Business Continuity Strategies for IT Failures

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Regardless
of
the
industry
that
you’re
in,
IT
failures
can
create
significant
risks
to
your
business.
That’s
why

business
continuity
planning
is
becoming
a
critical
step
for
more
and
more

small
businesses
these
days.
Whether
it’s
a
localized
glitch
with
your
software
or
a
nationwide
outage
like
the
recent
CrowdStrike
catastrophe,


business
continuity
management
can
help
you
continue

business
operations
should
you
be
affected
by
an
IT
disruption.

This
article
explores
proactive
strategies
for
preparing
for
and
responding
to
IT
outages,
helping
you
reduce
risks,
safeguard
critical
information,
and
maintain
operations.
You’ll
walk
away
with
a
clear
understanding
of

business
continuity
planning
and
some
immediate
steps
you
can
take
in
your
business
to
be
more
prepared.

Key
Takeaways

1. IT
   failures
   can
   happen
   to
   anyone
2. Having
   a
   business
   continuity
   policy
   in
   place
   ahead
   of
   time
   is
   crucial
   if
   you
   want
   to
   continue
   serving
   customers
   during
   an
   IT
   outage
3. Employee
   training
   and
   infrastructure
   redundancy
   should
   be
   part
   of
   any
   strategy
   to
   mitigate
   the
   effects
   of
   IT
   problems.

In
this
article:

Understanding
Business
Continuity
Planning

What
is
Business
Continuity
Planning?

Business
continuity
planning
(BCP)
refers
to
the
set
of
procedures
and
business
processes
used
to
prevent
and
recover
from
disruptions
and
threats.
The
goal
of
BCP
is
to
make
sure
that
people
and
assets
are
protected
and
can
keep
the
company
running
in
the
event
of
a
disaster.

Business
continuity
planning
as
it
relates
to
IT
focuses
on
preserving
and
returning
business
operations
to
normal
as
quickly
as
possible.

Key
Objectives

The
key
objectives
of
BCP
are
to:

• 
  Minimize
  Downtime:
  Getting
  key
  business
  functions
  back
  up
  and
  running
  rapidly.
• 
  Protect
  Data:
  Secure
  sensitive
  and
  important
  data
  to
  avoid
  theft,
  loss,
  or
  damage.
• 
  Operational
  Continuity:
  Keeping
  crucial
  operations
  running
  without
  interruption
  even
  when
  IT
  systems
  break
  down.

Risk
Assessment
and
Analysis

Thorough
risk
assessments
can
help
you
prepare
for
IT
failures.
To
conduct
a
risk
assessment,
start
by
creating
an
inventory
of
all
IT
assets,
including
hardware,
software,
and
data.
Evaluate
how
critical
each
component
is
to
your
operations,
then
do
a
threat
analysis
to
identify
potential
sources
of
IT
disruptions.
This
should
include
natural
disasters,
human
error,
and
malicious
attacks.
Risk
assessments
will
help
you
weigh
how
each
risk
could
impact
your
business
continuity
over
both
the
short
and
long
term.

Finally,
prioritize
the
risks
based
on
their
probability
of
occurring
and
the
impact
they
would
have
on
your
company
if
they
happened.
Then,
develop
strategies
to
minimize
those
that
are
most
significant.
Note
that
this
is
not
a
one
time
exercise—as
technologies
and
business
contexts
change,
you
will
need
to
reassess
your
company
and
reevaluate
your
strategies.

Developing
an
IT
Disaster
Recovery
Plan

An
IT

disaster
recovery
plan
(DRP)
outlines
the
steps
necessary
to
bring
back
critical
IT
systems
and
data
after
a
failure.
Key
components
include:

• 
  Recovery
  Time
  Objectives
  (RTOs):
  These
  specify
  how
  much
  time
  each
  system
  can
  be
  down
  for.
• 
  Recovery
  Point
  Objectives
  (RPOs):
  These
  specify
  the
  maximum
  acceptable
  amount
  of
  data
  loss
  over
  time.
• 
  Roles
  and
  Responsibilities:
  Assign
  every
  task
  in
  your
  plan
  to
  specific
  members
  of
  your
  team,
  and
  when
  possible,
  ensure
  there
  is
  a
  secondary
  assignee
  for
  each
  task,
  that
  way
  essential
  functions
  are
  always
  covered.

Data
Backup
and
Recovery
Solutions

After
an
IT
failure,
it’s
essential
to
implement
recovery
strategies
rapidly
to
quickly
restore
your
systems.
Implement
a
robust,
proactive
backup
and
recovery
strategy
that
includes:

Frequent,
Automated
Backups:
Schedule
regular,
automated
backups
to
minimize
data
loss
in
the
case
of
an
emergency.

Offsite
Storage:
Backup
data
should
be
stored
offsite
in
a
secure
location
to
protect
against
physical
damage
at
your
primary
business
site.

Testing
Backups:
Backed
up
data
is
susceptible
to
the
same
problems
that
your
working
data
is.
Conduct
regular
tests
of
your
backup
systems
to
ensure
that
they
are
working
properly
and
that
data
can
be
restored
quickly
and
accurately
when
needed.

Backup
Techniques

As
you
work
through
your
cybersecurity

risk
assessment
and
explore
options,
consider
various
data
backup
techniques,
including
full
backups
(updates
all
data),
incremental
backups
(only
updates
data
that
has
changed
since
the
last
full
or
incremental
backup),
and
differential
backups
(only
updates
data
that
has
changed
since
the
last
full
backup),
to
find
the
solutions
that
best
fit
your
company’s
needs
and
budget.

Infrastructure
Redundancy

Infrastructure
redundancy
refers
creating
duplicate
systems
that
can
take
over
if
your
main
system
fails.
Tools
for
creating
redundancy
can
include
redundant
servers,
network
connections,
and
even
power
supplies.
Done
correctly,
redundancy
can
significantly
reduce
the
risk
of
total
system
failure.

To
select
the
right
redundancy
systems
for
your
business,
evaluate
your
budget
and
requirements.
For
example,
small
firms
may
find
that
cloud-based
systems
suffice,
while
larger
companies
may
need
their
own
redundant
servers
on
location.

Employee
Training
and
Awareness

No
business
continuity
plan
can
survive
without
the
participation
and
commitment
of
staff
members.
Have
human
resources
train
each
of
your
employees
on
their
respective
roles
in
case
of
IT
failure
and
ensure
they
understand
how
their
tasks
may
vary
depending
on
the
systems
and
infrastructure
that
failed.

As
a
best
practice,
regularly
(at
least
semi-annually)
conduct
simulations
of
IT
failures
as
a
way
of
testing
your
BCP
and
your
team
members’
reactions.
For
example,
a
doctor’s
office
might
simulate
a
ransomware
attack
to
ensure
that
patient
data
can
be
quickly
and
securely
restored
from
backups.
Similarly,
a
restaurant
might
simulate
a
power
outage
to
test
its
ability
to
continue
operations
using
backup
systems.

These
exercises
help
you
identify
weak
spots
in
your
emergency
response
plan
such
as
delays
in
response,
communication
gaps
etc.
By
rehearsing
these
situations,
you
can
refine
your
continuity
plans
so
that
they
will
be
ready
for
actual
interruptions
in
times
of
crises
and
will
keep
critical
business
functions
running.

Partnering
with
IT
Support
Services

If
all
of
this
has
you
feeling
overwhelmed,
remember
that
you
don’t
have
to
do
all
of
this
alone.
As
a
basic
first
step,
you
can
find
business
continuity
plan
templates
online
with
a
quick
Google
search.
For
additional
aid
with
proactive
emergency
management,
an
external
IT
support
or
managed
services
company
can
help
you
create
and
implement
these
plans.
They
offer
specialized
knowledge,
resources,
and
support
to
help
you
with
IT
crisis
management.
This
is
especially
important
when
regulatory
issues
are
concerned,
so
don’t
wait
until
disaster
strikes
to
explore
this
option.

When
choosing
an
IT
support
partner,
look
for
companies
with
a
proven
track
record
in
business
continuity
and
disaster
recovery.
During
your
discovery
process,
they
should
ask
in-depth
questions
and
make
it
clear
that
they
understand
your
business
needs
and
can
provide
tailored
solutions.

Testing
and
Updating
the
Continuity
Plan

Test
your
business
continuity
plan
regularly
to
ensure
it
remains
effective.
Use
the
results
of
these
tests
to
identify
areas
that
need
improvement
and
update
your
plan
accordingly.
It’s
also
important
to
include
your
BCP
as
part
of
onboarding
for
all
new
staff.

It’s
not
uncommon
for
business
owners
to
ignore
this
step,
but
even
small
businesses
are
changing
on
a
regular
basis.
There’s
a
good
chance
you’ve
changed
vendors,
updated
systems,
or
added
new
processes
over
the
last
six
months
to
a
year
that
could
have
created
new
vulnerabilities.
Testing
and
reviewing
your
plan
will
ensure
that
you
minimize
your
risk
to
IT
failures.

Conclusion

Effective
business
continuity
planning
for
IT
failures
is
crucial
for
maintaining
operational
stability
and
protecting
critical
data.
By
following
the
best
practices
outlined
above
can
help
you
avoid
the
worst
consequences
of
IT
disruptions
and
enhance
your
company’s
resilience.

FAQ

What
is
the
first
step
in
business
continuity
planning
for
IT
failures?

The
first
step
is
to
conduct
a
thorough
risk
assessment
to
identify
potential
vulnerabilities
in
your
IT
infrastructure,
whether
from
outages,
cyberattacks,
or
elsewhere.

How
often
should
a
business
test
its
IT
disaster
recovery
plan?

A
business
should
test
its
IT
disaster
recovery
plan
at
least
annually,
or
more
frequently
if
there
are
significant
changes
to
the
IT
environment.

What
are
the
best
practices
for
data
backup
in
business
continuity
planning?

Best
practices
include
regular,
frequent
backups,
offsite
storage
of
backups,
and
regular
testing
to
ensure
data
can
be
restored
quickly
and
accurately.

How
can
small
businesses
manage
IT
failures
effectively
through
business
continuity
planning?

Small
businesses
can
manage
IT
failures
by
developing
a
robust
business
continuity
plan,
implementing
redundancy,
training
employees,
and
partnering
with
external
IT
support
services.

What
role
do
employees
play
in
the
success
of
a
business
continuity
plan
during
IT
failures?

Employees
play
a
crucial
role
in
IT
service
continuity
management
by
understanding
their
responsibilities,
participating
in
drills,
and
executing
the
continuity
plan
effectively
during
IT
failures.

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