Building a Solid Disaster Recovery Strategy: Take These Steps

Many businesses don’t realize the importance of a disaster recovery plan. Today, proactively developing a plan is critical to keep your data safe in an increasingly connected world. For businesses who are considering a plan, but don’t know where to start, here are five steps to help you get going!

1. Get Your Organization to “Buy-In” – Businesses often get so wrapped up in day-to-day revenue generating activities that they either put in a minimal plan or worse, put disaster planning on the back-burner. It’s important to understand the risks associated with not having a comprehensive plan and getting the decision makers in your organization up to speed on the risks and on-board with a solution!
2. Proactively Plan – Unfortunately, you never know when disaster may strike, whether it’s a fire, flood, or even human error – any of which can shut you down. While unexpected events can’t be predicted, taking a proactive approach to planning can mitigate risks. Conduct a business impact analysis and determine the best course of action or work with a Managed IT Services provider who can conduct a risk assessment.
3. Protect Your Technology Investment – The time to plan for a disaster is before it strikes. Consider how dependent your business is on its systems and how it relies on the data stored and processed through your IT equipment. List all IT assets, classify applications and data according to critical need and how much downtime is affordable. Plan a data recovery backup plan – that means the frequency of backups and where data will be stored offsite.
4. Update Your Plan – As technology and business situations change your needs will evolve. Your disaster recovery plan is a living document. It should be thoroughly documented and communicated to your recovery team. You should update your plan at least annually.
5. Test Regularly – Your needs will evolve and new processes, fluctuations in business and equipment changes need to be reflected in your plan. Because it’s an active document, test your disaster recovery plan routinely to make sure it’s still relevant.

While you hope you never need a disaster recovery plan, you don’t want to be without one. According to some studies, up to 90% of businesses without a plan will ultimately fail. Want to learn more? Contact us today to learn about additional steps you can take to protect your business if disaster strikes.