The continuing rise in the widespread use of emails as a legitimate business communication channel and the use of the internet and computers in general, have led the loss of IT and Communication systems to become one of the main business continuity risks.
How many emails do you send or receive in a day?
Could your staff do their jobs or could your organisation function properly if your computers weren’t working, your emails stopped or worst still the server that holds the information wasn’t available due to failure or network issues.
The disruption caused by loss of emails can be immense, especially when back up facilities are not in place or are totally inadequate. Many firms will use a back up facility or process of some kind and never actually test it, meaning that when and if the worst does happen, they could realise that their systems do not work and therefore they could have lost everything.
The potential issues to organisations encompasses many different parameters such as
- Managed switches
- UPS power supplies
- Data back-up
- VOIP telephony
- Servers
- Server room cooling
All companies should consider what they might do when things don’t go to plan and it is worth considering the six main business risks detailed below and consider how they would deal with the potential outcome.
- Loss of staff (school closures, injury, transport problems)
- Loss of systems (IT and communications)
- Loss of utilities e.g. water, gas or electricity
- Loss of or access to premises
- Loss of key suppliers
- Disruption to transport
Once a thorough evaluation of the potential risks are undertaken via a “what if” scenario” (which can be quite extreme and far reaching from our experience) some internal procedures or back-up plans can be fairly straight forward and can be documented in a business continuity plan.
With modern technology evolving all of the time, backup solutions are now far more affordable, quick and effortless than only a few years ago, so if you have decided against one in the past because you were worried about the cost or disruption then it really is time to change your view.
Rather than implementing a system yourself, it can often be a good idea to get an outside specialist to come in and review your current situation and propose some potential solutions. Although you might end up paying slightly more, you will be leaving it to the professionals which can make the process far simpler and also remove the risk that could be there if you decided to do it yourself.
A good data and communications company can assist with all aspects of the data, communications and computer room potential issues so if you think you need some help or assistance with back-up equipment or redundancy you should really get in touch with someone to speak to about your needs.