Cyber-attacks, data breaches, fire, transport disruption or COVID 19. Any of these reasons, as we know now, can bring a small business to its knees in no time. An enterprise that has just started scaling up, is exploring new markets or is tying up important deals may not be able to sustain the shocks of sudden, unexpected disruption to its tech backbone. On MSME Day, it is crucial for businesses to pause and assess their readiness to such contingencies and take steps to be geared to function seamlessly, come rain or shine.

What can threaten business continuity?

A large-scale health emergency, like the recent pandemic, has emerged as one of the big threats to businesses worldwide. Lockdowns caused business operations to freeze, hybrid working models have emerged and many businesses adapted to online models. However, cyber-attacks, internal data threats, employee negligence and loss of infrastructure are also significant causes that can bring business to a grinding halt and put additional pressure on the company’s IT team’s resources. In fact, studies show that IT issues are responsible for an average of 22 minutes of loss of employee productivity per day, translating to a loss of 91 hours per employee every year!

Continuity breaches are not uncommon and many businesses, big and small, ensure that they have cloud based as well as physical data backup, to ensure that all is not lost. Having cybersecurity advisors and data security training for employees also goes a long way in mitigating the risks of the business buckling in the event of a disaster, pandemic or any other emergency.

What’s a good business continuity strategy?

Any small business’s disaster recovery and business continuity plan should be one that helps mitigate risk, reduces downtime and accelerates resumption, helping operations to be up and running in record time. A holistic solutions provider like Lenovo can be a business’s best friend in this regard - with its range of devices, services and solutions that can help a small business anticipate threats, and respond in real time to an ever-changing landscape. Tools like the Lenovo Vantage embedded in Lenovo Thinkbooks, deploy cutting edge Wifi protection, analysing threats in real time, distinguishing between legitimate and risky Wifi networks. Threats of data theft can be dealt with seamlessly by the Lenovo enabled Windows BitBlocker, a data protection feature that addresses the threat of data theft or exposure from lost, stolen or inappropriately decommissioned computers. While Lenovo’s solutions help businesses locate and monitor software and usage by employees in remote locations, Lenovo’s Think devices designed on the Intel® Evo™ vPro® platform and Windows 11 pro for business, are not only rugged and reliable, but also equipped with Intelligent Cooling Engines that boost employee wellbeing.

Data is gold, as any business worth its salt can tell you. Lenovo understands this, and has incorporated Carbonite Safe, an easy to install and use data backup solution for SMEs, as well as a cloud first design that seamlessly integrates with Microsoft platforms to help the team get back on its feet and connect, should any contingency arise.

Planning right is important!

The pandemic has taught us that we can no longer afford to be caught off guard. Constantly evolving technology, an emerging workforce and a hybrid business model that supports flexible working hours has heightened risks for small businesses. Investing in cloud optimised PCs by weeding out outdated ones that have run out of warranties, getting endpoint security, device management and intelligent cloud actions in a unified management platform are some of the ways small enterprises can insulate themselves from disaster.

Security is key

In an evolving world, it is important for businesses to equip their employees working from offices or elsewhere with devices that can be the front line of defence against cyber-attacks, provide super security with seamless single agent integration. To this end, Lenovo’s Thinkbooks, fortified by ThinkShield offer the most comprehensive security suite for business. Drive Encryption to keep prying eyes from seeing sensitive data, ThinkPad PrivacyGuard integrated screen filter with gaze detection to prevent shoulder surfing and Absolute Persistence technology to help IT admins secure endpoints and respond to security incidents are just some of the features that help businesses work smoothly. Lenovo devices now also come with the benefits of SentinelOne, which provides real-time prevention, ActiveEDR, IoT security, and cloud workload protection powered by patented Behavioral AI.

Link : https://techtoday.lenovo.com/in/en/pursue-innovation

Lenovo’s solutions and devices,powered by the Intel® Evo™ vPro® platform and Windows 11 pro for business, allow businesses to reconnect, refocus, and reset, ensuring businesses get back on track quickly. This means you get to focus on the larger picture of growing your business without getting bogged down by needless worries!

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