Critical incident & business continuity at VU
Victoria University defines a critical incident as a traumatic or tragic event or situation, or the threat of such (within or outside Australia) that has an adverse impact on the University community or activities, which requires or warrants a coordinated University response.
We use a risk based critical incident classification and escalation process in relation to minor, moderate and major incidents.
Critical incidents management
VU has arrangements in place to ensure its resources and services are directed to where it is most needed, in the event of an emergency or non-emergency occurring on/or off campus.
If you're a VU staff member, you can find emergency response procedures and further information on the VU intranet OHS Library.
During a critical incident, the University's Critical Incident Team will activate the Critical Incident Communications Plan.
If appropriate, during or following a critical incident, we may display:
- web alert banners on the VU website and VU Polytechnic website
- a news story/media release on our website.
In the event of an emergency
Business continuity
Business continuity planning for the University's key assets contributes to the resilience of the organisation. It takes into consideration other tools such as risk management and emergency response plans.
Disruption-related risks may be infrequent but have severe consequences for critical University services as they may not be resolved by routine management.
Disruption-related risks include physical and non-physical events such as (but not limited to):
- natural disasters
- cyber-attacks
- pandemics
- significant loss of utilities
- financial crises
- incidents that threaten VU community.
VU Critical Incident Team may be activated to appropriately manage business recovery according to the Critical Incident, Emergency Planning and Business Continuity Policy and Procedure. It makes sure we recover critical business functions first in order to function with minimal disruption.