Why Use a Business Continuity Plan?

Broken Promises and Superstorm Sandy

Bureaucratic processes never cease to amaze me in the length of time they take to transpire.

My partner and I own a 20 year old business located in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. It's a small event management company handling all types of occasions from Baptisms and Brises to Weddings and 50th Anniversaries - corporate or private parties - large or small, no difference. We are located right across the street from Gargiulo's Restaurant, a 106 year old Brooklyn staple. That restaurant/catering hall has been in my partner's family since 1965, family owned and operated.

On October 29, 2012, all of our day-to-day routines were swept out with the tide - literally! Hurricane Sandy moved in, bringing over five feet of water from Coney Island Creek first then the tidal surge from the ocean. All of Coney Island was covered with water and sand from the shore to the Belt Parkway. Not one property was spared.

Cousins had flooded basements; one cousin lost his beachfront home to the ravages of the Atlantic; at least a dozen personal vehicles all sunk; over 10 inches of water on the entire first floor of the restaurant which is elevated over four feet from street level; a 10 foot tall basement, over 20,000 square feet, filled to the ceiling with sea water.

And then there was our store.

All of our stock had just been delivered. We had some of the best opportunities and events of our careers during the week previous to the storm - a soup-to-nuts First birthday party with a Halloween theme, American Cancer Society called us to do giant arches in Central Park at the start and finish lines of their main New York City fund raising walk, complete balloon decorations on the set of Rachel Ray for her Halloween show. It all seems like a blur at this point - so far removed from our reality now. Counters cracked the front door, items that had been raised up all fell to the floor and were sunk in over five feet of water, all balloon inflating equipment under water, almost all of the stock of balloons we owned gone. Not even the drawer of scissors survived.

We were done.

The day after the storm, my partner and I decided to close. Everything that was ruined by the salt water went into the garbage. Someone came by and told us that FEMA was in the area and we should go speak to them, which we did. It seemed surreal to me - we had vacationed in New Orleans a year before and to be sitting outside the same trailers we had heard about from the residents of the Big Easy was almost too much to bear. My partner was upbeat - positive even. All I wanted to do was cry.

With a restless night's sleep in a home with no power, we came in the next day and decided to reopen because the representatives at the FEMA trailer sounded so upbeat. We would apply to the SBA and to the NYCEDC - we would be helped. Our staff stepped up and cleaned out the entire store - the young kids who had walked into our store looking for a job years before stood in front of us and told us that "We were in this together" and that they would help us rebuild. We knew we could work as long as we had a pair of scissors, a helium tank and some balloons. And that is what we did.

As we had back in 2001, after the September 11th attacks on our city, we got back to business. Back in 2001, our bank representatives showed up less than a month later to sign off on "Bridge Loans" available from the government to "help us recover". Then, Coney Island didn't seem to us like a terrorist's target but the money came in and we were able to strengthen our business with the SBA behind us. This time, the SBA was behind us - basically kicking us while we were down.

All paperwork filed, interviews and meetings kept. Over thirty phone calls and hundreds of pages later - I am the proud owner of a denial letter from the NYCEDC (too high a risk), a denial letter from the SBA (we didn't make a large enough profit in 2011) and a final denial from a private program as we owned property - no way to get the funds we needed to rebuild.

We were told we could reapply and appeal decisions. Any money we have made has gone to pay for the new electrical panel, new walls and insulation, new doors and moldings. Jim Parker and over 30 members of BalloonPlanet.com raised money to help us restock our balloon inventory. We received a $500 grant from the Alliance for Coney Island and a "Pay It Forward" grant of $1000 from LiteWing Naturals in New Jersey. These grants have helped us immensely - our thanks will never be enough to repay their kindness and thoughtfulness.

But as for my faith in government sponsored programs that are designed to help those who need it most, I can tell you this: I was always told to do good and good would be returned. My partner and I have always tried to do the right thing - we've always tried to be fair, honest, supportive of our staff, eager to work for and help others. That is one thing that will never change.

My faith on the promises of our government programs? Swept away with Superstorm Sandy.

Lessons learned? Rely on yourself, treasure those that support you, work hard and pray for sunshine.

Jane Parmel
http://www.avividimagination.com

Business continuity planning - Wiki Article

Triumph or Disaster?

"IF you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you... If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster... Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken... and lose, and start again at your beginnings... ". Some fine words from one of the finest poems ever written - "If" by Rudyard Kipling. Without pain, struggle and failure, how could we truly appreciate the good times and acknowledge our success and achievement.

When I first started speaking as a professional, one thing that I felt quite happy about was the fact that I was able to deliver my talks and ideas with conviction and energy despite having never failed in business or life (so I thought). I don't believe I was smug in any way; I was just pleased to be on stage having not felt the pain of failure and everything that goes with it. I was young, enthusiastic with a hunger to succeed and a self-belief that I would. Knowing that I had always succeeded in my life and work up to that point, gave me an extra boost of confidence.

Then reality struck! Many of us have suffered professionally and personally since 2008, many businesses have gone to the wall, property empires have collapsed and relationships have changed forever. I can admit that some of my less happy circumstances have been caused by self-inflicted flaws and weaknesses in my business model or in the decisions I made when feeling content and 'bullet proof' prior to the global meltdown.

I don't tell you this story to depress you but to empathise with those who have suffered similarly, share with those who are just getting going and shine a light of hope that the good times will come again.

I recently worked in a tough secondary school, a school where the students were very disengaged and clearly didn't want to be there. On top of that there was a big fight between students during the lunch break, with ambulances and blue-flashing lights, which meant that during the afternoon session the students were hugely distracted and even less engaged. Keeping any sort of order or learning objectives in mind through the day was a real challenge for me.

Excluding the trouble makers and removing students from the classroom would have meant reducing the class by half. It really was a tough day at the office. Feedback from the students was understandably mixed. The negative feedback was blunt, rude and hard for me to read, especially since I knew I had given it my all. Yet by contrast, the positive feedback was really special showing that many students had gained a great deal from the day. Overall, I had to be philosophical about that particular day. I used all the tools in the box to deliver a memorable day for the students and other circumstances that occurred meant that perhaps it was memorable for different reasons...

Contrast that with the next time I worked in a school delivering a speaking skills programme, only a week later. There were students who didn't want to be there and others that were keen to learn, those that were challenging and difficult still got involved, we engaged on a different level and they all stood up and delivered their speeches at the end of the day like they had never delivered a speech before in their lives. It was a real privilege to be in the room and hear their words.

What was different? The moon, the stars, the school, the teachers or the environment? -All of the above probably, or maybe none of the above. In everything we do there are tough days, days when everything just seems to go wrong despite our best efforts and then there are days when it feels like you just don't have to try and everything works. Those days feel so good, but what makes them feel even better is the fact that you know and understand the pain of the 'crap' days. Everyone has good and bad stuff going on, enjoy the good times, forgive yourself when things go wrong and learn from the bad days. Remember that tomorrow is another day, it isn't yet written, so go for it!

Mike Pagan is a highly sought after professional motivational speaker, conference speaker, and business coach.

For Your Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning Needs: Data Centers "on Wheels"

For Your Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning Needs: Data Centers "on Wheels"

Disaster Strikes: No Time to Forget the Disabled

In a disaster situation, it is important to remember those who already have their own unique challenges when going about their daily lives. All too often the disabled are overlooked in favor of rushing help to a community overwhelmed with a loss of basic services because of flooding or other severe storm damage that might have necessities like power and sanitation crippled for days, weeks, or in extreme cases months and even years.

Flooding in particular presents a particular hazard that goes beyond property damage, affecting basic health by contaminating fresh water sources and forcing displaced survivors to pack into emergency shelters. In the United States, most places used for emergency shelters are not usually equipped to handle so many people all at once like churches, school gymnasiums, or other sporting venues. This puts that much more strain on already iffy sanitation services in a disaster struck area and makes the disabled that much more difficult to accommodate if they have special needs to take into account. Potentially life-threatening infections that contaminated water can spread include, but are not limited to, E. coli, giardia, salmonella, and hepatitis A.

The easiest solution to this problem is amazingly simple --portable toilets -- in other words, the humble porta potty.

Portable rental toilets, or porta potty as many call them, are self-contained chemical toilets. Just as importantly, however, the porta potty can be found in ADA compliant models. They need no existing plumbing in place to hook up to on site where they're needed most, so if local waste treatment facilities are damaged they won't add any stress to an already compromised system. Sewage disposal can be trucked from where temporary shelters are to a nearby community that isn't as badly affected. This, combined with bottled water distribution and portable hand wash stations that many portable toilet companies now have available, the potential for the spread of disease is radically reduced.

By including ADA compliant bathrooms to these temporary disaster situations, that extra protection is extended to not only the disabled, but to the elderly who can have more difficulty sitting and standing in confined spaces (such as a standard porta potty), or disaster victims who have been injured and can't get around as easily as usual. Making sure portable ADA compliant bathrooms are included to disaster areas along with disability accessible portable hand wash stations protects not only the disabled, but the elderly and the rest of a stressed population from the spread of serious diseases.

A-1 Little John is a family owned and operated business that serves the porta potty needs of the Texoma area. We specialize in all types of portable bathroom rentals including ADA compliant bathrooms, construction units, and hand wash stations.

Business Continuity Planning and Disaster Recovery

How the Incident Command Structure Works

There is a disaster in waiting every moment, so it is of utmost importance to have a system in place that would tackle the challenges faced during any such emergency and provide the required help to the people in need. This system needs to be available in all the departments of a particular business, practice and residential or commercial structures to make them foolproof from any emergency that can occur at any given time. Also, this system must have all the required equipments and people to pull off a rescue operation with high success percentage.

One such system which is followed in the US is called the Incident Command Structure or System (ICS). The ICS is particularly defined as a method that takes care of the 3C's (control, coordination and command) during an emergency. It could be better explained in a better way as a structure containing predefined rules, a certain number of experts, a fully equipped facility and processes which are used all together to cater response to emergencies of any complexity and type.

The Incident Command System is a well tested and trusted form of managing and reducing the damage caused by an uncalled for emergency. This method of limiting damage has been successfully used by many government and non-government structures, including hospitals and military. The system has also proved its worth in a lot of businesses as well. The major role of ICS is to significantly narrow down the damage caused to property and people during a case of an emergency as well as non-emergency disaster.

The ICS looks majorly into the planning, command, logistics, administration and operations during any particular emergency. Every part of the system is handled by an expert personnel, who takes care of the proper working of his respective are of interest. First of all there is the Planning Section Chief who collects all the required information from every other department and thus constructs a plan of action. Then, there is the incident commander who directs every person and every action. The logistic Chief caters to providing relief material at the facility in question. The administration Chief looks into the finances during any emergency operation. While the Operation's Chief handles the staff and the residents of the facility in need of emergency help. Apart from these people, there are several others as well who get the operation rolling and inform the media and outside world about the happenings.

So, its not very difficult to understand that this system is very essential and limits the loss caused by disasters.

Author is an experienced content writer and publisher. Read More on Incident Command Structure and incident command

Palindrome Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity solutions

Standby Power Generation: Should You Consider Storm Running?

We should probably start out by defining 'storm running'. What is storm running? Storm running is the exercise of running standby power generation in anticipation of severe weather, before an electrical outage actually occurs.

No person or business should ever be surprised by severe weather these days. Between weather radios, more effective forecasting, text alerts and weather apps for just about any Android phone-communication is constant and instantaneous. You know when a storm is approaching about 90% of the time and have some time to plan.

Consider operating your existing standby power generation for storm running purposes. First, define what circumstances would prompt the operation of the power generation. Consider what the cost to your business would be if you experienced an outage caused by an electrical disturbance? What would you consider the minimum power load needed to keep your critical systems running during an outage?

Lightning strikes do not need to be directly overhead to cause damage to a production facility, data center or commercial business. Power outages can last seconds, to minutes, to hours and even days. A dip in power may cause as much damage as a surge in power to electronic equipment.

It is generally recommended to use the standby power generation as a preventative measure and power up the generator prior to the storm's approach. This will separate from the utility and operate in an "island" mode for a period of time, until the danger of power outage has passed. Then the facility can be transferred back to the usual utility feed.

Fuel for standby power generation can be costly, especially for longer periods of time. The cost of the fuel should be weighed against the cost of the lost production time and the possible loss of equipment. Words of caution-do not delay keeping your fuel stock fill! Emergencies happen and you should be ready for them at any time!

Another consideration is environmental regulations in areas that could restrict the time a generator may be used. Be sure to know these time parameters before an emergency happens. Find out if you need a permit or if you need to notify any particular agency or person prior to storm running.

There are times when you will need to run to turn on your standby power generation at a moment's notice or even after you lose power. The key is to be prepared. Periodically test your standby power and keep your fuel tanks full.

by Ervin Root

Senior Electrical Engineer

http://www.ieapower.com/solutions/renewables/solar/

Industrial Energy Applications, Inc. is an energy services company specializing in energy infrastructure projects behind the customer's utility meter. Our preferred business model is to build, own, operate and maintain assets for customers on their sites, but we are willing to do turn-key projects and to operate and maintain assets owned by the customer. Our target customers are in the industrial and large commercial space.

The BSM Top 5 Networking and Data Storage Articles of 2012

After Document Imaging

What to do With All That Paper

Since 2005, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse states that over half a billion personal records have been accidentally exposed in the United States. According to an article on Health Data Management's website, Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth must notify over 200,000 patients due to a records management security breach. Microfiche records containing personal information for patients admitted to the hospital between 1980 and 1990 were found in a Dallas park. These records were said to have been destroyed.

So what do you do with documents, files, microfiche or films once they've been scanned? You have two options:

Document Storage

If you choose to store your documents, chances are you already have a system set up. However, if you use a document imaging service, they often have off-site storage options so these files do not take up space in your office or facility. Be aware that some states have laws regarding the storage and disposal of documents. Make sure that you are storing documents in accordance with your state's regulations.

Since document storage should be a part of your document imaging plan, be sure to think about the end in the beginning of your document imaging project. You wouldn't want to be stuck with cabinets full of paper files that are improperly or dangerously stored. Planning ahead will protect your business and the privacy of your clients.

Document Disposal

Shredding documents is the way to go here. There are several mobile shredding services that offer secure disposal of your documents. However, you MUST use a service or vendor that you trust. Do your homework. Check up on their references and reviews before making a decision to avoid a mishap like the buried microfiche records. If you have the time and resources, visit the facility where destruction occurs. Require the company to provide a signed service agreement that explicitly outlines the specifics of your relationship. Once the process is complete, demand a certificate of destruction from the service provider. Again, planning ahead will save you and your customers the time and heartache involved in exposed personal information.

Another option is to shred the documents yourself. Remember, though, that there are laws and regulations that you must follow to ensure that your costumers' information is safe and secure.

Storage or disposal, the decision is yours. However, to avoid a mistake like the one in Texas, make sure you thoroughly research any document imaging or shredding service you choose.

Contact Advanced Imaging Solutions today for more information on secure document imaging services and disposal.

Baton Rouge - 225.216.1999 || Metairie - 504.888.7415

http://advancedimagingsolutions.com/

Disaster recovery - Wiki Article

Off-Grid Lighting and DC Systems for Performance During and After a Disaster

Up and until now there were no good lighting solutions that could survive a shock, vibration or prolonged periods of being in high humidity environments or submerged in water, yet fully functional once the adverse conditions subside.

Conventional Lighting

Conventional lighting often use metal-halide or some form of mercury laden bulb or tube technology that can easily break due to vibration, concussion or shock. As a result conventional lighting is more likely to be not available in an emergency in addition adding insult to injury poisoning the environment, humans and animals nearby with unhealthy amounts of mercury. Conventional lighting requires larger generators or grid power to operate.

LED Lighting designed for Emergencies and Disasters

State-of-the-art LED lighting can offer a real alternative as the best performing technology during disasters. When designed appropriately, certain LED lighting fixtures lend themselves to be more robust light fixtures outperforming any conventional lighting technology, during and after a disaster.

Unlike any other conventional lighting technology, LED light sources that are appropriately protected, do not suffer from vibration, power fluctuations or humidity. They are able to start immediately at extreme temperatures from -55°C (-56°F) to +60°C ambient temperatures.

As LED light sources are generally driven by low voltage power drivers they lend themselves to be driven from DC power sources like batteries, solar panels or wind mills in addition to being driven from grid power or conventional generators. Due to their much lower power consumption they can provide adequate lighting for a longer period when driven from emergency power sources like generators or batteries.

LED lighting systems can be designed so that they do not lose any light-output with use nor do they change their correlated color temperature (CRI). Although, many main stream lighting brands design for obsolescence, some less mainstream players do provide 10 year warranties on their drivers and guaranteed light output without restrictions, those will be the best lighting fixtures to use for emergency and disaster proof lighting.

Of course quality products that are made from better heat transporting materials are more expensive to make, yet their return of investment (ROI) is normally better than a conventional built-to-fail and therefore cheap lighting product. The better ROI is also due to the high cost of identifying, monitoring and replacing failed lighting bulbs or fixtures which obviously is not required for a lasting and highly reliable light fixtures.

Most importantly in a disaster or after energy sources may be scarce, LED lighting designed for the purpose can run four times longer from a generator producing the same light output of conventional technology. Conventional technology is not suitable to be run off batteries while LED technology can be run with 5 times the efficiency compared to conventional lighting that is run from batteries.

Conclusion

Until a better and even safer way to produce light more efficiently comes along, one can make the now reasonable assumption that LED lighting will be the lighting technology for some time to come.It makes sense to invest into the higher performance LED lighting which saves between 15% and 50% more energy compared to its cheaper and disposable LED equivalent and will perform significantly better during and after a disaster than any other conventional lighting.

Every organization wanting to ensure staying in business through and after a disaster has struck or municipalities that have to provide services during or after a disaster need to look into the latest technologies that can give them the edge on recovery. ActiveLED lighting is better suited to sustain vibration, shock and humidity than conventional HID, Fluorescent or Induction Lighting. ActiveLED can run directly off 48V batteries or DC sources as well as a wide range of grid power. See http://www.activeLED.com