Disaster Recovery, Are you ready?

One of the fundamental questions every business must ask themselves, is that in the event of a disaster, how will they recover? Most of you will already have a plan in place to protect valuable data and minimise damage to the company, but could you do more?

What should you maybe reconsider?

Is it up to date?

A key step to never overlook is to always re-evaluate your existing policies and strategies on a regular basis, to see if it still matches the businesses needs and requirements. For instance a disaster recovery plan may have directed much of its effort into preserving a system or service that is no longer the pre-dominant feature of the business. It may also be using out-dated technology or techniques which could mean you are missing out on potential services that could add real security to the business.

Have you linked the Disaster Recovery plan with all aspects of the business?

In order to preserve as much business function as possible, it is important to integrate your disaster recovery plan into all elements of your business. The level of cover you wish to have on each service/product will of course come down to your priority systems and your own risk assessment, but a certain level to cover most traditional issues is advisable.

When it comes to preserving your business, cost should not be the main concern, as your ability to recover from a disaster will save you substantial amounts of business and income, and also preserve your credibility. Linking your IT systems for instance to a central management point, as well as storing your data there with offsite backup capabilities, will ensure your business continues unabated in the event of a full outage, preserving income and proves your business is robust to your customers.

How often do you test your Disaster Recovery plan?

The Disaster Recovery plan will need to be tested on a regular basis, to ensure that the recovery process can be completed efficiently and to schedule. Despite the strain this can put on some departments, especially your IT, it is important to know that your plan is plausible in practice and doesn’t have any major flaws. It is also imperative that each individual knows his/her responsibilities during the Disaster Recovery process, as any strategy is only as strong as its weakest link.

Do you know about new IT advances?

As IT has become vital to manage information kept such as business records and customer information, the need to explore new technological advances for disaster recovery has become ever more prominent. This has led to the utilisation and advances in the Cloud which gives companies the ability to store and run their services offsite, splitting up their resources, so that one disaster won’t compromise their entire system.

Have you consulted outside professionals for impartial advice?

Many companies develop disaster recovery plans without knowing how new technology could help them, or don’t have specialists to assess niche parts of theirs systems. Often the best way to assess your Disaster recovery plan is to consult an outside source who can both offer new ideas, as well as give a more unbiased opinion on how your current plan operates. If you need professional advice on how to setup your disaster recovery plan, or you would like an impartial party to assess your disaster recovery system, why not try giving Southbank IT a call?