Business Continuity in the Age of Coronavirus

The government restrictions and closures due to the coronavirus pandemic has brought forth a challenge for businesses who do not have an IT business continuity plan, especially to those who do not have the ability to securely access their data from outside the office.

The coronavirus crisis is different than a natural disaster like a hurricane when we can all lose power or internet, and productivity lowers for everyone.  Instead, we are being asked to maintain social distancing, but we are expected to maintain our same level of productivity for our customers.

Businesses with server-based IT operations and require access to their server to do their job are grappling with the decision of whether to send their employees home or remain open. Many don’t have the capital and reserves to simply shut down for a few weeks.

Unfortunately, much like before a natural disaster or a cyber attack, business continuity is often overlooked until it is too late to address without significant consequences.  With the coronavirus pandemic, now is the time to develop your business continuity strategy.

To do so, it is important to first determine business value and impact of specific applications as well as IT systems. Identify mission critical applications, infrastructure or systems that can impact business operations & how they would continue to operate in the event of an emergency. In the development of these strategies it is crucial to have collaboration between business stakeholders & IT personnel or consultants.

Cloud based technologies can be of great benefit to many businesses but particularly to those who require a higher need for business continuity. Being able to outsource the liability of system up-time to global cloud technology provider could be very beneficial. Understanding the key elements of the business, its ability to operate & how technology works to support & enhance that is our duty as Technology experts. It is imperative to communicate these realities to our business leaders & have these strategies in place far in advance before they are needed.

Here are a few tips for developing a business continuity strategy in today’s post-pandemic world:

• Focus on leveraging technologies that can allow your employees to work from home, indefinitely if necessary. It is imperative that a business can continue to operate at the highest level of effectiveness even remotely. This includes cloud-based solutions, digital collaboration tools, teleconference services, and other technologies.
• Review Mission Critical Business Applications that are absolutely needed to operate the business & ensure you have the capabilities to provide your employees access to these applications remotely.
• Enabling Two-factor authentication is key to businesses having their employees working remotely as the cloud based systems will reauthenticate when they login from outside the office to ensure data security.
• Work closely with your IT department or consultant to balance the needs of the business with the IT strategy. it is important to ask questions regarding the business continuity strategy in case of emergency.

The coronavirus has shown us that our business operations can be vulnerable to not only computer viruses, but also biological ones.  In addition to following all the CDC guidelines to prevent the spread of the virus, business owners can also use this situation as an opportunity to protect their continuity now and in the future.

Perez Technology Group with offices in Orlando, FL is an IT Managed Service Provider delivering expert IT solutions for small to mid sized companies while consulting larger enterprises on Cloud Implementations. We bring Microsoft delivery experience and the expertise of Cloud to enterprises who want to add Cloud capabilities to their team. We increase the level of efficiency in their operation and develop a strategic road map for the business into Cloud. In a digital age, information technology, data access and Cybersecurity are crucial to the success and productivity of businesses small and large. We put the needs of the business first and develop customized and leading solutions to help our clients meet their objectives.