Neglecting data backups is risky business

Your organization depends on consistent, dependable access to its digital resources. When unexpected incidents – such as inclement weather or natural disasters – interrupt IT systems, your operations could come to a halt. Until you have your applications and data bases up and running again, you’re losing out on business opportunities and revenue, not to mention the expenses involved in restoring your solution. That’s why implementing a backup and data recovery plan is a critical business strategy.

Lack of preparation carries big risks
Without an adequate backup and disaster recovery plan in place, this process can take a frightening amount of time. If your backups aren’t up to date or contain incompatible or corrupted information, you could lose a significant amount of valuable, sometimes irreplaceable, resources. Unfortunately, 43 percent of companies that experience substantial data loss following a disaster never reopen for business.

Clearly, a disaster recovery plan is not something to put on the back burner. Although earthquakes, hurricanes, fires, electrical outages, equipment failure and other catastrophes may appear to be unlikely, distant possibilities in the hazy realm of hypotheticals, the fact is that they can – and do – happen at any time, without discriminating between large and small organizations.

Fortifying your system 
If you’re one of the many enterprises that lack a comprehensive, sustained backup and disaster recovery plan, the time to start developing one is now. As PC Magazine explained, a comprehensive strategy must include planning, implementation, training, testing and frequent updates. Organizations should consider what kind of disasters are most likely to strike, which data is mission-critical and who most urgently needs to access it. Then, decision-makers can choose the appropriate technological approach.

To simplify the process, rather than utilizing the traditional backup tape system, many organizations are turning to cloud backup solutions for their disaster recovery and business continuity processes. According to a recent Heavy Reading study, as IT systems expand and diversify, decision-makers are choosing cloud services as a more cost-effective disaster recovery option. Not only does the cloud offer affordable space and flexible accessibility, it can also accommodate online replication services that automate much of the backup process.

The report noted that mobile and other advanced technologies are creating complex systems, which are challenging for IT departments to keep up with. For that reason, managed cloud services – particularly for disaster recovery – are providing invaluable assistance. Even smaller entities can achieve a robust data backup and recovery plan with the help of industry experts and affordable cloud solutions.