Disaster Recovery Tip #28

Reap the benefits.

We talk every week about the importance of creating a comprehensive and actionable recovery plan. It will come as no surprise, that most plans are built with the worst-case-scenario in mind. But the reality is that most business interruptions are not major “smoking hole” events. Employee illness, transit strikes, religious holidays or even scheduled events like the recent G20 in Toronto are just a few examples of the many things that can keep people out of work throughout the year.

A comprehensive recovery plan takes these “minor” interruptions into account. For example, if you have a large group of employees out of town for a tradeshow, who will function as their backup? What’s the impact on your customers? How will external audiences be notified? What’s the procedure for handling increased workload? Is your current process efficient? You back up your data every night, but have you made the same accommodations for your people?

A robust recovery plan will help you address these concerns throughout the year.

Disaster Recovery Tip #19

Diversify your supply chain.

During a large-scale regional event, your business may experience delays in the receipt of goods and services. To avoid diminished efficiency, develop a list of redundant vendors for key supplies. For example, if your internet provider experiences an extended outage, you will want to have other options ready to go immediately (Cable, DSL, Air Cards, etc). Make arrangements with “backup” suppliers and vendors to obtain resources needed to facilitate critical operations and key functions.