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Plan for Disaster
By Patty Anderson with Carin Shulusky
June 2007
The world is a very dangerous
place, and it seems to be getting more dangerous every year. While the national
news is filled with large national disasters, many local (but equally
destructive) events never make the news. Every call center owner and manager
should ask the question, "How well would my operation survive a major disaster?"
Although you may never be able to
prepare for all possibilities, smart business owners are taking steps to put in
place a disaster preparedness plan. Relying on insurance is not enough.
Insurance may help rebuild, but how do you keep your business operating if you
lose everything? Insurance can't replace lost data or find a location to keep
your business functioning. The first step for a smart business is to have a
plan. The plan should include data storage and a strategy on how to use the
stored data if you can't return to your place of business.
More and more vendors are taking
an active role in making sure their users are prepared. In addition to helping
customers build a disaster preparedness plan that will get them up and running
quickly after a disaster, vendors are increasingly offering off-site, secure
data storage options. Another option available for VoIP users is the use of a
VoIP loop, with a second node hosting an additional system with cluster servers
installed. This copies all your data to both systems in real time. If a
disaster takes out your main system, the second location would continue without
a hiccup. This is true redundancy of your system.
Whatever system you choose, the
first step is to develop a plan. It is much easier to prepare a plan before
disaster strikes than when you're standing in the middle of destruction.
Whatever plan you choose to protect your business, it will be a great comfort to
know you can continue to operate your business regardless of what comes.
Patty Anderson is director of
sales and marketing at Telescan (www.telescan.net).
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