Disaster - Are You Like Noah, Or an Ostrich?

As I sit here here this morning with hot coffee in hand, gazing out the window at my wind- and flood-stricken yard resulting from the "NorEaster of 2009," I cannot help but to reflect on the idea of disaster preparedness. Having personally experienced many such storms, including two major hurricanes, I am still amazed at how life can become so completely discombobulated in such a short order. I am reminded yet once again how we take our everyday routines and conveniences for granted. The simple act of getting out of my neighborhood, for instance, is normally very simple, and very quick. But with today's storm, all bridges in and out of my hamlet of Great Bridge are closed, and so egress is extremely arduous. Not only that, the question looms: what happens when we lose power? How long will it be out? How disruptive will that be?

After 40 years of life, I have come to a very simple conclusion: these things happen. Accidents happen. Natural disasters happen. Major life disruptions happen. And all of them are beyond our control, or we would prevent them, right? And typically we say "it won't happen to me!" I've said that myself many times in the past, just to be reminded yet again this past Thursday when I set my own kitchen on fire. It was a total accident, but it happened. I never would have expected to start a fire in my kitchen, but thank God I was sensible enough to listen to the experts when they said to keep fire extinguishers in your house - just in case. Because of that, I was able to greatly limit our damage, and prevent the house from burning down.

I think also about Noah of the Bible who God told to build an ark because the flood was coming. Noah could have easily said "Why should I do that? It has never rained before, so why in the world would I waste my time and resources building an ark?" But he did. He prepared. He listened to God - saved his family - and the rest is history.

So I guess the question is this: we know that disasters affect each and everyone of our lives - both personally and professionally - but have we adequately prepared? What if you or your team could not get into the office for an extended period of time? Could they still access your critical business systems and be productive? If you had a fire or flood in your building, would mission-critical business data be lost forever? Is it securely and remotely backed up? Or do you still have the preponderance of your documents and files in paper or non-digital format? If it were digitized, not only could you back it up redundantly across multiple states, but your team could access the data remotely. Or they could telecommute from "higher ground" for an extended period if necessary, with minimal business interruptions, and in some cases, in safer environments.

Many companies today, particularly smaller companies, are reluctant to make the necessary investment required to "go digital" and protect their business assets. The perceived costs involved, and the attitude that "It won't happen to us" can stymie common sense and good judgment. But the truth is that the loss of time, money and opportunity to rebuild a damaged infrastructure is substantially greater than the managed cost of adequate preparation. Remember, things DO happen. Just ask the folks who went through hurricane Katrina. Will you be ready?

Unity Business Systems delivers Agile ECM (Enterprise Content Management) solutions without disrupting the way you work. Rapid deployment. Streamlined development. Central control over standards, security and auditing, while maintaining flexibility to service individual business units. We make IT easy! for your enterprise to compete and succeed in today's rapidly changing business environment.

Does Your Business Have a Business Continuity Plan?

Disaster can strike at anytime and in most cases with little or no warning. While we may be able to predict certain weather systems or anticipate general problems such as power outages, for the most part it is almost impossible to know when a disaster will strike. To protect your clients and your business in the event of an emergency you must cover all the basics before disaster strikes. Both managed service providers and the companies they support should have a business continuity plan (BCP) as well as a disaster recovery plan to contain the damage that results from man made or natural disasters. Here we discuss the need for such a plan and what you can do to ensure your business stays up and running following an emergency.

Understand the need- Many companies are so busy in the here and now they fail to think about the "what ifs" that could be right around the corner. When the sun is shining brightly and everything is working in tip top form, it is easy to overlook the need for a business continuity plan. Unfortunately if you wait until you need a plan to devise a plan it will be too late. A business continuity plan will outline the steps your company will take immediately after a disaster takes place. This plan will determine how you will continue operations as well as recover and restore any data that was compromised. Without a plan of action for the minutes, hours and days immediately following a disaster, your business will likely not survive.

Work with your managed service provider- Managed service providers offer many services that are vital to your day-to-day operations. A good managed service provider will offer suggestions and advice on how to develop your BCP and what services they can provide in the event of a disaster. Getting your business up and running requires the resumption of communications, data, applications and hardware which is more than likely supported by your managed service provider.

Develop, test and update your BCP- Once you have identified your immediate needs during or after an emergency you can develop your BCP with information provided by your managed service provider. Writing a BCP is just the first step. Your entire staff must be prepared for a disaster and trained accordingly. Mandatory training and testing is needed to spot weaknesses in the plan. Once you feel your plan is effective and everyone is prepared for a disaster, don't fall into a false sense of security. Your BCP should be routinely tested and updated to reflect your current operating systems.

Disaster recovery plans and business continuity plans are necessary if you want your business and company to make it through any number of natural or man made disasters. By working closely with your managed service provider you can rest assured that all your bases are covered when disaster strikes.