Herstelplaybooks

Herstelplaybooks are predefined, structured procedures that guide organizations in restoring systems, services, and operations after a disruption. They aim to standardize response, reduce recovery time, and minimize data loss by outlining roles, triggers, and step-by-step actions for common restoration scenarios. The term is used in IT, industrial operations, and business continuity contexts, and is closely related to runbooks and disaster recovery materials, with herstel reflecting recovery in Dutch-language usage.

Core elements typically include objective and scope, assigned roles and contact lists, escalation paths, decision checkpoints, and modular restoration steps. They also cover verification criteria, communication templates for stakeholders, and post-recovery review processes. Common focus areas include data restoration, service failover, activation of alternate facilities, supplier continuity, and coordination across teams during the recovery effort.

Development and governance involve cross-functional teams from IT, security, operations, and business units, aligned with resilience frameworks such as ISO 22301, ITIL, and NIST SP 800-34. Regular testing, including tabletop exercises and simulations, helps ensure accuracy and currency. After incidents, lessons learned feed into updates to the playbooks and adjustments to recovery targets and procedures.

Adoption of herstelplaybooks supports faster decision making, clearer responsibilities, and better coordination during recovery. Challenges include keeping content up to date, aligning automation with written procedures, and managing complexity in multi-site or multi-vendor environments. See also incident response, disaster recovery, and business continuity planning.