Disaster Recovery – Alternate Office Site

The last few weeks have seen intense storms and tornadoes lash different parts of the US. Internationally, an earthquake devastated Nepal and the misery continues (see more..).
Lives have been disrupted and many businesses destroyed. While the response of municipalities, counties, state and federal government has improved to a great extent, recovery is slow and time consuming. Getting needed supplies to the correct spot is a challenge relief teams always have when dealing with these types of disasters.
As I have said so many times before, planning is a key differentiator when it comes to businesses that can recovery from a disaster to those that cannot. Once a major disaster strikes and a place of business is inaccessible, temporary (or permanent) relocation is key. This usually involves a complex choreograph of employees, IT and other equipment and various must have accoutrement to get the business up and running again.
Where to relocate is crucial. If this is a site frequented by customers, then ease of access, security of location and such considerations have to be taken into account. Also in case WAN connectivity is crucial, the new location must have easy to access connectivity. Some food for thought when planning an alternate site
• Capacity – can it handle all employees
• Parking for employees and customers
• Office accessibility – if there are employees using public transport, is this office accessible. If not, what arrangements need to be made? Access to restaurants and other establishments.
• Deliveries and shipments – what arrangements need to be made?
• Internet connectivity – easy to provision or will it take time. Is wireless an option?
• Power – can it handle the load
• Office set up – will furniture be provided – if not can it be rented, from whom etc.
• Phones – can a temporary switchboard be set up
• Security – physical and data security. Entry protocols etc.
• Secure storage – is there storage to ensure office confidential physical copies are safe?
These are some of the issues and there will be many more. I hope this highlights the fact that planning an office after an emergency, will lead to much higher costs and decisions that are expedient rather than efficient. Planning gives you the luxury of thinking things through, using employee feedback to arrive at an optimal solution. You can also decide in case options available are not optimal what compromises have to be made. Please visit our sister site www.disasterrecovery.org which has valuable information on a variety of disaster related topics.