Disaster Planning and Recovery

"The focus of this guide is to assist you in planning for all thevital factors and imperative considerations essential in enhancingthe likelihood of your organization's continuity and survival whenimpacted by an out-of-course event: planning to prevent disasters,planning to reduce the likelihood of disasters, planning to dealwith disasters, and planning to recover after a disaster hasaffected the organization." -- Alan M. Levitt

The only complete, hands-on guide to disaster planning, DisasterPlanning and Recovery provides proven strategies, tools, andtechniques for helping your company plan for, cope with, andrecover from cataclysmic events. Internationally recognizedbusiness continuity expert Alan M. Levitt tells you what you needto know to avoid having natural and man-made disasters becomebusiness disasters. You'll find out how to:
* Create an effective plan in advance
* Reduce the likelihood of disasters
* Maintain functioning when disaster strikes
* Mobilize staff safely and efficiently during an emergency
* Reduce costs of and recovery time following an out-of-courseevent
* Work effectively with key departments, including IT, HR,maintenance
* Minimize stress on staff members
* And much more

Earthquakes, floods, fires, tornadoes . . . there isn't much youcan do to stop them from happening, but there are steps you cantake to prevent natural and man-made disasters from turning intobusiness disasters. And that is what this book is all about:minimizing the damage done to your business by cataclysmic externalevents.

The only complete, practical guide of its kind, Disaster Planningand Recovery shows facility professionals how to prepare for, copewith, and rebound from a disaster. Alan Levitt clearly demonstratesthat the first major step toward minimizing risk and optimizingrecovery time following an emergency is to formulate acomprehensive disaster plan. Drawing upon his years of experienceas a business continuity expert--and using fascinating andinstructive vignettes and case studies (many of them previouslyunpublished) to illustrate his points--he shows you how to developthe most cost-effective plan possible.

Rather than offer a set of one-size-fits-all checklists andprocedures, Levitt supplies a rational framework and provenstrategies for formulating a plan tailored to your business. Heshows you how to set reasonable goals that will allow you to reactmore quickly and effectively without losing sight of businessoutcomes. And he provides the means for researching and conductingthe five phases of a comprehensive disaster/recovery plan:identifying potential disasters; quantifying the risk ofoccurrence; establishing parameters for reducing that risk;forecasting the potential impact a disaster can have on personnel,plant, and business processes; and establishing systems forcounterbalancing those impacts.

Throughout Disaster Planning and Recovery, the emphasis is on humanfactors. Levitt describes techniques for efficiently mobilizingstaff in an emergency, working effectively with key departments,such as IT, and most importantly, easing the stress that disasterscan impose on staff members. Disaster Planning and Recovery is anindispensable resource for facility professionals, human resourcesmanagers, building owners and managers, architects, designers, andplanners.

ALAN M. LEVITT is principal and Managing Director of Levitt,Conford & Associates, a firm specializing in businesscontinuity consulting. LCA provides client organizations of allsizes with a wide range of planning services, includingcomputer-aided risk analysis modeling, goal setting, and creating,testing, and installing contingency plans. Mr. Levitt has lecturedinternationally on disaster planning and recovery, and his articleshave appeared in a number of professional journals.