The term “disaster recovery” and its association with the cloud is used so much these days that it has become somewhat of a cliché. Floridians usually think of hurricanes; in California, its earthquakes; in the mid-west, the deadly tornado. But if you stop and think about it, the vast majority of disasters are really everyday events. Servers crash, buildings burn, power goes out. It happens.
Everyday disasters are the biggest reason why it is vital to have a comprehensive disaster recovery plan — one that covers the everyday contingencies. If you properly prepare, you can keep business up and running with little to no loss. However, if you’re unprepared, you could lose time, money and business — something no company can afford, especially in these uncertain times.
Smart Business spoke with Mark Swanson, the CEO of Telovations Inc., about how cloud-based communications can assist with your disaster recovery plans.
Why do you make the point that everyday disasters are more important to prepare for?
I am not saying to ignore preparation for the big things, but you need to be ready for the more likely disasters. Disasters are measured in terms of potential loss and the likelihood of an event. Everyone in our town thinks of hurricanes, so when there’s a seminar the planning is all around coping with a disastrous event. But if you look at the facts, there has not been a hurricane to hit Tampa since 1921. What you see are things like fires, highway crashes or a back hoe through the telephone lines. Also, if there is a big disaster, everyone is going to know it; there will be others (like the government, hopefully) to aid you and your customers will probably be more forgiving. However, if you tell them you are out for a week because your server blew up, you aren’t going to be given much slack.
Since there are so many possibilities, how can you plan for everything?
That’s the paradox, you can’t. The disaster that happens will not happen the way you thought it would. The key is making sure your lines of communication are understood and stay open. Once something happens, you will need to adjust your plan. In today’s highly technological world, a business can’t afford to be without phone, e-mail and/or Internet for even a few hours. Having all your communications capabilities — phone, e-mail, conferencing, fax, etc. — in the cloud provides what we call ‘disaster redirect,’ which is the built-in ability to redirect from the premise to the cloud. Backup servers are nice, but if you want to be truly covered, you should consider cloud-based communications.
