Do you think your business would survive a natural or any other type of disaster? If a tornado, flood, fire, theft or data breach happened and your company was severely affected, how much would you be able to save? Many companies don’t even think about unpredictable events that could tremendously harm their business until they happen.
Between 40 and 60% of small businesses close permanently after a disaster occurs, the Federal Emergency Management Agency reported. How you are prepared for potential disasters that might happen in the future is more crucial than ever. To help you avoid these events, we bring you useful tips on disaster-proofing for small business owners.
Disaster Recovery Plan
Every business should develop its disaster recovery plan. To create a quality plan, you should name someone your disaster plan coordinator and allow that person to develop the plan for your business. Of course, as a business owner, you should provide them with all the essential information and let them know what needs to be included in the plan. That person should also run an analysis to determine what the company should do if faced with a disaster.
Your coordinator should set up an emergency response plan for your employees to understand and learn every detail about it. They should know who needs to be notified about the disaster and what exact measures need to be taken to save lives and protect property with each disaster. Responsibilities should be assigned to your employees and you should practice the emergency response plan procedure regularly. Also, create a list with vital phone numbers and other contact information – local and state emergency agencies, financial institutions, insurance agents, contractors, realtors, etc.
Investing in Appropriate Insurance
Each business has valuable possessions that need to be insured. There are numerous insurance policies you have to know about if you want your company to be fully covered in the case of calamities. With property insurance, you will protect your business property if damage has been done due to a disaster. Your business property includes everything, from the building to expensive equipment and company documents. Of course, your insurance policy can be customized and include other elements which are usually not included in standard policies e.g. earthquake and flood.
When talking about your insurance policy, you should consider adding business interruption coverage to your package. It will reimburse lost income that could have been generated during the interruption period. However, to create this type of coverage, you should consult your insurance specialist to determine the best options for your business.
Protection from Fire
One of the most common disasters that happen to businesses is fire. To protect your business from it, you will need to analyse your risk exposure and also train your workforce on how to act in case this event occurs. Moreover, you will need an emergency evacuation plan. Your emergency exit should be clearly marked and easily accessible to all your employees. Also, follow your fire code requirements.
Installing and maintaining fire suppression systems will also help to protect your business from fire. Your workplace should have portable fire extinguishers and automatic fire sprinklers as well as fire ducts. When talking about fire extinguishers, always check when they expire and make sure your employees know how to use them. You should also consider establishing a relationship with local first responders and provide them with the building’s floor plan. This will help your local fire department act as quickly as possible.
Data Breach
This is one of the new threats which will definitely continue growing in the 21st century. As technology is evolving, businesses are storing their sensitive and confidential information on their devices and they utilise either cloud or on-premises solutions for its protection. If a data breach happens, it will expose all your information to an unauthorized person who does not work in your company. In most cases, an outside hacker is responsible for data breaches, but it can also happen by accident from an inside person, when one of your devices gets lost or stolen, etc.
If a hacker gets near your data, it can cause enormous damage to your business. That person can steal and sell your Personally Identifiable Information (PII) or your corporate intellectual data. When someone wants to steal your data, it usually happens with a weak or stolen credential, compromised assets, payment card fraud, mobile devices and third-party access.
To prevent this from happening, you should focus more on prevention than passively waiting for a data breach to happen. Patch and update your software regularly, encrypt your sensitive data, upgrade if the software is not supported by the manufacturer anymore and, most importantly, educate your employees on the best prevention methods to avoid these attacks.
Conclusion
Ignoring the importance of protecting your business from disasters will not only cost you your business property but it can also cause harm to your employees. That’s why it’s crucial to always be prepared for unpredictable events. Find the most efficient solutions and share them with your team so everyone can react promptly even if you’re not there.