CBCI Candidate Information Pack

Created by: The Education Team

Date: Updated March 2017
Table of Contents
About the Business Continuity Institute ..........................................................................................................4
CBCI Certification .............................................................................................................................................5
What is the CBCI Credential? .......................................................................................................................5
Examination Overview .....................................................................................................................................6
Studying for the Certificate of the BCI Examination ........................................................................................7
Preparing for the examination .....................................................................................................................7
The CBCI Online Examination ...........................................................................................................................9
Scheduling your examination appointment .................................................................................................9
Substitutions ...............................................................................................................................................10
Examination appointment rescheduling and cancellation policy ..............................................................10
"No-show and cancellation fees ...............................................................................................................10
Ahead of the Examination ..............................................................................................................................10
On the Exam Day ............................................................................................................................................11
Prior to connecting for your exam .............................................................................................................11
Connecting to your Proctor on the day of your exam ...............................................................................12
Questions, Comments and Exit survey .......................................................................................................12
The Paper and Pencil Examination .............................................................................................................13
After the Examination ....................................................................................................................................14
Receiving exam results CBCI Online exam ..............................................................................................14
Receiving exam results Paper and Pencil examination ...........................................................................14
Understanding your score ..........................................................................................................................14
How the Passing Score Was Set .................................................................................................................14
Retaking the online exam ...........................................................................................................................15
CBCI Credential Maintenance Fee ..............................................................................................................15
Score dismissal ...........................................................................................................................................15
Revocation of the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) credential .........................................................................16
Examination Appeals Policy ........................................................................................................................17
After the examination auditing of eligibility ...........................................................................................18
Disclaimer .......................................................................................................................................................19
Important Contact Information .....................................................................................................................19

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About the Business Continuity Institute
The Business Continuity Institute (BCI) is the worlds leading institute for business continuity.

Established in 1994, the BCI has established itself as the leading membership and certifying organization
for Business Continuity (BC) professionals worldwide.

The BCI offers a wide range of resources for business professionals concerned with raising levels of
resilience within their organization or considering a career in business continuity.

With circa 8,000 members in more than 100 countries worldwide, working in in an estimated 3,000
organizations in private, public and third sectors, the BCI truly is the worlds leading institute for business
continuity.

The BCI stands for excellence in the business continuity profession and its certified grades provide
assurance of technical and professional competency in BC.

The BCI Partnership, through corporate membership, offers organizations the opportunity to work with the
BCI to promote best practice in business continuity and to raise their corporate profile in the global BC
arena. The BCI Corporate Partnership currently has approximately 120 Partners worldwide.

The BCI seeks to promote and facilitate the adoption of good business continuity practice worldwide by:

Raising standards in business continuity

Undertaking industry research
Driving thought leadership in business continuity
Facilitating the sharing of best practice in business continuity
Training and certifying professionals
Raising the value of the profession
Developing the business case for business continuity

Please visit www.thebci.org for further information.

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CBCI Certification
What is the CBCI Credential?
The BCI offers the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI). This entry-level of certified Membership of the BCI, can be
achieved by studying for and passing the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) Examination. This is ideal for
professionals seeking a credential in business continuity (BC). Preparation to sit the exam can be done in
the following ways:

1. Attend the Business Continuity Good Practice Guidelines Training Course (Certification Training).
This is a 3 to 5 day classroom based training course. Please click here to find a course in your region.
You can usually take a paper and pencil examination at the end of the course or you can book an
online exam which can be taken easily and securely from a location and time to suit you.

2. Sign up for CBCI Online Training, which is an online, interactive version of the BCI Good Practice
Guidelines Training Course delivered over 8 weeks (4 hours per week). All sessions are recorded
for you to play back at any time during the course. Following completion of the course you can
take the CBCI Online Examination at a location and time to suit you.

3. Self-study using BCI resources which can be purchased through the BCI Shop:
- BCIs eLearning Building Resilience A self-paced, interactive modular course.
- Mock CBCI Examination questions - 50 questions to test your knowledge
- Good Practice Guidelines 2013 Download the pdf from the BCI website

The CBCI credential offers a wide range of value-added benefits.

Professional Competency: The CBCI credential is an assurance that professionals have the full
knowledge and understanding of the theory of global good practice BC. This theory is based on the
Good Practice Guidelines the global guide to good practice in Business Continuity. It is also ideal for
professionals who wish to begin or move into a career where they must demonstrate knowledge
and understanding of good practice in BC.

Employer Recognition: The CBCI credential is an internationally respected certification. This gives
you a professional edge with employers around the world recognising the value of your
credentials. Employers also have the added benefit of having certified practitioners which can help
towards achieving alignment or certification to ISO 22301, or to demonstrate enhanced levels of
resilience which can give them the edge over their competition or help them to meet industry
regulations.

Classroom based instructor-led and online learning options: The delivery of the classroom based
and online certification training courses are provided by Approved BCI Instructors only, who are
highly experienced practitioners themselves. Our online options allow you to spread out your
learning to fit with your schedule, or to study at your pace.

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 Professional Status: The CBCI is a certified grade of BCI membership which recognises your
professional status. Upon passing the examination at the appropriate level, and subject to proof of
professional experience, you will be entitled to progress to the grade of Member of the BCI (MBCI)
or an Associate Member of the BCI (AMBCI). BCI Membership unlocks a whole suite of benefits that
help you advance in your career. See the membership levels in the pyramid below.

BCI Membership levels

Examination Overview
The 2 hour Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) examination is made up of 120 multiple choice questions. The
concepts and topic areas of the examination were derived from an analysis study of the BCIs Good Practice
Guidelines completed by BCI Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). Each question lists four possible answers, only
one of which is the correct or best possible answer. The examination is offered either in a pencil and
paper format via BCI Licenced Training partners following an official Business Continuity Good Practice
Guidelines Training Course or online through the BCIs exam partners Testrac and BVirtual Inc.

The Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) Examination is entirely based on the BCIs Good Practice Guidelines
(GPG).

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Studying for the Certificate of the BCI Examination
Preparing for the examination

The essential reference source is the BCIs Good Practice Guidelines (GPG). Candidates need to understand
the 6 professional practices of the Business Continuity Management (BCM) Lifecycle as described in the
GPG; the examination is based entirely upon these practices.

Hard copies of the GPG can be purchased from the BCI website in the shop. If you are already a member of
the BCI, you are entitled to a free digital download of the GPG 2013 as part of your membership benefits
which can be accessed through the members area of the website.

It is expected that an experienced BC professional will spend time revising the GPG to ensure thorough
knowledge and understanding. We recommend at least 20 hours of individual study.

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The subject matter addresses the six Professional Practices (PP) at Management and Technical Level that
make up the BCM Lifecycle, including:

A guide to the percentage of the current examination allocated to each Professional Practice is outlined
below:

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The CBCI Online Examination

The CBCI Online Examination is proctored via webcam by the BCIs exam delivery partners BVirtual Inc.

Please note that the minimum technology requirements for taking your CBCI Online Examination with us
are the following:

1. A well-working computer with 1 GB of RAM or higher.

2. A wired high-speed internet connection (3 Mbps). A wireless internet connection is not recommended.
3. Any webcam with 640x480 video pixel resolution (a laptop camera is acceptable).
4. Working speakers connected to the computer.
5. A microphone connected to the computer (consider a webcam with a built-in microphone).
6. Flash player version 7 or higher.
7. Browser compatibility: IE, Firefox, Chrome, Safari.

The site also uses SSL Port 443 and should be accessible for most networks. However, please check with
your IT Department that this port is accessible, particularly if your network prohibits online shopping.

You will also need to show the proctor via the webcam your government issued photo identification to
authenticate who you are. This can be a passport, a drivers licence etc.

You will be asked to rotate your webcam to show the proctor that you have no materials within view.
Please ensure you are able to move your webcam or laptop and that your surrounding area is clear.

During the online examination, you will have the opportunity to review questions left unanswered,
questions marked for review, or any questions on the examination. You may change answers when
reviewing the test items. However, once the allotted testing time has expired, or you exit the examination,
you cannot see or review those questions again.

Scheduling your examination appointment

Once you have completed payment for the examination through the BCI shop, you will be sent a purchase
confirmation email and then a further email containing a link to the CBCI Online Examination website to
schedule your exam within the next 5 working days.

Please note: Once your purchase is complete, you have 180 days to schedule your examination. This
cannot be extended and failure to take the exam within the allotted time will result in removal from the
online platform (unless there is a documented medial emergency). Candidates would need to purchase
the exam again to be registered back on the system.

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Substitutions
No substitutions may be made for the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) Examination - only the person
registering for the examination may sit for the examination.

Examination appointment rescheduling and cancellation policy

Appointments for the CBCI Online Examination can be rescheduled at any time via the CBCI Examination
Online website at no extra cost providing you are scheduling a new date before the 180 day access
expires."No-show and cancellation fees

There is no charge for rescheduling your CBCI Online Exam as you can reschedule the date and time up until
24 hours before your exam. If you schedule your exam but are unable to take it at the time it is booked for
and have not rescheduled, you are considered as a no-show. The BCI are notified of all no-shows by
BVirtual Inc and if this occurs three times and you will be charged an administration fee of $100/100/70.

Ahead of the Examination

Once you have received your email with the link to the site and your candidate log in details and in order
to minimize any disruptions you may experience during your exam, it is recommended that you test your
system prior to taking your exam. To configure your system before the exam, go to:

http://bciexamslive.onlineproctornow.com/

Click on #2 Test My System Now.

Please test your system no later than 4 hours prior to taking your exam.

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On the Exam Day
Please follow the steps below at the time of your proctored exam:

Prior to connecting for your exam

1. Ensure you are in a quiet and secure location. We do not allow exams in public locations where
others are within speaking distance or may be able to walk into the room, have access to your
computer, or where you can become distracted while taking your exam. You must be in a room
alone throughout the course of your exam.

2. We recommend that you reboot your computer if you have not already done so on the day of your
exam. This will reduce technical issues.

3. Our proctors will ask that you rotate your webcam prior to beginning your exam. Please ensure your
computer area contains only permitted items approved by your professor for the area. Any
whiteboards or bulletin boards must be cleared, erased or covered. If they are to your back they are
exempt from this rule. Any cell phones, tablets, or other communication or recording devices must
be removed from the computer area.

4. Multiple Monitors. Only one screen may be active during your exam session. If you use more than
one monitor, they need to be disconnected and turned facing away from you. Please check your
screen resolution settings that they are not set to an extended displays setting.

5. Please ensure that all applications are closed and logged out with the exception of the browser
being utilized to access the Proctor. This includes Email, chat programs, and webcams (webcams will
not open in our program if it is already open in another computer program).

6. All Remote Software applications and virtual machines should be removed as a running process.
This refers to programs that would allow for your session to be viewed, controlled, or recorded
remotely by another party or computer (VNC software, Virtual Machines, TeamViewer, etc.)

7. Please ensure you are not set up for automatic software updates as this could cause your computer
to restart during your exam, causing the exam session to be invalid.

8. Photo Identification: You will be required to show a government issued photo ID to the proctor via
webcam. (Drivers license or passport).

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Connecting to your Proctor on the day of your exam
1. Please start connecting to your proctor 5 minutes prior to your scheduled exam.

Click on or cut & paste the following URL into your web browser:
http://bciexamslive.onlineproctornow.com/

2. Click on #3, Start Your Exam

3. Once you reach our remote access landing page, please choose the proctor you reserved your
appointment with.

4. You will be instructed to click "run" on two small applets in order for us to provide online proctoring
of your exam. Please choose "run" in both cases. Please note it may take up to 45 seconds to
connect to your Proctor. Once connected, your Proctor will instruct you on the next steps to begin
your exam.

Questions, Comments and Exit survey

At the end of the online examination. Candidates will have the opportunity to comment on individual
questions. Candidates who submit comments on items will not receive a direct response of their posted
concern. However, we can assure candidates that each submittal is collected and reviewed for research
and documentation purposes.

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The Paper and Pencil Examination
For students opting to take BCI CBCI classroom based training courses offered by BCI Training Partners there
may be the opportunity to sit a paper and pencil examination rather than an online examination at the end
of the training course.

These examinations are usually booked through the Training Partner at the time of booking your training
course. Please contact [email protected] if you are unsure whether this is the case.

These examinations are not proctored by the Instructor who has delivered the training. The appointed
Proctor must ensure the test is administered under exam conditions and no material, other than the exam
paper and scoring sheet, is permitted into the exam area.

Candidates who feel these strict guidelines may have been breached should advise the BCI immediately to
ensure the integrity of their results.

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After the Examination
Receiving exam results CBCI Online exam

At the end of the online examination all candidates will receive immediate feedback on their results. These
results cannot be considered final until they have been verified by the BCI following an exam status report
from BVirtual Inc. If, for example, the virtual proctor believes the integrity of the examination has been
compromised they have the right to terminate the examination before the end of the 2 hours or report
their concerns to the BCI who has the final decision on whether the results stand or not. Final verified
results should be with candidates within 2 weeks.

Candidates who have not received notification of their verified result from the BCI within 4 weeks of the
exam should contact [email protected]

Receiving exam results Paper and Pencil examination

At the end of the paper and pencil examination all papers will be collected by the Proctor and returned to
the BCI for marking. Candidates will receive confirmation that their exam paper has reached the BCI
Central Office for marking and should expect to receive their results within 3 weeks of this date.

CBCI Certificate
Successful candidates will be contacted by the BCI Membership Department with their score, membership
login details and a pdf CBCI certificate. As of January 2017 all CBCI certificates will be sent as electronic
versions only. If you wish to receive a printed copy please contact [email protected] for printing
and shipping quotes.

Understanding your score

The result the candidates receive indicates whether they have Passed, Passed with Merit or Failed the
exam.
A score of between 70% and 84% is needed to Pass and between 85% and 100% to Pass with Merit.

How the Passing Score Was Set

Passing scores were determined through a passing point study, using the modified - Angoff method carried
out by the BCI. The Angoff method is a commonly used criterion referenced passing point technique in the
credentialing industry.

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Retaking the online exam

Candidates who fail the exam can retake the exam after 30 days have elapsed from the first attempt date.
There is a 160, $250, 220 charge for any subsequent attempts.

CBCI Credential Maintenance Fee

Candidates who pass the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) Examination but who are not eligible or choose not
to progress to a higher grade of Membership will automatically become a certified member of the BCI for
as long as the CBCI credential is valid up to a maximum of 3 years. During this time access to the range
of membership benefits is granted and an annual maintenance fee of $173/154/120 per annum (as at
May 2017 visit http://www.bcifiles.com/latestfees.pdf for latest fees) will be due. At the end of the 3
year period you will be required to re-sit the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) Examination to maintain your
CBCI membership credential.

Score dismissal

On rare occasions, circumstances may render examination scores invalid. The BCI reserves the right to
cancel or withhold scores if there is adequate reason to question the validity of the scores.

Reasons may include:

A candidate who does not have positive identification; uses unauthorized notes, books or papers; is
suspected of giving or receiving help; removes notes from the examination room; or who does not follow
the testing procedures. In such circumstances, candidates will be expected to cooperate in an
investigation of their scores. Unlike cases of individual candidate misconduct, occasionally testing
irregularities occur that affect a group of test takers. Such problems include, without limitation,
administrative errors, defective equipment or materials, improper access to test content and/or the
unauthorized general availability of test content, as well as, other disruptions of test administrations (e.g.
natural disasters and other emergencies).

When group testing irregularities occur, the BCI in partnership with BVirtual Inc and Testrac will conduct
an investigation. Based on the information, the BCI may decide not to score the test or to cancel the test
score.
When it is appropriate to do so, the BCI will arrange to give affected test takers the opportunity to take
the test again as soon as possible, without charge.

Affected test takers will be notified of the reasons for the cancellation and their options for retaking the
test. The appeal process does not apply to group testing irregularities.

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Revocation of the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) credential

The BCI has the right to revoke any Certificate of the BCI if the candidate is found to have engaged in any
of the following:
Misrepresentation with the intent to deceive in the application process
Divulging examination content
False representation (either misrepresenting yourself or attempting to take the examination for
someone else)
Fraud in the certification renewal process
Cheating on the certification examination

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Examination Appeals Policy

It is the policy of BCI that each examination candidate shall have the ability to challenge a failing score if a
candidate feels there was an error in electronic scoring.

The fee for processing this challenge is typically $75/70/50 or equivalent, payable to the BCI at the time
of the submission of the challenge. No challenge will be processed without the fee.

Upon receipt of a request for a rescore or hand score, the candidates computerized test record is pulled
from the examination file. First it is visually reviewed for any obvious irregularities that may have affected
the initial scoring. Then it is rescored on the computer. That rescore is compared to the score initially
reported to the candidate to verify that the initial score was accurately downloaded and reported. Lastly,
the candidates record is manually compared against a master key.

If the outcome of the rescore is the granting of a Pass or Pass with Merit then the fee will be refunded
to the candidate. If the candidate is still deemed to have failed and he/she is not satisfied with the
response from the BCI, he or she may submit a written statement of exactly what they are challenging and
their supporting rationale for the challenge. This will be submitted to the Chief Examiner for a final
decision.

Candidates who are denied eligibility to take the examination for reasons other than failure to provide
adequate ID, or feel there is some other basis for appeal, should submit a detailed and comprehensive
explanation of the rationale for the appeal in writing to the BCI, no later than seven (7) days after the date
of the score notification. No appeals will be processed without the fee. The BCI Chief Examiner will review
the appeal documentation and will notify the candidate of their decision within 90 days.

The decision of the BCI Chief Examiner is final. If it is determined that the candidate was wrongly denied
admission to the exam, the candidate will be permitted to immediately make an appointment to retake
the exam.

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After the examination auditing of eligibility

For those successful candidates who pass the examination and wish to proceed to the higher level of
AMBCI it is the BCIs policy to undertake an audit of between 5 and 10 percent of all applicants for
confirmation of eligibility. These audits will include taking references, contacting employers and
educational establishments.

Successful candidates who wish to proceed to MBCI will have references taken up and academic
achievements verified. MBCI applicants will also need to submit a further application form for scored
assessment to demonstrate practical application of their knowledge. The scored assessment process may
take up to an additional 8 weeks before MBCI can be awarded.

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Disclaimer
Passing the Certificate of the BCI (CBCI) Examination demonstrates currency of knowledge in good BC
practice as described in the Good Practice Guidelines (GPG).

It has never been the purpose of the Business Continuity Institute to define the requirements for the
Certificate of the Business Continuity Institute (CBCI) credential does not confer any academic degree, legal
qualifications, guarantee of experience or performance, privilege or licence to practise business continuity.

Important Contact Information

BCI Central Office
10 11 Southview Park
Marsack Street
Caversham
Berkshire
RG4 5AF
UK
Tel: +44 (0) 118 947 8215
Email: [email protected]

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 Business Continuity Institute
10-11 Southview Park, Marsack Street,
Caversham, Berkshire, UK, RG4 5AF

[email protected]
www.thebci.org

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