Four Phases to Ensure Your Business is Up and Running ASAP After an Outage

A disaster recovery plan includes a detailed documented process for a company’s data recovery strategy and procedures that are tailored to the needs of your company that are designed to protect your business from any type of serious and expensive disaster. 

At TechBldrs, our disaster recovery services guarantee faster recovery and lower downtime for your company, in the event of a manmade or natural disaster. Our disaster recovery process can help you return essential applications to production faster. Most large corporations rely on these types of disaster recovery services. However, these services are more important for small and medium-sized businesses that do not have the expertise or resources to create an effective disaster recovery plan. 

The four phases of a disaster recovery plan includes:

• Performing a business impact analysis 
• Identifying data types and locations 
• Business resumption plan 
• Training your staff on what their role is during a disaster

An In-Depth Look at the Disaster Recovery Planning Process

A DR plan includes: 

• Emergency procedures, strategies, and detailed instructions  that staff can follow if disaster strikes to minimize the effects of a disaster 
• Technologies or tools that will be used for recovery

At TechBldrs, our team has the IT experience and expertise needed to develop a hassle-free, backup strategy and recovery plan that’s tailored to your business. Our team will provide you with a data recovery plan that ensures you can recover your data within the shortest amount of time possible. 

The strategy used will be designed to fit the needs of your unique business. The first step is taking a close look at your systems to determine what your security requirements are, identifying key business processes and systems and learning what type of data you store. We’ll also consider other factors that will help us create the best data recovery strategy for your growing business.

Below, you'll find the steps we'll take to identify recovery objectives and key business systems and processes. 

Creating a Disaster Recovery Solution 

During the planning process, a business impact analysis will allow us to design a plan that will have your business up and running as quickly as possible after a disaster. 

A business impact analysis identifies your company’s key functions, and critical system operations and processes, then prioritizes those functions based on their impact on finances and operations. 

The next portion of the plan will involve identifying recovery point objectives and recovery time objectives.

Recovery Time Objectives 

Here, our team will set a target for how quickly your key systems and services should be fully operational after a disaster. The target times are based on the cost of downtime per system, in addition to what your company is able to budget for disaster recovery.  

Recovery Point Objectives 

For each service, we can set the recovery point objective. Recovery point objectives determine the backup frequency. If your business cannot lose any data at all, all changes must be immediately replicated. Fortunately, there are many backup options available. Our team will help you choose the perfect option for your company, based on your unique company’s needs and your budget.

Identifying Data Types and Locations 

Identifying how and where your data is stored is important. For each of your services, you must document where the data is stored, such as cloud services or if it’s stored on a server or workstation. With this information, our disaster recovery team can determine the best solution for backup and restoration in the event of a disaster. 

Business Resumption Plan 

A business resumption plan describes how your business will continue to operate if a disaster strikes. This phase of the plan will also include the resources needed to maintain your company’s key functions, such as utilities, equipment, vital records, and work location. Creating a business resumption plan ensures your company experiences the lowest amount of downtime possible and allows your company to continue to operate without major interruptions. 

Staff Training 

Your business disaster recovery program should also include staff training. Each staff member on your team should be trained on what to do in the event disaster strikes, such as a cyber attack. 

The Benefits of Disaster Recovery Plans 

Implementing a disaster recovery strategy is the perfect way to ensure valuable data is protected. Unfortunately, many small businesses don’t think about what would happen if their accounting files or customer data became corrupted and was unrecoverable, or what they would do if a computer that contained sensitive data was stolen. Other issues, such as hardware breakdown, natural disasters, and other critical circumstances can end up flushing out a company’s entire data. 

These situations happen to businesses every day. Hard drives fail or files become corrupt. An important folder may have been deleted accidentally, or a server collapses. Ransomware cyber attacks are also a major concern. 

Because of this, you need to ensure that your company is prepared for any type of disastrous event. By creating an IT disaster recovery plan: 

• You’ll have insurance against any type of critical situation that could potentially do serious harm to your business. 
• Your data will be backed up, so you and your staff can easily access important company information
• You can immediately respond to a disaster and take action to reduce damage, and resume operations as quickly as possible.

Creating a DRP that Works for Your Growing Business 

At TechBldrs, we can:

Provide Secure Storage for Sensitive Company Data 

Typically, you must backup business data daily. However, due to financial and time restraints, daily backups may not be possible. With our backup strategy, you won’t have to worry about spending all day backing up vital company data. 

We use RestartDR, a data backup and business resumption service that provides physical and cloud-based backup. Our IT techs will closely monitor your systems to look for equipment failure, cyber threats, and other issues. 

Provide Employee Training 

Business recovery plans must be adopted throughout the company, to be effective. In-house staff must be trained in their individual roles and in cybersecurity awareness, in the event disaster strikes. Our team can train your staff one-on-one or in a group setting. The goal is to have every staff member prepared for the worst, to get your business up and running smoothly, with as little downtime as possible. 

Contact the Team at TechBldrs Today to Schedule a Disaster Recovery Planning Consultation 

Creating a unique disaster recovery plan for your business may seem daunting, but you don’t have to go it alone. The experts at TechBldrs can help you set up and manage a disaster recovery plan that will keep your important business data protected while minimizing downtime in the event of a disaster. By proactively developing a disaster recovery plan or updating your current recovery plan, you will minimize potential disruption and protect your business. If you’re ready to create your plan, contact the team at TechBldrs today to schedule a consultation.