Twenty-five years on, the Ealing bombing remains a powerful reminder that disruption can arrive without warning. While the immediate focus rightly centred on public safety and the damage caused, the incident also tested the resilience of the many businesses operating in and around Ealing Broadway. The blast damaged nearby properties, disrupted infrastructure, and left organisations facing the challenge of maintaining operations under extraordinary circumstances.
At the time, I worked for an organisation that felt the impact of the incident, although my office escaped the damage. As colleagues from the impacted site suddenly found themselves without a workplace, our office welcomed many of them while recovery efforts got underway.
One memory stands out more than any other: sharing my desk with colleagues who had lost access to their workplace. It was a simple yet powerful example of people pulling together when normal working arrangements disappeared overnight.
When Business Continuity Stops Being a Document
Most organisations have contingency plans. They sit on shelves, in folders, or today, more commonly, in cloud-based systems. However, when an incident occurs, the real test is whether people can turn those plans into action.
Almost overnight, colleagues needed somewhere to work. We had to keep communications flowing and reassure customers. Managers needed timely information. Established routines disappeared, and adaptability became essential.
We shared desks, reorganised teams, and quickly turned spare office space into temporary work areas. People stepped in to help wherever they could.
The experience taught me that successful recovery depends as much on people and culture as it does on processes and technology.
No Smartphones, No WhatsApp!
One aspect of the recovery that remains particularly memorable was the use of a communication pyramid.
Before smartphones, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and mass notification systems, organisations often relied on structured calling trees. A senior manager would contact a small group of employees, and each person would then contact several others. This approach helped information spread rapidly and systematically throughout the organisation.
Watching this process unfold demonstrated just how critical communication is during a crisis.
The advantages were clear:
The calling tree could spread information quickly.
Managers could check on staff and confirm their whereabouts.
Managers could share updates efficiently.
Employees knew exactly who to contact for information.
Like any system, it was not perfect. Contact details sometimes fell out of date, managers struggled to reach certain individuals, and messages occasionally changed as they passed through multiple people.
Yet the principle remains just as relevant today as it was then: in a crisis, communication is one of the most important business processes of all.
What the Experience Taught Me
Looking back, several lessons stand out.
Don’t Depend on a Single Location: If an organisation loses access to one building, it must still be able to function. Alternative locations and flexible working arrangements are not luxuries; they are essential resilience measures.
Build Communication Resilience: Communication channels can fail. Organisations need multiple ways to reach staff, customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders.
Prepare for Staff Displacement: Employees may still want and be able to work, even when they cannot access their usual workplace. Organisations should plan how to relocate teams or help them work from alternative locations at short notice.
Test Recovery Arrangements: A plan that nobody has ever tested is simply an assumption. Testing helps identify weaknesses before a real incident exposes them.
Put People First: Organisations can replace equipment and repair buildings. However, supporting employees and maintaining clear communication should always remain the highest priority.
Looking Back, Looking Forward: The bombing caused significant damage and disruption, but it also demonstrated the value of preparedness, adaptability, and teamwork.
Twenty-five years later, technology has transformed the way organisations respond to crises. Cloud services, mobile communications, remote working, and real-time collaboration tools now provide capabilities that few people could have imagined at the time.
Yet the fundamentals have not changed. People still need information. Leaders still need to make decisions under pressure. Organisations still need the ability to continue operating when the unexpected happens.
For me, the lasting image is not the damaged buildings or the media coverage. It is colleagues gathering around shared desks, finding practical solutions, supporting one another, and keeping the organisation running despite the disruption.
The lasting lesson is simple: Business Continuity is not about preventing every disruption. It is about ensuring that when disruption occurs, people know what to do, where to go, and how to keep moving forward.
By Anne O’Brien
This is the first of a two-part series. In Part 2, Graham explores what Business Continuity looks like in today’s increasingly uncertain and disrupted world, and how organisations can build resilience for the challenges ahead.
