Nobody likes to talk about the possibility of disaster, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a comprehensive disaster recovery plan for your business. You may not be hit with a hurricane, tornado, or earthquake, but even a broken pipe or a minor fire can temporarily wipe out your business.
Big companies have committees and consultants to deal with recovery planning. Smaller businesses are finally recognizing the need for similar plans. Here is a list of questions to get you started on developing a plan:
- Where would you work if you couldn’t work in your office?
- Can you arrange to share office space with another business?
- How would you reach your customers?
- Do you have a list of every employee’s name, address, and home phone number?
- Do you have copies of your customer list or access to it online?
- Do you have copies of your invoices and accounts receivable somewhere besides the office?
- Are all of your important business records backed up and stored offsite?
With all of the cloud accounting and storage options available today, there is very little reason to lose all your data in a disaster. The hardest part should be the physical office. Spend some time planning in advance so you can react quickly to a disaster and have minimal down time.