Volume 19, Number 4
June 2002
Why the Plan Went Wrong
By R. Stephen Hansell
Planning for disasters and recovery from them has become a business necessity. But even the best-laid guides can go awry. When planning for recovery from a disaster or crisis situation, consider what could go wrong:
The disaster plan may go wrong if the
planner:
o Forgets to keep the plan simple and understandable.
o Fails to communicate the plan details and/or objectives to
everyone who needs to know them.
o Fails to implement the plan.
o Takes too long to implement the plan.
o Creates not a plan but a reactive model that fails to
anticipate or provide for all possibilities.
o Fails to back up important records.
o Fails to ensure that the data file backup actually works.
o Confirms that the back up works but fails to test and confirm
data retrieval.
o Fails to provide secondary back up.
o Fails to keep at least one copy of the backup off
premises.
o Saves information essential to recovery but overlooks the
physical components needed.
o Gets immersed in details of the plan and forgets its overall
mission and objectives.
o Follows the plan rigidly rather than adapting to current
developments and practical realities.
o Fails to delegate responsibilities and authority and ends up
with insufficient time for client concerns.
o Fails to oversee provisions for client confidentiality and
authority and the relevant Rules of Professional Conduct.
o Fails to notify clients, associates, local counsel, courts,
administrative agencies, and opposing counsel of the emergency
situation and recovery measures.
o Fails to involve casualty and liability insurer(s) and
malpractice carrier(s) early and often.
o Tries to accomplish too much at once by expanding the recovery
process into an opportunity to remodel the office, for example,
or introduces too many changes for staff and contractors to
integrate.
o Fails to learn from and adapt to earlier mistakes.
o Fails to correct deficiencies in operations or
communications.
o Fails to provide a sufficient rainy-day fund to weather the
storm, or makes it through the immediate onslaught but doesn't
have the wherewithal to survive the aftermath.
o Involves too many cooks or too many chiefs.
o Restricts thinking and planning to "inside the box" and fails
to realize opportunities presented by the occurrence and timing
of the crisis.
o Fails to review and update the plan on a regular basis.
o Gets too busy to stay current in file handling, research,
marketing, and client contact during the recovery period.
The recovery plan may go wrong if it fails to consider
that:
o Some amount of important data may be lost during the recovery
process.
o Disasters tend to occur at the worst possible times.
o The planner may not be around to effect or supervise the plan
and recovery.
o Disasters may result from an "unexpected" security breach such
as hacking, employee theft or malfeasance, industrial sabotage,
or terrorism.
The pitfalls seem to be unlimited and almost insurmountable, but professionals must be prepared for worst-case scenarios. The response to crisis is the measure of a professional's mettle.
R. Stephen (Ron) Hansell practices
construction, patent, and real estate law and construction
arbitration in Missoula, Montana, where he recently relocated
after 22 years of practice in Indianapolis.
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