10 Critical Disaster Planning Essentials for Your Law Firm: Don't Neglect Your Firm's Future!
As a legal professional, the integrity and security of your data is of the utmost importance. With an ethical and regulatory responsibility to protect your client’s confidential information, it is imperative that you have a plan in place to protect your data from loss, corruption or theft.
TROUBLING STATISTICS
- 96% of all business workstations aren’t being backed up
- 30% of small businesses will experience a natural disaster
- 60% of companies that lose their data will shut down within six months of the disaster
When it comes to business continuity, taking a proactive approach to planning is essential. Here is a list of 10 disaster planning essentials you should have in place to make sure your business will be back up and running again in the event of a disaster.
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- HAVE A WRITTEN PLAN
Having a plan in advance, as simple as it may sound, can tremendously decrease your downtime after a disaster; but you need to make sure it’s a plan that will get your system back up as quickly as possible. Set up a plan that contains details on what disaster could happen and a step-by-step process of what to do, who should do it and how A comprehensive emergency plan considers and includes, but is not limited to, the following key elements:
- Employee Safety – Ensure your plan provides for the safety of employees should a disaster occur. An emergency plan needs to delineate clear-cut lines of authority and responsibilities to employees who can make decisions and putting the plan into action.
- Facilities – If your firm’s office space is damaged in the event of a disaster, outline in your plan pre-arranged commitments to share or occupy alternative sites.
- Client Communications – An emergency plan’s principal objective is to keep the firm in business, which means clients must know what the firm is able to do after a disaster. After a disaster strikes, be transparent with your clients and share your emergency status constructively and convincingly through available means of communication – such as a letter, email or phone call. By explaining how your firm plans to transcend disaster, you will retain client confidence in the firm’s ability to continue operations.
- Insurance Coverage – Having adequate insurance coverage for a variety of risks is an essential element to a well-conceived, comprehensive emergency plan. Review covered causes of loss, exclusions and limitations, and identify critical insurance coverage in your plan.
- SET UP A COMMUNICATIONS PLAN
It is vital to have a plan in place for communication if email or office phones are down in the office. If something should happen where employees could not access the usual means of communication with coworkers or clients, a back-up method should be in place. Make sure your plan includes multiple communications methods.
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