What would you do if your IT systems crashed without warning?
This is a question British Airways found themselves answering last month when 75,000 passengers were left stranded over the Bank Holiday weekend.
What would you do if your IT systems crashed without warning? This is a question British Airways found themselves answering last month, when 75,000 passengers were left stranded over the Bank Holiday weekend.
Whilst you cannot predict freak incidents, you can protect your systems by considering and creating a plan in advance.
Be pro-active
A high percentage of disasters result in the failure of an organisation permanently. A good plan and simple steps can make a difference in safeguarding your organisation.
Talk to your IT resource
Sit down with an IT engineer and have a frank discussion. Are there any risks with the current setup? Can these be reduced?
Create a disaster recovery plan
Create a list of potential risks; from staff illness, through to destruction by fire. No problem is too big or small to be considered. Have key contacts and critical information readily available such as phone numbers of support providers.
Consider the wider business
How long can your business afford not to be operational? You need to consider anything linked to your power supply, i.e. phones, computers and machinery. Consider using cloud backup systems, which allow you to run everything remotely, so you can get running quickly.
Keep it simple
Typically small changes may make a big difference, like regular backups, software updates, as well as being cost effective.
Test and review
Remember to be realistic with recovery timescales for getting up and running. Test and improve your plan over time.
Communicate
Recovering from a disaster can take much longer if overall communication isn’t managed. Create a plan, ensure everyone in your team is aware of it and your customers are communicated to in the correct way.
If you are looking for help on creating a disaster recovery plan, Contact Piran Technologies on 01209 340120.