Do you have a disaster recovery plan in place? And if so, when was the last time you reviewed and tested it? It’s crucial to your business to have robust failsafe options in the event of any disaster, and yet it’s surprising how many don’t. Here’s why you need the security and peace of mind of an up-to-date disaster recovery plan.

Disaster recovery planning is essential

What is a disaster recovery plan?

A disaster recovery plan is basically the review of your IT and data systems, and the vendors that supply them, to ensure that if one aspect fails, your business can continue. A disaster recovery plan should be part of your overall business continuity plan, and clearly detail the measures you should follow during the fallout from any disaster that occurs.

How often should a disaster recovery plan be reviewed?

If all factors stay the same, annually is recommended for reviewing disaster recovery measures. However, if business-changes have occurred then the plan needs to be reviewed without delay. How many businesses have had to adapt and alter their operational model lately? As organisations utilise IT even more, not least due to lockdown measures, perhaps migrating to cloud-based systems and enabling staff to work from home, then the disaster recovery plans should be altered accordingly to keep current and relevant to the business model. Without review, any plan for recovery is effectively useless.

Whose job is it?

Disaster recovery planning is no one’s favourite job; it takes time, thought and effort to put together and build, but also administer and test for all scenarios. All relevant staff for each measure also need to be fully briefed on what to do in the event of disasters and how to continue their area of service.

It makes sense for someone who knows your IT systems, products, devices and infrastructure to lead on your disaster planning, but there’s a communication’s element too and you could say that it’s everyone’s responsibility to be involved and aware. It might be one person’s job to take on the planning, but the whole company will suffer if something goes wrong.

How much is it about IT?

A business’s IT infrastructure is more or less the same as saying ‘business infrastructure’ nowadays. Your business data, and that of your customers, are likely to be held electronically, a significant proportion of your functions are likely to be automated, and your staff probably use many devices, such as phones and laptops, to access systems.

More than ever, disaster recovery planning is about your business’s IT infrastructure, so aspects such as, data security, backup, integrity of cloud applications and working order and security of devices are critical; and that’s before you consider natural disasters such as fires and floods.

Who can help?

If you have professional IT support for your company, or technical help, they are a good place to start. Many IT support providers offer disaster recovery as part of their service to you, but check as disaster recovery is not the same as having the plan in place to start with.

It makes sense for professional IT technicians to help you with disaster recovery planning. They are likely to know the detail of your operation in the technical ways necessary for the right measure to be put in place in the event your office (which may also be remotely in employees’ homes) suffers mishap.

From failing hardware to inadequate data and cybersecurity, to floods and tornadoes, disaster planning will enable your business to address all the pressure points of its operation and make them robust in the event of any disaster-type.

They say that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and this applies to your operation, however with failsafe disaster recovery planning in place you’ll have the ease of knowing that no matter what happens, you have every link covered and made the strongest it can possibly be.

CloseComment or share
  • Facebook logo
  • Instagram logo
  • LinkedIn logo
  • Medium logo
  • Twitter logo

< Read more articles on our IT Academy