A Very Real (and Preventable) SMB Business Risk

Ask any SMB Executive if they have business insurance and the vast majority will answer yes. One simply cannot do business or operate without it. One would think that those in charge of SMBs are risk adverse and would do anything to protect their business but that’s not the case according to a Symantec study. The study found that 57% of SMBs don’t have a disaster recovery plan. Additionally, the study stated one in four SMBs do not even view IT critical to their businesses. Why the apathy here around not addressing the potential risk of a disaster? Surely business administration and technology go hand in hand…right?

The study also revealed SMBs lose $12,500 on average for each day of IT downtime. $12,500 per day to a small business could be devastating. Not proactively addressing this problem is plain malpractice and possessing an IT disaster recovery solution need to be a business imperative for every SMB. Preparation for emergencies of all sizes is key and implementing a solution can ensure an SMB’s readiness.

So what is involved in a disaster recovery solution? According to www.ready.gov, an IT disaster recovery plan needs to be part of a greater business continuity plan. The plan should compile an inventory of hardware (e.g. servers, desktops, laptops and wireless devices), software applications and data. The plan should include a strategy to ensure that all critical information is backed up along with identifying critical software applications and data and the hardware required to run them. IT systems require hardware, software, data and connectivity. Without one component of the “system,” the system may not run. Lastly, the recovery strategy should be developed to anticipate the loss of one or more of the following system components:

• Computer room environment (secure computer room with climate control, conditioned and backup power supply, etc.)
• Hardware (networks, servers, desktop and laptop computers, wireless devices and peripherals)
• Connectivity to a service provider (fiber, cable, wireless, etc.)
• Software applications (electronic data interchange, electronic mail, enterprise resource management, office productivity, etc.)
• Data and restoration

Some SMBs cannot tolerate any downtime and should consider offsite, hosted Cloud solutions that leverage data synchronization.
What’s available to help NYC-based SMBs?
CRA has Manage360°, a solution that includes an industry leading disaster recovery solution. Manage360° is a comprehensive IT managed services offering for SMB businesses. Manage360° is CRA ’s best solution for outsourcing all or part of your IT department. Manage360° can deliver the capability of a full-service IT department at a fraction of your current cost.
Manage360° is customized for specific industries and is available immediately.

• Unlimited On-site and Remote Support
• Industry-Best and Award-winning Service Teams
• Built-in Backup and Disaster Recovery Solutions
• Microsoft Office 365 E-Mail
• Customized solutions to meet your business requirements
• vCIO Services – Technology roadmap to your business plans
• 24×7 Automated Monitoring and Patch Management
• Endpoint Protection
• Optional Cloud VOIP solution
• IT and ISP Vendor Management

Backed by over 20 years of experience in managed IT solutions, CRA specializes in managing and running the IT departments of many NYC-based small and medium businesses.

To learn more about CRA’s Manage360° solution, please:

Visit: http://manage360.consultcra.com
Call: 212-376-4040 and ask for sales
Email: sales@consultcra.com