Its been there in the back of your mind, the disaster recovery plan. Nagging at you, you know you need one, but there’s always something more urgent vying for your attention… Until you notice a news reports of a tropical storm gaining force. Fortunately, Hurricane Danielle is taking a turn out to sea in the Atlantic, far from the East Coast of the USA. Yet Tropical Storm Earl is sneaking up behind, a possible threat. And another tropical weather system leaves us wondering…will Tropical Storm Fiona be close behind?
Now that you’re thinking about your disaster recovery plan, how will you pay for it? One suggestion is to check into your insurance coverage. Can you get a business interruption policy which will cover the cost of an emergency backup communications system?
Satellite uplinks are a lifeline when terrestrial communications are destroyed, yet dedicated satellite space for your critical communications doesn’t come at the cost of an extra cell phone line. Since in a crisis situation users flock to satellite communications services, dedicated bandwidth is especially important to ensure that your data, video and voice traffic pass without being impacted by network congestion.
One possibility you can explore to defray the cost of emergency communications is insurance coverage. Does your carrier offer a business interruption policy which would cover the operating expenses? Can it be included as a part of your business’s wind or flood policy? By exploring some of these creative options, you may find that implementing a disaster recovery plan is more affordable than you thought.
How much is it worth to your business to continue operations, continue customer service or access critical information during a crisis situation? Before you think it’s too expensive, ask about services with low recurring fees, usage based billing and explore insurance coverages.
