Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Planning – Are You Protecting Your Business?

More than 70% of businesses experience a data loss each year due to technical or human error. This results in an average revenue loss of $4,700, not taking into account losses due to missed business opportunities or natural disasters. Faulkner Information Services found that 50% of companies that lose their data due to disasters go out of business within 24 months, while the U.S. Bureau of Labor indicates that 93% are out of business within five years.

If a business is able to recover after a data loss, there can be further reaching consequences. For example you may lose the trust of your customers, who then begin considering your competitors. Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning are essential to protecting the life of your business.

What’s the Difference Between “Disaster Recovery” and “Business Continuity” Planning?

While most think of Disaster Recovery Planning in regards to natural disasters, Business Continuity Planning also addresses other issues which result in a data loss. Essential records are not only stored in your systems; if an executive in your business were suddenly unavailable, would you have access to their key contacts, business appointments, and projects in-progress? Business Continuity Planning includes ensuring these types of data are recorded and accessible.

Implementing Your Plan

Implementing a Business Continuity Plan can seem a daunting task, requiring you to evaluate every function of your business, how to back-up your information and efficiently recover it. For small businesses it can be cost prohibitive to execute the plan themselves, being less likely to have a full time IT staff. For these businesses it is often less expensive to implement a plan utilizing a Managed Service Provider, who have the resources available and the expertise to evaluate your systems and strategize the most efficient recovery.

3D Corporation offers risk assessments, security solutions and multiple data backup options which can be customized to meet your business needs and begin the process of creating a Business Continuity Plan. Please visit our website at http://www.3dcorp.us/, email us at info@3dcorp.us, or call us at (360) 671-4906 for more information.

References: HP Business Disaster Recovery, Information Security Systems, CSO Security and Risk, Faulkner Information Services