We’ve seen a lot of how powerful nature can be recently. It can cause massive damage, disrupt daily business operations and power outages can waste a lot of your time and try your patience. When nature comes knocking you can protect yourself in the case of emergencies by having a solid business continuity plan in place, so you’re well placed for disaster recovery.
There are many elements in a business continuity plan – strategizing, preparation, training and review. You don’t just set it up and leave it. That would be like checking your flashlight batteries after the lights have gone out. You need to be proactive, so you’re all set before a problem hits.
Be Prepared
You may be prepared for small disasters at home, with a first aid kit, flashlights and batteries in a cupboard containing items and supplies for emergencies. It’s a bit more complicated for a business. To survive a serious problem, like a fire or flood, it’s not just a matter of buying in a few additional supplies. You’ll need to think through your response procedures and how you can move forward while keeping your core operations active. You’ll also need to think about communications, both with your staff and your clients.
Securing Your Business Data
The loss of business data can be more dangerous to a business than anything else, including the loss of premises. You can set up shop elsewhere, fix the roof and rebuild walls. It’s a lot more difficult to replace data that’s been built up over months or years. Think of it as your company history: data on your clients and contacts, finances, invoices, leads and prospects. It can take a lot of time and work to restore even some of it, and without a business continuity plan and disaster recovery solution (BDR) some might be lost forever.
It’s absolutely essential to have a strong backup solution for your IT infrastructure. Saving some of your more vital documents to a few portable flash drives isn’t nearly enough. You should be able to guarantee that your data is safe and a BDR is operating effectively. A reliable backup solution will save everything you tell it to, on a regular basis, and store it safely offsite.
Test Often
There’s no point in implementing a business continuity plan unless you test it often. It may seem like extra work but it’s worth it to make sure your disaster defenses are solid.
Nobody can predict the future but you can still anticipate problems and protect yourself against losing everything. Do you need help to implement a business continuity plan or BDR? Call Quikteks at (973) 882-4644 for a review of your business needs and information on preparing yourself for emergencies.