In today’s unpredictable world, businesses need to be prepared for anything. Whether it’s a natural disaster, a cyber attack, or a global pandemic, unexpected events can cause significant disruptions to businesses of all sizes. That’s why disaster-proofing is essential for business continuity.
By taking proactive measures to prepare for potential disasters (both physical and virtual), organizations can minimize the impact of unexpected events and ensure that they can continue to operate effectively. Computers Nationwide is here with some of the key strategies that companies can use to disaster-proof their operations and maintain continuity in the face of adversity!
If you don’t have an emergency response plan in place yet, don’t worry. Now is your friendly reminder to do so, and we can help guide the way! Read on to learn how you can secure your SMB, minimize risk, and be prepared for the worst…
The Importance of Disaster Preparedness in 2023
Before we dive into IT strategies, let’s understand why disaster preparedness is essential for companies of all sizes. Here is a list of some common disasters facing the world today:
- Flooding, Fires
- Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Snowstorms
- Cyber Attacks
- Vandalism and Theft
- Internal Threats
- Global Pandemics
Disasters Have Deadly Consequences for SMB’s
Disasters, whether natural or man-made, can have a devastating impact on an organization. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), 40% of businesses never reopen after a disaster, and another 25% fail within one year. Here are some facts that can’t be ignored:
- Shocking statistic: 90% of small businesses fail within a year if they can’t resume operations within five days of a disaster.
- There were an average of 3,340 fires in office properties per year from 2014 to 2018, resulting in an average of $112 million in property damage annually.
- Natural disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods can also have a significant impact on businesses. The total cost of weather and climate disasters in the U.S. in 2020 alone was $95 billion.
- Cyber attacks are another type of disaster that can have significant consequences. The average cost of a data breach for companies in the U.S. reached $8.64 million in 2022.
It’s clear that disasters can have a major impact on businesses of all sizes and industries. No one is immune to this! That’s why it’s vital to have a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan in place to help minimize the impact of these unexpected events.
When struck by a disaster, daily operations are going to get disrupted. Downtime is when natural gas companies try to bounce back and recover their systems. You can’t afford to shut down for a long time while you recover from your losses and damages. At CN, we highly encourage clients to be proactive with emergency response plans and disaster mitigation strategies.
Don’t Get Caught Without a Plan!
What are the potential consequences of a catastrophic event? Here is what businesses usually face:
- Disrupted Operations: Disasters hamper workflow and operations. You can lose out on customers and revenue during the recovery downtime.
- Loss of Valuable Data: If you don’t have a proper data backup system, you can lose valuable information and data. It disturbs future operations and affects your recovery as well.
- Tarnished Reputation: When you’re facing downtime, you’ll be slow in responding to your customers who may have urgent queries. It will ruin the customer’s faith and trust in you, tarnishing your reputation.
- Financial and Legal Consequences: Businesses that do not have emergency response plans and do not show disaster preparedness can face legal penalties and fines for putting other people or their data at risk.
Don’t let one bad event shut your doors for good.
The Secret to Keeping Your IT Systems Up & Running – No Matter What!
Now that we’re done with the doom and gloom section, let’s get into the “why” of disaster preparedness. What advantages will your business gain by being proactive? Find out how your SMB will benefit from following Computers Nationwide’s emergency response tips:
Benefits of Having a Disaster Preparedness & Response Plan
- Peace of mind: Being prepared helps you secure your data against losses, breaches, and corruption. Your workflow can continue without any disruption if your data is safe.
- Ongoing data recovery: A fast data recovery system reduces your downtime. You can resume work faster, reducing potential financial losses.
- Improve uptime and minimize downtime: Using a DRaaS system ensures you have your data available at any time. It reduces recovery time, allowing you to get back on your feet faster.
- Continuous IT support from experts: Partnering with an IT service manager provides the valuable benefit of proactive monitoring 24/7. They can also help you set up an immediate response plan well-suited for your business.
- Always have a backup just in case: Conducting regular cloud backups ensures no data is lost. With multiple backups, you do not have to fear the permanent loss of critical data.
- Protect your bottom line: Deploying disaster protection systems makes you secure against physical disasters and cyber or malware attacks. This helps secure your assets, physical location, valuable technology, and your reputation!
CN’s IT Strategies for Emergency Preparedness and Response
Computers Nationwide (CN) is your trusted partner in disaster preparedness, emergency response, and protection of your IT infrastructure. We have laid out a few key IT strategies that are essential in securing your valuable assets and data in today’s climate. We help you create your response plan, implement tools to mitigate risk, and help set up, monitor, and control the innovative systems we put in place.
Here are the action steps you should have in your emergency response plan.
8 Actions for Business Continuity in 2023
- Cloud Backups: You should backup all critical and important data in a secure cloud. It will help prevent data loss no matter any physical disaster. You should also look into cyber insurance options.
- Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS): Deploying DRaaS solutions helps with rapid data recovery. Your systems will get restored faster after a disaster. It will save you downtime and cut your losses.
- Emergency Communication with UCaaS: Smoother and faster communication becomes vital during a disaster. UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service) can ensure seamless communication when exposed to a threat.
- Employee Emergency Response Training: Just having an emergency response plan is not enough. Your employees need to know what the plan entails and how it will be deployed. This way, they can react immediately and effectively against a threat. Conduct training sessions and ensure all employees are well-versed with the response strategies and know their roles.
- Security Systems for Threat Detection: Advanced security systems can help you identify threats in real-time. Deploying these solutions gives you a better chance at fighting threats without incurring major losses.
- Create a Risk Mitigation Plan: A risk mitigation plan can help you be better prepared for disaster. Start by identifying all potential risks, and prioritize them. Then work on a mitigation plan that is best suited to your business.
- Physical Security: Most businesses sideline physical security and prioritize cyber security. It’s important to have both your fronts secured. Improving your physical security can help you respond better to emergencies by acting faster.
- Partner with IT and Security Experts: Collaborate and work closely with external IT and security experts like CN for customized security strategies. Identify and create plans tailored to your business’ unique need, safeguarding against all physical and digital threats.
Invest in Success and Continuity with Computers Nationwide
Plan now to prevent the worst from happening later on! Does your workplace have an emergency response plan in place? What kind of recovery systems are protecting your technology and data? There’s too much at stake to leave this up to chance.
Computers Nationwide is the go-to choice for businesses in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin looking to protect their organization against disasters. Our expert IT team will thoroughly audit your current risk, assess individual business needs, and tailor a customized strategy to implement the best security, IT, and cybersecurity measures.
We aim to give you 360 protection against all threats from every angle! To ensure business continuity and smooth operations, take the first step as soon as possible. Ask us how we can fortify your business!
