The Significance of Not Conducting Business Impact Analysis (BIA) in Business Continuity Planning

D.

The MOST significant risk that could result from the situation where a business impact analysis (BIA) was not conducted during the development of a business continuity plan (BCP) is D. Critical business applications are not covered.

Explanation:

A business continuity plan (BCP) is a plan that outlines how an organization will continue its critical business functions during and after a disruption. A BCP is developed based on the results of a business impact analysis (BIA), which identifies critical business functions, the impact of a disruption on those functions, and recovery time objectives (RTOs) for those functions.

If a BIA is not conducted during the development of a BCP, there is a high risk that critical business applications will not be covered by the plan. Without a BIA, it is difficult to determine which applications are critical and the impact of a disruption on those applications. As a result, the BCP may not include the necessary steps and resources to recover those critical applications in a timely manner.

Option A, "Responsibilities are not property defined," may be a risk associated with a poorly defined organizational structure or lack of clear roles and responsibilities in the BCP development process, but it is not the most significant risk resulting from the situation described.

Option B, "Recovery time objectives (RTOs) are not correctly determined," is a potential risk associated with a poorly executed BIA, but it is not the most significant risk resulting from the absence of a BIA.

Option C, "Key performance indicators (KPIs) are not aligned," is not directly related to the absence of a BIA in BCP development, so it is not the most significant risk resulting from the situation described.

Therefore, the MOST significant risk resulting from the absence of a BIA in BCP development is that critical business applications may not be covered by the plan.