Business Continuation
For years I have observed firms wrestle with the development of disaster recovery and business continuation plans. Much has been written about the technical aspects and the justification for such plans. In reality, I have seen IT professionals spend countless hours developing a reasonable strategy only to have the partners vote to literally do nothing rather than fund the budget.
Solutions
Agility Recovery Solutions provides an innovative, scalable solution or all organizations. ReadySuite membership provides access to all of its resources, delivered within 48 hours for a small monthly fee. It ties the plan and insurance coverage together. Some insurance carriers now recommend Agility because it can limit losses in the case of a disaster, and they know the firm will be back in business within 48 or fewer hours.
As an added-value to ReadySuite members, they offer MyAgility—a secure web portal with tools and resources to aide in plan development in addition to customized consultation. Since the plan is a dynamic document with related documents such as contact lists and insurance policies, it is best to store them in an ASP environment accessible at any time.
Agility was founded in 1989 as a division of GE. For years they have provided disaster recovery services for Fortune 500 firms. They developed the ReadySuite solution because they believe that every business should have access to business continuity services that are simple and easy to use. Memberships start at $250 per month, and if you experience an interruption, they will put your recovery plan in motion and bill you for the associated out-of-pocket costs.
I encourage you to stop procrastinating and take the three easy steps required to develop an executable recovery plan for your firm. Review your existing plan, contact your current insurance carrier as well as Agility Recovery Solutions and get started today. Hopefully you never experience an interruption, but by implementing this 3-step strategy, you will have peace of mind and the ability to service your clients regardless of what the future may hold.