In order to be workable, the plan must be a comprehensive action document which will minimize losses and decision-making under duress. Such a plan must be sufficiently detailed so that major recovery decisions will be made prior to, and not immediately after, the occurrences of a disaster. The likelihood of a computer disaster affecting an individual organization may be quite low, but the impact of such a disaster could be immense. Seventy percent of companies that suffer a major hit do not survive the next year. Insurance may replace most of the money but, if you do not know where you spend it, your company does not survive.
Recovery time is directly related to the availability of the plans.
The real benefits of a plan are minimizing potential loss by identifying, prioritizing and safeguarding those assets that the need the most protection. The plan will save valuable time and money in the event of a disaster. An established plan having a clearly-defined course of action will return your systems to production quickly. Without a plan, the lost motion, mistakes, guesswork, and other fumbling will make the recovery plan several times longer and often impossible. When complete, your plan will define remote locations where backup files, software, documentation, etc are stored.