The case for backup and disaster recovery planning is straightforward: most small businesses cannot survive even one data breach, yet security experts warn us that becoming a victim of cybercrime is not a matter of “if,” but “when. It’s hard to imagine a more compelling case for disaster recovery planning than this reality, yet 68% of small businesses have no written disaster recovery plan at all. Among those that have them, many are dated or inadequate. So, you’ll not only be able to sleep better at night with a plan in place, you’ll also be ahead of the pack – and more prepared than most of your competitors for disasters natural and manmade alike.
Get help from experts that spend their days helping companies likes yours. Professionals like those on our team can deliver turnkey expertise to your company, including:
Don’t get caught in the data-backup-only trap! Many firms use cloud-based solutions for offsite data storage and backup but have not mapped out how they would access that data to restore – or even to maintain – operations during an extended on-site outage due to an unforeseen event. By focusing on what you need for recovery, your backup needs will become clear.
Similarly, if your firm leverages cloud communications and other IT-as-a-service solutions for as much of its operations as possible (and it should … check out Step 4), your focus may need to lean more heavily toward business continuity needs and solutions like SD-WAN with failover, network redundancy and diversification options. You might, for example, be best served by implementing a fixed wireless solution that augments your wireline or fiber bandwidth solution during normal operations, but can become your lifeline when those traditional connections fail.
In either case, your plan should focus first on what your company would need if its current operations or infrastructure failed – for any reason – and determine your backup needs from there.
Today, external threats to your business are greater in both scope and scale than they have ever been. Storms are more powerful and more frequent, as are floods, mudslides and wildfires. And on the tech front, cyberthreats are evolving at hyper speed.
In order to combat these challenges, you need infrastructure and technology services that evolve as fast as these threats. This means leveraging cloud and managed IT services as much as possible, so an on-site outage doesn’t take down your company’s ability to operate. These services deliver protection to your company on two fronts:
Communications, file storage, collaboration, invoicing and accounting records, CRMs, project management and other mission-critical solutions all can be sourced from cloud-based providers that can help you weather any storm that comes your way.
Be sure to check out these services when you’re evaluating your backup and recovery needs. You’ll find that many of your business continuity and disaster recovery challenges can be solved with some simple changes in how you source your solutions.
Ready to take the next step? PK Tech can help. If you have questions about how to perform a successful disaster recovery, or how to effectively protect your business, we’re here to help. To contact PK Tech, click here.
[SOURCE: Sandler Partners]