Contingency plans are the most valuable documents in your operational files, but when an actual loss occurs, having a good working knowledge of what the ‘real life’ scenario will be, makes the difference in succeeding in your business resumption and minimizing the loss. Knowing how to turn off the water that is flooding your work… Continue reading The Harsh Reality of a Disaster To Vital Records

Disaster Recovery. What type of picture does such a statement paint? Data center, hardware, MIPS, VUPS, CPU protection, tape backup, earthquake, fire, flood. . . security and ongoing viability of one of the single most critical resources necessary for a functioning business. Traditionally, disaster recovery planning was solely the responsibility of the data center environment.… Continue reading Business Continuity Out of the Data Center and Into the Boardroom

At one time having a plan to recover data center operations meant you were a step ahead of the recovery game. Should disaster strike, you were prepared to get your applications up and running within a specified time frame at a predesignated location. All bases were covered. That isn’t the case any longer. Operating and… Continue reading Business Resumption Planning Beyond the Data Center

Founded and operated on the basis of Cooperation, credit unions tackle the big job of disaster recovery planning together. Disaster recovery is a common business practice among government, banks, and large manufacturing, however, it has only recently made its debut in the credit union movement. The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) released its first formal… Continue reading Credit Union Cooperative Nature Lends to Disaster Planning

Part 1 In mid-1990, the 11 banks of the New York Clearing House Association passed a resolution requiring member banks processing a daily average of 20 billion dollars or more in wire transfers in their funds transfer system to comply with a new set of standards for second-level contingency. The clearing house banks must be… Continue reading Business Recovery: Regulation or Common Sense

As a Corporate Security Director or the Security Manager of a large company, what is your real role, defined or undefined, in your organization’s contingency, emergency, or recovery plan? Does your company even have a plan, is it required by state or federal law to have such a plan written, and who is responsible for… Continue reading Securitys Role in Contingency Planning

 Making the Most of Your Plan Productivity Most people are familiar with a “Disaster Recovery Plan.” The idea has been around for awhile and usually refers to the contingency planning in data processing that is necessary to minimize damage caused by unexpected and undesirable events affecting information processing. The trend now is to look at… Continue reading Improvement as a Part of Disaster Recovery Planning… and Vice Versa

The Whittier Narrows earthquake on October 1, 1987, provided our first opportunity to experience a moderate earthquake, in a large metropolitan area, during working hours. Many businesses were not open yet, but Pacific Bell, the company I worked for at the time, had many employees already at work. As chair of their Emergency Operating Committee… Continue reading Preparing Employees: A New Look After Whittier

Company executives are charged with the efficient and cogent management of their company’s resources. However, they often overlook the most important element of business – the creation of information – even though they expect that information to be available so that business can continue in the aftermath of a disaster. To assure themselves of information… Continue reading Avoid Information Disasters

Most contingency plans today are developed for recovery purposes only. Generally, this means that only high priority functions and bare minimum needs for the recovery process are contained in the plan. This is the logical approach since contingency planning is preparing for an emergency or disaster situation where recovery, not replacement, is the main objective.… Continue reading Contingency Recovery and Resurgent Planning