IT Disaster Recovery Plan Checklist: Is Yours Ready?
In an emergency, does your company have an IT disaster recovery plan checklist ready? Don’t let another moment pass you by without reading this vital list.
The hurricane came through last night and flooded the office. All the computers and equipment are destroyed.
Now, what do you do?
It is mission critical for every company to have a well-outlined disaster recovery plan checklist ready to go in case of an emergency.
Not having a plan can cost your company dearly! On average, companies can lose $7,900 per minute of downtime, which is up a whopping 41% from 2010.
Keep reading to learn about 4 key factors to include in your checklist ASAP!
Analysis
The first thing you should do is consider every possible scenario and what reaction the company should have in response to those scenarios.
The more situations you can think of and plan for, the more prepared you will be.
You should also make a risk analysis matrix to pinpoint which areas are most vulnerable and which systems are most important to get up and running first.
Data Back-up and Recovery
Another important thing to consider is a third-party back-up and recovery program.
It is not enough to keep backup files on site because that would not be safe from natural disasters or hardware failures. Cloud-based programs are much safer than local hardware.
Once you have your backup files set up, it is also important to keep them updated. That way you are not recovering old data or lose important files that were recently created.
Assign Roles to Specific People
You should have a list of people who will have active roles during an emergency and what their tasks should be.
For example, one of the important roles that will need to be assigned is who will be in charge of equipment recovery and/or replacement. Computers and phones (or other critical systems) may need to be reset or replaced to get the company back online.
Another key role to assign on the checklist is who will be in charge of communication. This person may need to reach out (and be available) to employees to let them know how to respond.
Also, make sure to put on your checklist how communications should happen in case phone systems are down. If cell phones are part of that plan, make sure you know everyone’s cell phone numbers.
Media and/or Client outreach
On the topic of communication, part of your disaster recovery plan checklist should be a crisis communication press release.
This kit should have statements that are prepared in advance of an emergency that can be released to clients, media, vendors, and others to let them know how the company is responding to the emergency.
No one wants to be thinking about what to say to people after the emergency has occurred, so it is important to have a list of statements prepared in advance. But if you have done proper business impact analyses, you should be able to tailor your statements accordingly.
Don’t be Caught without a Disaster Recovery Plan Checklist
If you need more help with your disaster recovery plan checklist, or if you need a few good IT guys on your side, contact us for some hand-picked, and custom tailored assistance.
