Staying Online: Tips for Business Protection in the Event of a Power Failure
By Donna Childs, NAWBO-New York City

Third-party failures disrupt services that you need to operate your business, such as electrical power. This failure can occur independently or as a consequence of a larger disaster, such as a storm. Recall the disruption to businesses in the power outage of August 2003 that left much of the U.S. without power. Were you prepared then? Here are a few tips:

Continuity of Telephone Communications
Analog lines work if your area is experiencing a power outage as the lines are powered by the phone company. Since nearly everyone has a cellular telephone, it is the natural backup solution for your land-based circuits. The question is how to automatically connect land- and cell phone-based service so the cell phone service would take over if the land lines failed. The problem is that once the land lines have failed, it is not possible to forward land-line calls to the cellular phones. In addition, cell phones can also fail in a major power outage as towers to relay signals will be depleted of reserve power.

The solution is developed by thinking in reverse. Provide a cell phone number as your general contact number. Program the phone such that incoming calls are forwarded to the land-based phone when the cellular phone is switched off. If your land-based line fails, simply switch on the cellular phone. Thus, in a localized disaster the cell phone now provides service. In a broader disaster such as a large-scale power outage, when cell phone stations are depleted of power with which to relay signals, use an analog phone to receive and make calls without interruption. (Remember that the phone must be directly connected to the analog line; a hand-held phone will be disabled by a power outage.)

Continuity of Voice Mail
Sign up with a voice mail provider that delivers messages over the Internet via e-mail. Also consider an integrated voice and fax service. Single providers of only voice mail or fax delivery via the Internet are usually not cost-effective. Since the Internet has been designed to automatically re-route traffic if one or many paths no longer work, having an Internet access point (such as from a battery-powered laptop through a cable modem), allows access to email, voice and fax messages.

Viewed this way, disasters are not so overwhelming and even simple steps, such as the ones outlined here, can significantly mitigate your risk and protect your business.

About the Author
Donna Childs is a co-author of Contingency Planning and Disaster Recovery: A Small Business Guide, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2002. The concept was borne of her 9-11 experience as a Lower Manhattan resident and business owner. She assigned her author’s royalties from the book to endow an academic program in her father’s name. Childs Capital has been profiled for its expertise in disaster preparedness by the Department of Homeland Security in connection with its “Ready for Business” campaign.

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