Disaster recovery and business continuity are related but distinct concepts for managing business crises. Disaster recovery focuses on specific plans for different emergencies, while business continuity seeks to ensure business continues as normal during a crisis. Both are vital to a company’s success and failure to plan can be costly.
Disaster recovery and business continuity are two related concepts that involve managing a business crisis. While disaster recovery and business continuity may be used interchangeably or referred to as a BCDR together, they often have distinct meanings. Disaster recovery usually refers to specific plans designed in response to a variety of disaster situations, including natural disasters, public relations issues, recalls, or even power outages. “Business continuity” is generally a broader term that refers to a company’s general ability to deliver key services despite a disaster and can be a set of strategies for dealing with common problems in the specific business.
The relationship between disaster recovery and business continuity is a very critical issue in many companies. If a company is unable to remain functional during a crisis, it can shake consumer confidence, damage the company’s image and hurt profit margins. Without a well-organized set of disaster recovery plans, business continuity is at risk in the event of a crisis.
Disaster recovery tends to handle specific action plans for different emergencies. If a company is located in a hurricane belt, it may have comprehensive and detailed procedures to follow in the event of a hurricane and the aftermath of a hurricane. A disaster recovery plan in this case might provide for the immediate safety of personnel through safety measures such as a hurricane shelter, but would likely also include a procedural guideline for what order to re-establish computer systems and services following the disaster. If a public scandal involving a company occurs, a disaster recovery plan might include guidelines on who should be told which information, who will speak to the press, and what instructions to give workers regarding the matter.
Business continuity, in contrast, is a series of steps or plans that seeks to ensure that business continues as normal, despite a crisis. This may include provisions such as server redundancy to ensure that data is not lost or that a company’s website remains operational. Perhaps the clearest way to distinguish disaster recovery and business management is that disaster recovery plans address the crisis, while business continuity plans manage the business during a crisis.
The fine line between disaster recovery and business continuity is confusing, but many business experts insist that both types of plans are vital to a company’s long-term success. Because disasters of any kind can be relatively rare, some business owners may not be willing to spend a lot of time or funding developing comprehensive disaster recovery and business continuity plans. This can be a huge risk, as the potential costs of a major disaster without a recovery plan can be enormous compared to the costs of creating a contingency plan.
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