS should not remain static.

Participants will explore how organizations can monitor and evaluate their continuity-management arrangements.

Key areas include:

Performance indicators
Monitoring
Measurement
Analysis
Evaluation
Management review
Internal audit
Exercise results
Lessons learned
Improvement opportunities

This module helps participants understand how evidence can be used to determine whether the BCMS is achieving its intended outcomes.

Module 8: Internal Audit of a BCMS

Participants will examine the principles and practices involved in conducting effective ISO 22301 internal audits.

Topics include:

Audit principles
Audit objectives
Audit scope
Audit criteria
Audit programmes
Audit planning
Audit preparation
Opening meetings
Evidence gathering
Interviews
Sampling
Audit trails
Audit conclusions

Participants can develop a systematic approach to planning and conducting BCMS audits.

Module 9: Nonconformities and Corrective Action

When an audit identifies a nonconformity, the organization needs to understand the underlying issue and take appropriate action.

Participants will examine:

Audit findings
Nonconformities
Objective evidence
Root-cause analysis
Correction
Corrective action
Action plans
Effectiveness evaluation
Follow-up audits

This helps auditors produce findings that are clear, evidence-based, and useful to the organization.

Module 10: Lead Auditing, Reporting and Follow-Up

The final stage focuses on managing the audit process and communicating results professionally.

Participants will explore:

Audit team responsibilities
Audit leadership
Opening and closing meetings
Audit reporting
Audit conclusions
Communication of findings
Corrective-action follow-up
Verification activities
Audit records
Continual improvement

The objective is to help participants understand the complete audit cycle—from planning through reporting and follow-up.

Develop Practical BCMS Auditing Skills

Effective business continuity auditing requires more than reading clauses from a standard.

Auditors need to understand how continuity systems operate in real organizations and how different processes connect.

The training can help participants develop practical skills in:

✔ Reviewing Business Continuity Documentation

Examine policies, procedures, plans, records, BIA outputs, risk assessments, exercise results, and other relevant documented information.

✔ Conducting Professional Interviews

Use structured questioning to understand how employees and process owners contribute to business continuity.

✔ Following Audit Trails

Trace evidence from organizational requirements through risk assessment, continuity strategies, plans, implementation, exercises, and improvement.

✔ Evaluating Objective Evidence

Determine whether available evidence supports conformity with applicable BCMS requirements.

✔ Identifying Nonconformities

Recognize gaps between requirements and actual organizational practices and document findings appropriately.

✔ Assessing Corrective Actions

Evaluate whether corrective actions address identified causes and whether their effectiveness can be demonstrated.

Why Business Continuity Matters to Nigerian Organizations

Organizations operating in Nigeria can face a wide range of operational uncertainties and business disruptions.

Depending on the organization and sector, continuity planning may need to consider issues such as:

Power interruptions
Technology failures
Cybersecurity incidents
Telecommunications disruptions
Equipment breakdown
Supply-chain interruptions
Extreme weather events
Flooding
Fire incidents
Security incidents
Supplier failures
Loss of critical personnel
Facility disruptions
Data and information loss
Transportation challenges

The specific risks differ from one organization to another.

A structured BCMS allows an organization to identify its critical activities, understand potential impacts, establish continuity strategies, and prepare appropriate response and recovery arrangements.

This is particularly relevant to organizations where operational interruptions can affect customers, employees, suppliers, critical infrastructure, revenue, or service delivery.

ISO 22301 Across Different Industries

Business continuity principles can be applied across a wide range of sectors.

Banking and Financial Services

Continuity arrangements can support critical financial services, customer operations, technology systems, and communication processes.

Oil and Gas

Continuity planning can be relevant to operational facilities, supply chains, contractors, technology, logistics, and critical support functions.

Telecommunications and ICT

Technology-dependent organizations can use continuity management to address service disruption, infrastructure failure, data issues, and other operational risks.

Healthcare

Healthcare organizations need continuity arrangements that consider critical services, facilities, equipment, personnel, information, and suppliers.

Manufacturing

Manufacturers may need to address equipment failure, raw-material shortages, utility disruptions, supplier interruptions, and production downtime.

Government and Public Services

Continuity management can support the delivery of essential services during disruptive events.

Professional Services and SMEs

Smaller organizations can also benefit from structured approaches to identifying critical processes and preparing for disruption.

ISO 22301 and Disaster Recovery: What Is the Difference?

Business continuity and disaster recovery are closely related, but they are not identical.

Business continuity takes a broader organizational view of maintaining critical activities during and after disruption.

Disaster recovery often focuses more specifically on restoring technology, systems, data, infrastructure, or other capabilities after an incident.

A mature continuity programme may therefore incorporate disaster-recovery arrangements as part of a broader business continuity strategy.

For auditors, understanding this distinction helps when evaluating whether an organization's BCMS addresses its broader continuity requirements rather than focusing exclusively on IT recovery.

Why Choose MAXIMEDGE GROUP?

At MAXIMEDGE GROUP, our professional training approach emphasizes structured learning, practical understanding, and workplace relevance.

Professional Learning Environment

Participants receive structured instruction designed to help them understand business continuity and management-system auditing concepts.

Practical Orientation

The course focuses on how BCMS principles can be examined within real organizational processes.

Relevant to Multiple Industries

Business continuity principles can apply across banking, oil and gas, telecommunications, healthcare, manufacturing, government, professional services, ICT, and other sectors.

Professional Development

The training can help professionals expand their knowledge in business continuity, risk, resilience, compliance, and auditing.

Individual and Corporate Training

Organizations can also discuss training arrangements for teams, departments, and professional groups.

Advance Your Career in Business Continuity and Risk Management

Business continuity is becoming an increasingly important area of organizational management.

Professionals with knowledge of business continuity management systems may work across functions involving:

Business continuity
Risk management
Enterprise risk
Internal auditing
Compliance
Information security
Disaster recovery
Crisis management
Operations
Corporate security
Quality management
Management systems
Consulting
Organizational resilience

ISO 22301 training can provide a structured foundation for professionals who want to develop their understanding of BCMS auditing.

As with any professional training, practical experience, organizational requirements, and applicable professional qualifications remain important considerations when pursuing specific career roles.

Corporate ISO 22301 Training

Does your organization depend on critical operations that cannot simply stop when disruption occurs?

MAXIMEDGE GROUP can provide professional training support for organizations seeking to strengthen their teams' understanding of business continuity management and auditing.

Corporate training can be tailored around organizational needs and may address:

Business continuity awareness
ISO 22301 requirements
BCMS internal auditing
Business Impact Analysis
Risk assessment
Business continuity planning
Incident response
Recovery strategies
Exercises and testing
Corrective action
Continual improvement

Training can be particularly relevant for business continuity, risk, operations, IT, compliance, security, and management teams.

Turn Business Continuity Knowledge into Practical Audit Capability

A business continuity management system should be more than a document sitting on a shelf.

It should provide a structured approach to preparing for disruption, responding to incidents, maintaining critical activities, recovering operations, learning from experience, and improving organizational resilience.

The ISO 22301:2019 Business Continuity Management System (BCMS) CQI & IRCA Lead Auditor Training can help professionals understand how to evaluate these processes systematically.

Whether you are developing your professional skills, expanding your auditing knowledge, strengthening your organization's internal audit capability, or working within risk and resilience functions, this training provides an opportunity to deepen your understanding of business continuity management.

Register with MAXIMEDGE GROUP