Monthly Archives: July 2017

Can A Business Continuity Plan Save Your Reputation?

Reputation Management is a hot topic in the boardroom these days. Having a solid business continuity plan could make or break your company’s ability to survive a data breach or other systems failure that could tarnish your hard-earned reputation. Company news about data loss, systems downtime and other unplanned interruptions occur with regularity. According to technology research firm Gartner, a business that has a catastrophic data event has a two-year survival rate of just 6%. Surprisingly, your company can avoid these scenarios by having a solid BC/DR Plan. It is no surprise that recent research by MarketsandMarkets forecasts the spend on DR as a Service (DRaaS) to grow from $1.68 Billion in 2017 in revenue to $11.11 Billion by 2020. Read on to find out how a Business Continuity Plan could save your business.

Understand Your Business Continuity Risk and Exposure

A great place to start with Business Continuity planning is a review of your company policies and procedures. Your business continuity policies should — in addition to identifying the technical standards for managing your company’s applications, data, and related infrastructure — should identify acceptable risk, what your employees will do in a disaster recovery scenario, and identify any compliance requirements. It is important to understand what information is most important and to consider the risks of suffering a data loss. What would be the impact to your revenue, productivity and reputation? If you could not access your information, or it was subject to data breach, how may that impact your customers’ trust and your business’s reputation?

An Ounce of Planning is Worth a Pound of Cure

Ensure you have a solid data protection plan. Ask yourself; how often is your data backed up, how fast could you recover if needed, who are the stakeholders and how would you communicate with them if you suffered a data loss? Another consideration is your Recovery Time Objective (RTO). Your RTO is how long it will take to restore your data. The size of your data and backup methodologies can impact how long recovery may take. Your network may also be a factor in how quickly you can get up and running. Network bottlenecks can turn a routine restore into a never-ending project. Make sure your network is robust enough to meet your Recovery Time Objectives. Also, remember to train your employees on how to avoid malware and phishing schemes. Last but not least, test your backups regularly to ensure data integrity.


Proactive Communications and Rapid Recovery are Critical

If you find yourself in a situation where your data has been compromised, most experts agree you should respond quickly and proactively. As of last count, the United States had 48 state data breach notification laws to comply with. Many countries around the world have various data protection breach notification laws as well. The EU is in the process of implementing The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which establishes data protection guidelines for its citizens’ information.

Having a Business Continuity plan could save your business. Being able to rapidly respond in a disaster recovery scenario is a critical element of survival. Not only will it help you get back up and running quickly, you will avoid unnecessary fines and protect your company’s reputation. If you feel your business would benefit from a risk assessment, contact your technology advisor today.

Getting the Most from Cloud Computing

Advantages of Moving to CloudCloud Computing adoption continues to outpace the growth rate of total IT spending. According to research firm Gartner, the market for public cloud services will continue expanding, with year-over-year revenue growth of 17.3%. Compare this to Gartner Growth expectation of total IT Growth of 1.4% and you can see how the market for Cloud Computing is maturing. Cloud Service Providers offer a wide range of solutions. According to CompTIA Trends in Cloud Computing, Cost reduction is the primary driver for VoIP, cited by 67% of companies with a VoIP implementation. Integration with other applications was cited as the second biggest driver by 36% of VoIP adopters. Here are a few tips to help realize the benefits of savings and integration of popular Cloud Services.

 

Manage Rogue IT


Rogue IT is a term for technology deployed without the aid of a technology advisor. Cloud Computing empowers Line of Business (LOB) owners to rapidly deploy Software as a Service (SaaS) applications and to minimize the involvement of a technology advisor. Financial management, HR management, Call Center and Help Desk services are common SaaS application purchase decisions made by LOB owners.

More often than not, LOB owners involve a technology advisor in the purchase decision for final approval and consultation. Cloud integration, security concerns, and the need to centralize technologies are common reasons to include a technology advisor. Without the input from a trusted advisor, the costs of Cloud adoption can increase, and the creation of silos from lack of integration can result.

Navigate Cloud Security Concerns

Due to the nebulous nature of Cloud Computing, Cloud Security can be a challenge to manage and is only as strong as its weakest link. By proactively managing their technologies and workflows, companies can avoid security issues including lack of regulatory compliance, malware infection and denial of service attacks. Seeking the support of a trusted technology advisor provides an unbiased perspective for performing due diligence on suppliers and partners so your business can use the Cloud with confidence.

Ensure that your Cloud Service Providers monitor their systems for malware and utilize firewalls and encryption. These actions protect your assets in the Cloud and ensure that Unified Communications, Web Hosting and other customer-facing applications run smoothly.

Manage Internal Change from Digital Transformation

Cost savings and integration resulting from Cloud Adoption will have a positive impact on internal operations. Building new policies, or updating existing policies and procedures, allows your employees to take full advantage of Cloud Computing Adoption. Also consider reviewing how you monitor performance for your network, applications and Cloud Services. Keeping things performing will contribute to the overall productivity and savings realized from Cloud Computing.

Cloud Computing adoption drives change at many levels in today’s business world. With the help of a technology advisor you can get the most from your Cloud Computing investment. Don’t hesitate to reach out to your technology advisor to lift your business to the Cloud.