Disasters come in a blink of an eye. Without proper preparation, they can destroy valuable equipment resulting to massive data loss without hope of recovery. Disasters can take the form of earthquake, floods, hurricanes, and fire. Here are some ways to disaster-proof your business.
Disaster Plan
Formulate a plan of action in the event of a disaster. Plan for as many kinds of disaster that can happen, including earthquake, fire, or even riots. For example, in case of an earthquake, detail the areas that will be safe for the employees to move to. Map out all the gas valves or switches that need to be turned off in case of fire or flooding. Plan a course of action to take when saving merchandise in case there is an impending disaster.
Preparation
Proper preparation is key to ensure that the business is ready for a disaster. This involves key preparations including the use of a seismic cabinet to keep data servers, or bolting valuable equipment to the wall to safeguard from tremors that will cause them to fall. Utilize fire-proof safes and vaults when storing important documents and other valuables. Fire-proof safes can ensure that your documents are safe even in the event of an earthquake or a fire. If you don’t have fire-proof safes, use a safety deposit box in the bank
Backup and Recovery
Most often, disaster is unforeseeable and inevitable. You can’t escape from it no matter how you prepare for it. However, equipment can be replaced but valuable data, once lost, can no longer be recovered. Nonetheless, due to technological advances in computing, businesses can backup and store their data in remote servers. Thus, in case of loss due to disaster, you may still recover data from the alternative source. This is an upgrade to regular backup options that allows businesses to backup their data in a separate storage media, but in the same location. When choosing a recovery solution, take note of the frequency of backup process, as well as the length of time needed to recover the data in the back up. Cloud computing has also made this service cost-efficient and affordable, even to small businesses.
Insurance
It pays to update the insurance coverage as your business grows. The old insurance policy might cover the necessities but due to business upgrades and other improvements, some of your equipment may no longer be covered by the old policy. Check whether your policy covers particular disasters only or if it is an all-risk policy. If an all-risk policy is too expensive, make sure to have the most important equipment or properties covered by the fire or disaster policy.
Emergency Funds
Emergency funds can go a long way when sudden disaster strikes. The emergency funds should be able to cover 3-6 months of your regular working expenses. This is a conservative estimate as you might not know how long you can keep the business afloat after a big disaster. This emergency fund can help to revive and rehabilitate your business into a functional state once more.