In this month's column, I'll give you a long list of links to useful information I've found that can help you learn more and think clearly about disaster recovery issues. Let's be careful out there.
Eight Best Practices for Disaster Recovery – CIO Executive Council (http://www.cio.com/go/index.html?ID=801&PMID=34625&s=1&f=1) – Great starting place.
Baseline Magazine (http://www.baseline.com) – Excellent coverage of practical technology issues.
ComputerWorld (http://www.computerworld.com) – Covers many practical IT and business issues.
CFO.com's Technology Section (http://www.cfo.com/ channel/1,5357,6,00.html?f=topic) - CFO Magazine does a great job of covering technology issues from the point of view of a business decision-maker. Often you can find solid, practical information on today's most important IT issues, such as a recent comprehensive article on Sarbanes Oxley compliance.
CIO.com (http://www.cio.com) CIO magazine (the print version is free to qualified subscribers) consistently provides articles and other resources on a variety of contracting issues and trends, usually with excellent real life examples.
DennisKennedy.Blog - http://www.denniskennedy.com/blog/ - My blog (with an RSS feed) covers a number of topics, but will occasionally mention items useful on the topics of disaster recovery and business continuity issues.
Don't Skip on the Details: Structuring and Documenting the Real Content of Outsourcing Agreements (http://www.outsourcing-journal.com/ issues/apr2002/legal.html)
Drafting Successful ASP Service Level Agreements (http://www.internetindustry.com/mag/01_02su/ 18dra/)
GigaLaw.com (http://www.gigalaw.com) - A great site for all sorts of practical (emphasis on practical) articles on a variety of e-commerce, IP and other legal topics.
It's All in the Fine Print (http://www.utsystem.edu/OGC/intellectualproperty/ contract.htm) - The University of Texas has created a great set of resources for handling technology contracts. It includes checklists, explanatory material and other help.
Let's Make a Deal: Negotiating Skills for IT Managers (http://www.computerworld.com/managementtopics/management/story/0,10801,86195,00.html) – As this issue’s feature story suggests, getting good contract language requires good negotiation skills.
Seven Key Questions for Drafting Effective Exit Provisions (http://www.outsourcing-journal.com/issues/aug2002/legal.html)
Ten Essential Ingredients for a Solid Service Level Agreement (http://www.documentiq.com/resources/tips/191-DocumentIQ%20Tips.html)
Ten Steps to a Successful Security Policy (http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,85583,00.html) - Protecting your security obviously takes more that covering security issues in contracts. This article sets out the standard practices for developing a good security policy.
Working with Contracts: What Law School Doesn't Teach You, by Charles M. Fox, is exactly what the subtitle describes. In about 300 pages, Fox provides a primer on a whole range of contract clauses and techniques and a good reference for particular questions that may arise. Written by a lawyer, the book also provides clients with a good description of the role lawyers play in the contracting process. Highly recommended and for $35, a pretty good bargain. From the Practising Law Institute. (http://tinyurl.com/7xpx3).