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Why your small business needs a disaster recovery plan

Running a small business can leave you feeling as though there aren't enough hours in the day, and that's on a good day. What happens when disaster strikes? Suddenly, you need to keep everything ticking over and recover from any potential shutdowns caused by the disaster.

If you're unsure where to start when it comes to implementing a disaster recovery plan, or if you're unsure whether you need to have a plan in the first place, we've compiled some tips to help you out.

What is a disaster recovery plan?

Think of it as planning ahead in case the worst should happen. How would you protect your business and its assets if your area were to get flooded, for example? And how would you recover the business so you could keep trading once the floodwater had receded? All the planning that takes place for these instances are what constitutes disaster recovery plans.

Let's take a look at an example plan in more detail, so you can start to see all the areas it needs to cover before it can be a success.

What should be included in the plan?

Here is a brief layout of what a disaster recovery plan could look like and what you may wish to include in it.

  • Objectives - what is the plan for? Think of this in terms of the disaster to be covered, for example, surface flooding leading to loss of access to your premises for a week would look different to a plan for fire damage where the premises are completely destroyed. Are you planning on continuance of service, taking a break from service, or closing the business altogether?
  • Scope - what services and locations will be covered by the plan? It may be possible to move your operations into a work-from-home model until you can find a new location; however, that might not be possible if you're manufacturing items. Begin by considering the areas of your business that fall within the scope of the plan.
  • Internal contacts - who will need to be told within your business? Are there multiple employees who need to be kept informed of the plan? Who will be keeping them informed and how?
  • External contacts - do you need to tell certain customers or suppliers? Think about the effects on your supply chain and how they may need to plan around your disaster.
  • Incident response - which type of events will trigger the disaster recovery plan? Some incidents may have similar outcomes, meaning one plan can cover multiple situations; however, you may still need to address nuances in each situation to ensure they are not unique.
  • Disaster recovery procedures - what will you need to do for each type of event? Consider all the steps required for your business to recover from the disaster. Would you need new premises? Or new equipment? How long after the disaster would you need to start trading again?
  • Alternative work location - where will you work if you can't get access to your usual workplace? Do you have alternative premises lined up, or would you move to a work-from-home model?
  • Insurance policies - who are you insured with, what are your policy numbers, and which number should you call following the disaster?
  • Review - how often should your plan be reviewed, and do you need to check that it works?

This list isn't a one-size-fits-all, and you may want to add other items to it depending on the nature of your business. For example, if you run a mobile business, you may need to include alternate transport arrangements for if your vehicle is stolen.

Who needs a disaster recovery plan?

You may think that only large companies need disaster recovery plans, but they can be even more important for smaller businesses.

Large companies will usually have enough of a financial buffer to deal with any costly disasters, such as having a disaster recovery fund to finance new equipment before the insurance pays out. Whereas, smaller firms are less likely to have the same level of working capital to recover from any disasters.

A disaster recovery plan can give you peace of mind in the same way that an insurance policy can, as you'll know what needs to happen and when.

Protect your data - your business depends on it

If any of your business is conducted online - this could be email communication, order processing, or invoicing - you can't afford to lose access to your data. This could be due to human error, a cyber attack, a natural disaster or any other reason; data loss can put your business at risk, and it can also be costly to correct.

Tips to protect your data include:

  • Identifying your essentials
    • Check your phone, laptop, PC and tablet for all the information you couldn't operate without, should anything happen.
  • Backing up all your data, not just the essentials
    • Make sure you regularly back up your essential information to a storage system that's separate from your computer, and possibly in a separate location from your workplace. This way, if you can no longer access your regular workplace, you can still access your essential information.
    • By backing up all your data, you can ensure nothing is incorrectly dismissed as unessential.
  • Consider using of the cloud
    • With most providers, you'll get a limited amount of space for free, with the option to pay and upgrade to get a larger allowance. This means you can access all your data from anywhere.
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