Comment: How to avert disaster in the midst of a crisis

By Mike Osborne, operations director, ICM Computer Group.

In recent years, issues surrounding disaster recovery and business continuity have become more and more high profile as terrorist threats, climate changes and a move towards an always available economy puts pressure on companies to ensure that they can continue to trade even in the most dire of circumstances.

Leading insurers are already in talks with the Government about plans to make it a legal requirement for companies to have business continuity plans in place before they can secure certain types of cover, yet staggeringly, as many as 58 percent of businesses still do not have plans in place. However, more and more companies are wising up to the need for disaster recovery planning and ICM estimates that there are currently some 8,000 subscribers to third party business continuity solutions in the UK with around 50 percent of these already opting for a full work-area replacement cover.

With this dash for cover in mind, there are a number of important issues that business continuity managers must now be aware of to avoid encountering problems when choosing a continuity supplier. Just as you wouldn’t take out an insurance policy without first looking into the fine print, the same can be said for a business continuity service, as what value is having a plan if you can’t use the facilities when you really do have to invoke it?

Oversubscribing
A big issue is that third party providers may not adequately track, monitor and plot the number of subscribers to a syndicated service, such as that of a standby office. The implications of this are clear – if a service becomes over-subscribed then it can literally cease to provide the support intended. The lesson is to find out in advance what is the maximum number of subscribers allowed on the service and find out how many clients are currently subscribed to the equipment and centres to be contracted. If the service appears to be oversubscribed - an easy indication being a long wait on booking test slots - then you could encounter problems in testing or invoking the service.

Exclusion zones
In addition to the number of subscribers, business continuity managers should also be aware of ‘exclusion zone policy’. The nature of threats such as bombs, fire and flooding are geographic. It is therefore important to consider how many other clients using a supplier are within, say, an 800 metre radius of your site(s), because in the event of such an incident, these companies could be competing for recovery space at the same provider. By defining what rights you have to a business continuity service from the earliest stage, business continuity managers can avoid a situation where their business has to invoke but only to find another company has priority over the facilities.

HR issues
Staffing and human resources issues are also important. Business continuity managers should find out if the recovery environment is health and safety approved and if it is secure and in a safe location for staff. Are the telephone systems and PCs the same standard as in your current environment? It is no good planning for a four hour recovery if no one knows how to use the standby systems. Also, how much use is a plan if staff have to drive for several hours to use the facilities? Unacceptable travel times not only impact financially on a company in terms of overtime pay and travel costs, but the European Working Time Directive and inability of staff to continue with their domestic responsibilities could bring the best of plans grinding to a halt. Remember, without people, there is no viable plan.

Business continuity is often an intangible service that many see as either a commodity purchase or an enforced business overhead and yet it is important not only to recognise the need to have a business continuity plan in place, but also to be sure you have the right plan. The financial impact of a disaster could be millions of pounds and the livelihoods of hundreds of employees – it is only right therefore that the risks associated with supplier choice and threats to service delivery should be recognised and indeed play an equal part to that of cost in the decision making process.

Mike Osborne is operations director of ICM Recovery Services.

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•Date: 29th October 2004 •Region: UK •Type: Article •Topic: Recovery facilities
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