Overview
What Is Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning?
Plans and arrangements that keep critical services running, or restore them quickly, when something goes wrong.
The Need
- No clear view of which services matter most
- Recovery plans that are out of date or untested
- Dependencies between systems that nobody has mapped
The Approach
- Identify critical services and their dependencies
- Set recovery targets and design arrangements to meet them
- Test plans regularly and keep them current
Assumptions and Dependencies
- Business input on which services are critical
- Access to system and supplier information
- Leaders who can agree recovery priorities
Challenges
Challenges This Solution Helps Address
The problems that most often lead organizations to look at business continuity and disaster recovery.
Solution Fit
Is This Solution Right for Your Organization?
Signs that business continuity and disaster recovery is likely to help, and what to check before you start.
Business Owners
- Executive and operations leaders
- IT and infrastructure leaders
- Risk and compliance teams
Typical Triggers
- A significant outage or near miss
- An audit, insurance or customer requirement
- A major change, such as a cloud migration
Environment
- On-premises, cloud and hybrid environments
- Business services that depend on IT and suppliers
Fit and Dependencies
- Works best with business leaders involved in setting priorities
- Results depend on regular testing and plan updates
What It Includes
What the Solution Includes
The main elements and the role each plays. The exact scope is agreed for each engagement.
How It Works
How It Works
A plan that is tested and maintained, not written once and filed.
Assess
Review critical services, dependencies, current plans and past incidents.
Design
Agree recovery targets and the arrangements to meet them.
Deploy and Integrate
Put recovery arrangements in place and write runbooks.
Validate
Run recovery tests and exercises against the agreed targets.
Operate and Improve
Update plans after changes and test them regularly.
Use Cases
Use Cases This Solution Supports
The scenarios this solution addresses. Start with the one closest to your situation.
Services
Services to Help You Implement and Operate It
The Signisys service that delivers this solution.
Technology
Platforms and Technologies
The technology areas involved. Specific platforms and partner status are confirmed per engagement.
Implementation
Planning a Successful Implementation
Points to review early, so the work is scoped accurately.
- Recovery time and data loss targets agreed with the business
- Supplier and third-party dependencies
- Alternative sites, cloud regions or work arrangements
- Communication plans during an incident
- Standards or regulations that apply
- Engagement model and ongoing support
Measuring Success
How to Measure Success
Example measures, not results achieved by Signisys. Agree a baseline, and keep targets separate from measured results.
Services with Tested Plans
The share of critical services with a recently tested plan.
Recovery Time Achieved
Recovery times in tests compared with targets.
Data Loss in Tests
Data lost in tests compared with targets.
Plan Currency
The share of plans reviewed within the agreed period.
Our Approach
How We Deliver This Solution
How Signisys works, from the first assessment to handover and beyond.
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about business continuity and disaster recovery.
What business problem does this solution address?
Not knowing which services matter most, how they depend on each other, or whether they could be recovered in time.
How does the solution work?
It identifies critical services and dependencies, sets recovery targets, puts arrangements in place and tests them.
Which environments can it support?
On-premises, cloud and hybrid environments, and the business services that depend on them.
What prerequisites should we assess?
Business priorities, current plans, system and supplier dependencies, and who can agree recovery targets.
Which services are available to implement it?
Consulting and Managed Services, covering assessment, implementation and ongoing improvement where agreed.
How do we know it is working?
Agree a baseline for measures such as services with tested plans, recovery time achieved, data loss in tests and plan currency, and track them over time.
Plan for Disruption
Share your objectives and current environment with Signisys to discuss the approach, requirements and next steps.