KingsBridge Blog

We’ve all seen them… The new companies that appear seemingly out of nowhere. Often these companies have fancy marketing material, a snazzy logo, a few fast-talking sales staff, and typically an energetic and keen staff working behind the scenes. Everything ticks along nicely, the company is getting noticed and even making some sales. The board is happy, the sales staff are confident, and the team is focused on growth and new opportunities. This company looks like it is going to succeed – put a checkmark in the win column.

But then as quickly as the company appeared on our radar, it’s gone. The website is still active but emails are not answered, the sales staff aren’t answering their phones, and the energetic staff doesn’t appear to be so energetic anymore. Hmm, strange that such a successful company that was making money and a name for itself simply closed its doors and shut down. You chalk this up to the current economic situation or even perhaps to bad management.

But what if this company isn’t really dead? Look at the signs – no one answering the phones, emails not being answered – but the website is still live. Strange that if the company has indeed closed its doors that the website is still live… After some investigating by some curious business-watchers, it turns out that to put it quite simply: this company wasn’t prepared.

That’s right – this hot young company who appeared on paper and in person to be doing everything right, neglected to pay attention to one key component of good business: being prepared. Confidence and success convinced the IT manager, the board of directors, and management team that they were doing everything right. But they forgot to consider a couple of key things:

-        What if our servers go down? How will we keep hosting the software that our customers rely on?

-        What if the power goes out? How will we guarantee that our 24/7 support is available?

-        What if employees can’t get into the office due to weather or family emergencies? How will the work get done and the vital sales demos be delivered?

That’s right, this company simply did not consider the things that could go wrong. All too often when business is good and the bank account is growing, no one ever takes the time to think about the “bad stuff”. Unfortunately for this company, this is exactly what happened. Call it over-confidence if you want, but really it comes down to poor management and decision-making. A power outage, a tough winter that featured an ice storm, and unstable servers, all resulted in the company being forced to close its doors.

All it took was three separate incidents that alone perhaps wouldn’t be considered to be serious. But when in one year, this company was threatened three times, it simply became too much. Sales started to drop, productivity was behind, and the board became frustrated – investors pulled out and the company quietly closed its doors.

If only this company had followed advice and initiated Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning. The three incidents would have been just that – incidents. They wouldn’t have turned into threats and eventually forced this company to close. Staff would have been prepared and equipped to work from home, back-up power generators would have been purchased, and the pesky and unstable server software issues would have been addressed. (The only reason the website is still live is because it was hosted off-site…)

What does this mean for you? Well, hopefully you’ll take a hard look at your business – are you equipped and prepared in the event of a threat or disaster? Remember the disaster doesn’t need to be “huge” – it simply needs to be something that causes an interruption in your ability to get the job done. How many of these interruptions can your bottom line sustain? Do you have a Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan in place? Perhaps it is time to stop operating by the seat of your pants….

About KingsBridge

KingsBridge offers private businesses and government organizations a unique combination of industry knowledge and cost-effective disaster recovery / business continuity solutions. KingsBridge products and seminars provide the tools to assess possible threats and create tailored plans which mitigate risks and minimize losses in the event of a disruption to business. Kingsbridge is headquartered in Ogdensburg, New York, with offices in Ottawa, Canada and Burlington, Vermont. For more information visit us at www.DisasterRecovery.com.