Disaster Recovery Plan: why your company needs it and how to set it up with a focus on continuity

We live in an increasingly digital world, where business operations depend heavily on the availability of data, systems and applications. Why does your company need a Disaster Recovery Plan? A cyber attack, hardware failure, natural disaster or human error can completely paralyze a company's operations - and in many cases, this means not only financial loss, but also loss of credibility and even the definitive closure of activities.

Why does your company need a Disaster Recovery Plan?

Ignoring the implementation of a disaster recovery plan is like driving without a seat belt: you may never need it, but when you do, it could save your company.

The main reasons for adopting a DR include:

1. Mitigating operational and financial risks:
   Unplanned interruptions are costly. An IBM study found that the average cost of a data breach in 2023 was US$4.45 million. In addition, downtime can lead to lost revenue, regulatory fines and lawsuits.
2. Reputation protection:
   Companies that are down for days or weeks face a loss of trust from customers, partners and investors. Rapid recovery shows preparedness and responsibility.
3. Compliance with standards and regulations:
   Several sectors (financial, health, legal) are required by law to maintain continuity and recovery policies, especially with regard to the protection of sensitive data.
4. Growth of the cyber threat:
   The increase in ransomware attacks requires companies to be prepared to restore systems quickly without relying on criminals or ransom payments.
5. Continuity as a competitive advantage:
   In times of crisis, companies that manage to continue operating gain ground in the market. DR can be a strategic asset.

What happens when the company doesn't have a plan?

The impacts of the absence of a Plan are profound and often irreversible:

• Downtime: Even an interruption of a few hours can cause major losses in high-demand environments;
• Loss of critical data: Without a solid backup and restoration strategy, essential information can be lost forever;
• Increased recovery time and cost: Without defined processes, disaster response becomes improvised and inefficient;
• Distrust from customers and partners: Companies without digital resilience lose competitiveness and market share;
• Possible bankruptcy: According to FEMA, 40% of small businesses never reopen after a disaster, and another 25% fail within a year.

Read more: Disaster Recovery: How Does the Cloud Ensure Business Continuity?

How to put together an effective plan:

Drawing up a DR plan involves several stages. Below, we show you how to structure this process with a focus on business continuity, placing the private cloud as one of the central pillars:

1. Identify critical business assets

Not all systems need to be recovered immediately after a disaster. The first step is to map IT assets and identify them:

• Which applications are critical to the company's operation?
• Which data cannot be lost in any way?
• Which systems would have a direct impact on the customer experience if they became unavailable?

This mapping is the basis for defining recovery priorities.

2. Define RTOs and RPOs

• RTO (Recovery Time Objective): Maximum acceptable time for a system to be back up and running after a disaster.
• RPO (Recovery Point Objective): Maximum amount of data that the company can lose in the event of a failure (e.g. 1 hour of work).

These indicators guide the choice of technological solutions and the level of investment required.

3. Do a risk and impact analysis

Assess the internal and external risks that could affect your infrastructure:

• Hardware failures;
• Human error;
• Cyber attacks (such as ransomware);
• Fires, floods or natural disasters;
• Power outages or connectivity interruptions.

Each scenario must have a planned response, with clear actions to mitigate the impacts.

4. Choose the right recovery infrastructure

At this point, the private cloud takes center stage.

Why is disaster recovery in the private cloud essential?

The private cloud offers a highly controlled, secure and customizable environment for hosting copies of critical systems and data. It combines the scalability of the cloud with the security and compliance requirements of companies that need greater control over their infrastructure.

Advantages of the private cloud with DR:

• Isolation and security: Exclusive environments reduce the risk of data breach and exposure.
• High availability: Resources can be allocated automatically in the event of failures in the main environment.
• Immutable backup: Protects data from modification or deletion, including ransomware.
• Fast recovery: Clone and restore virtual machines in minutes.
• Regulatory compliance: Meets the specific requirements of sectors such as finance and health.

In addition, the private cloud can be integrated with backup solutions, real-time replication and automated failover, making the plan more efficient and agile.

5. Implement a robust backup policy

Backup is the backbone of any DR plan. Some good practices include:

• Frequent, automatic and validated backups;
• Storage in different locations (on-premise and cloud);
• End-to-end encryption;
• Solutions with immutable backup;
• Periodic restoration tests;

Combined with the private cloud, backup ensures that data is protected and accessible even in extreme cases.

6. Document everything

A good plan must be clear, accessible and up-to-date. It should contain:

• Recovery processes for each system;
• Emergency contacts;
• Responsible for each action;
• Internal and external communication procedures;
• Decision flowcharts;
• Checklists.

The documentation must be available both digitally and in print, in secure locations.

7. Train your team

A plan, no matter how good, will fail if people don't know how to act. Regular training, disaster simulations and recovery exercises are essential to prepare teams and ensure a rapid response.

8. Test and review periodically

A DR plan is not static. Changes to the infrastructure, new risks or failures identified in simulations require constant revision. Tests should be carried out at least every six months.

Conclusion: continuity is not a luxury, it's survival

Having a DR Plan has gone from being a best practice to becoming a basic requirement for survival in the digital world. The frequency and severity of disruptive events is only increasing, and unprepared companies are exposed to risks that could be fatal.

The private cloud has emerged as a modern and reliable pillar for guaranteeing business continuity, offering security, performance and agility in recovery. Combined with a good backup policy and well-defined processes, it transforms DR from an emergency plan to a strategic differentiator.

If your company still doesn't have a DR plan or hasn't revised its plan in a long time, the time to act is now. Because in the real world, disaster doesn't tell you when it's coming. Find out how here!