Preparing for a hurricane is not just for homes and families; businesses need to prepare too. Disruptions from a hurricane can last several days or even weeks, potentially causing significant losses and downtime for unprepared businesses. As we enter hurricane season, it's crucial to prioritize the continuity of business operations. This includes safeguarding your vital IT networks and ensuring you have robust system backups in place. Here is a comprehensive checklist to help your business prepare.
1. Create a Business Continuity Plan
Every moment counts. A Business Continuity Plan (BCP) outlines the procedures and instructions an organization must follow in the face of disaster. It covers business processes, assets, human resources, business partners, and more.
Review your BCP, ensure it is current, and make any necessary updates.
Ensure all employees are aware of the plan and their role in it.
Test your BCP and make any necessary adjustments.
Think it won’t cost much for business to be down for a few days after a disaster? See how much downtime could cost you.
2. Safeguard Your IT Networks
Preventing damage to your IT network infrastructure is vital during a hurricane so that you can get back to business faster than your competition.
Review and fortify your physical network infrastructure. This might mean strengthening server rooms against potential flooding or moving equipment to safer locations if necessary.
Have a plan in place for rapidly shutting down and securing equipment in case of a sudden disaster.
Test your failover to a secondary site to ensure minimal downtime.
3. Establish and Test System Backups
Protecting your data is crucial. This involves regular backups and storing data securely off-site or in the cloud, so your business can continue running no matter what.
Ensure you have automated, regular backups scheduled for all critical systems.
Consider using a cloud-based service for backups if you don't already. These services offer the advantage of geographically dispersed data centers, which can keep your data safe even if your region is affected by a disaster.
Regularly test the restoration of your backups. It's important to not just have backups but to know they can be successfully restored.
4. Prepare Your Communications
During a disaster, it's important to have a communication plan in place to keep in touch with your team and customers.
Set up emergency communication methods for internal team communication, such as group chat tools or SMS service.
Prepare templates for communication with customers during and after the event, so they can be quickly customized and sent out when needed.
5. Protect Other Technology Assets
It's also critical to safeguard other tech assets, like workstations, laptops, and mobile devices.
Ensure all devices are backed up regularly and can be remotely wiped if lost or stolen.
Have a plan for quickly evacuating or securing devices if the office needs to be evacuated.
6. Review Your Insurance Coverage
Ensure your insurance policies cover the types of damage your business could suffer during a hurricane.
Confirm your insurance includes coverage for business interruption and property damage.
If your business depends heavily on technology, consider coverage for electronic data loss.
By following these steps, your business can reduce the impact of a hurricane or other natural disaster. Remember, preparation is the key to a swift recovery and the continued success of your business.
If you’re not certain whether your business data will survive, your I.T. team is here.
