WHAT IS DISASTER RECOVERY AND HOW DOES IT WORK?
Disaster recovery is just what it sounds like – creating a detailed, thorough plan for your organization to recover and get back to business in the event of an emergency.
This can be anything from a natural disaster like a fire or flood to a ransomware attack that holds all of your company’s data hostage until you pay the perpetrators.
Disaster recovery plans are far more involved than many business owners may expect. It’s not simply “if something happens, we’ll all go home until IT fixes the problem”.
Plans need to go over crucial business applications, time to recovery targets, how much past work the business can live without (if any), who is responsible for what steps, how long your business can afford to be down, and much more.
The major goals of a disaster recovery plan are to avoid confusion and frustration when an emergency happens and to get you back to business as quickly as possible with minimal losses.
WHY IS DISASTER RECOVERY IMPORTANT FOR BUSINESS?
An unexpected disaster is nearly inevitable for the modern business. Fires, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, severe storms, and earthquakes are common throughout the country. Businesses may carry insurance for these, but insurance will do nothing to get your business operational again.
– Download the Natural Disaster Survival Guide –
In addition to Mother Nature, companies also have to worry about cyber attacks, data breaches, malware, theft, disgruntled employees, data loss, and a host of other threats. It’s enough to cause any business owner to lose sleep!
Without a plan to handle an emergency, it can be absolute chaos when one hits and result in lost time, money, customers, and data. A lack of preparation is the root cause of business’ troubles (and hope definitely doesn’t count as an effective plan).
So of course, the easy solution is disaster recovery preparedness! Having a plan that accounts for any situation will help ease your fears and ensure no emergency ever destroys your business.
Who is responsible for the disaster recovery plan?
Most often, the plan is created in conjunction with multiple team members and vendors. The business owner(s) and executive team will need to be involved, along with IT, any critical vendors, and stakeholders.
While they may not be directly involved in creating the plan, your entire team should be aware of it. Everyone needs to know their part if and when an emergency happens. This will prevent confusion, panic, or a team member inadvertently causing more damage.
