5 tips on preparing for business continuity

Think back to when you last took your car in for a service. You probably checked to do this on a more convenient day of the week, maybe even worked from home and if a car was needed on that day you may have arranged to have one available to use.

Now think back to a holiday you recently took or one that is planned. Once again you will have put some processes in place to ensure specific projects are completed, your whereabouts are noted and any odds and ends are duly noted or taken care off.

Why do this preparation or planning?

The answer is to make life easier and less stressful on ourselves. So with that in mind, here are 5 useful tips to ensure when that disaster comes out of the blue and impacts your business, the crisis can either be diverted or minimised greatly.

1. MAKE REGULAR BACKUPS � ensure you have a recent back up copy of your computer files that is easily available and accessible. We all know the impact of losing a file or when our computer systems go down, it can often bring a company and work to a standstill. When you have a copy of your files, you can load these up onto a new machine and continue operating.

2. KEEP PASSWORDS AND OTHER KEY INFORMOATION SAFE � how many hours are wasted each week/month/year due to searching for lost access codes, account numbers and other key administrative information? Make a note of usernames/passwords, specific account numbers and key codes that you require. Ensure they are encrypted for safety and kept somewhere secure.

3. REMAIN IN TOUCH � depending what type of business you�re running, it could be useful to provide a colleague with your client list or key accounts so if anything was to happen to you (illness, emergency operation, stuck overseas with limited contact) you can make a single call through to your colleague who can then alert anyone in particular

4. SPARE INTERNET ACCOUNT � if you are heavily reliant on the Internet and for whatever reasons your connection could be at risk of going down. You may wish to consider investing in a mobile dongle or other form of Internet connectivity you could use to cover yourself during the downtime.

5. HAVE A PLAN and TEST IT � Just like the organisation you put in place before taking your car for its service or when you go on holiday. Think about your business requirements and what impact a flood, fire, theft, computer crash, illness of yourself or key staff members might have. Consider as many eventualities as you can and put in place the necessary support that you can call upon when needed. Then test it regularly.

Disasters happen and always when they are least expected. Be prepared and save yourself time, money and a great deal of stress.

Courtesy of Depositit, developers of Online Backup System, Business Admin System, Home Admin System