Hearing the word “disaster” might conjure up images of hurricanes, wildfires, and other catastrophic, once-in-a-lifetime events. But for managed service providers (MSPs), disaster goes beyond what you read in headlines. A single ransomware attack, a week-long ISP outage, an employee error that wipes out key client data - these can all be catastrophic for MSPs and can test their resilience and their client’s loyalty.

Disaster-readiness is truly a matter of “when”, not “if” for MSPs. So, how do you come out on top when disaster strikes? Prepare early, build resilient systems, and test them often.

In this blog, we’ll share actionable steps that top MSPs take to weather the unexpected.

Businesses need more than a basic business continuity plan

As an MSP, you know the importance of business continuity planning. It might be tempting to have basic protocols in place, but go a little further. Iron out important details and update your plan regularly to increase the chances you’ll not only survive, but thrive in the face of disaster.

Go the extra mile by making sure your business continuity checklist includes:

Clear communications trees.

• Be direct about assigning communications responsibilities and protocols. Who speaks to clients if systems go down? What do they say and how often do they communicate? Check this quarterly to ensure your points of contact are up to date.

Prioritized system recovery lists.

• What’s the chain of command as it relates to your system? What needs to be restored first to minimize disruption? Create detailed checklists and put them to the test often.

Roles and responsibilities by name, not title or department.

• In an emergency, don’t leave anything up for interpretation. Clearly list out names by responsibility and include how to reach each person (email, Slack handle, phone number, etc).

Every person on your staff should know how to access your BCP in case of emergency. Set a calendar reminder for each quarter to review your protocols, do a test run, and make sure everything is up to date.

Recovery objectives that become real infrastructure

Part of disaster-readiness is identifying your recovery time objectives (RTO) and your recovery point (objectives). Once you define those, you need to build your infrastructure to meet the standards you’ve set.

• Your RTO is how quickly you need to recover systems. This should be based on data, not gut feeling. Understand what even one minute of downtime means for you and your clients, then create standards and procedures based on those numbers.
• Your RPO is how much data you can afford to lose. Nobody wants to lose critical data, but you need to build protocols around worst-case scenarios. RPO is usually measured in a unit of time and defines the maximum age of data that can be recovered after an outage (i.e., if your RPO is 5 hours, it means a business can tolerate losing up to 5 hours of data). This will vary per client and industry.

Be precise and intentional about these definitions. If your RTO is two hours, but your current backup solution takes six hours, you’ve set yourself up for failure.

Match your backup and disaster recovery tools to your RTO and RPO. You may need to create tiers so that high-priority systems get near instant failover, while less critical systems have longer windows.

Test, test, then test again

Don’t assume that just because it’s documented and people know how to find it, it’ll work. A backup protocol that’s never been tested is really just a theory. Build confidence by putting your business continuity plan and processes to the test over and over again.

Test like it’s your job (oh wait, it is) by:

• Running tabletop exercises - gather your team, simulate different disaster scenarios, and take turns walking through your response
• Conducting surprise restore drills - catch your team off-guard to ensure they can work under pressure and recover data within your target RTO
• Documenting everything - create a detailed report after each test and include what worked, what broke, what your RTO and RPO were, and how to improve next time (pro tip: feed this data into your AI system to help you make faster, more informed business decisions)

Make disaster recovery tests a regular part of your operational rhythm to build confidence, create a culture of accountability, and earn your client’s trust.

Redundancies that are intentional

Sometimes, redundancy is your best insurance policy. Just like you wouldn’t rely on one method to solve every problem, you also shouldn’t rely on one system to carry you through a disaster.

Go beyond data backups and ensure your protocols take the following into account:

• Connectivity - have multiple failovers and ISPs; if your main lines go down, have various other plans in place
• Systems - consider using cloud replication and geodiverse servers and data centers
• People - cross-train staff and list backup emergency contacts for each step in your recovery protocol

Take time each quarter to audit your single points of failure. Where are you relying on one vendor, one system, or one individual? That’s where your risk lives.

Cybersecurity as a first line of defense

The most common MSP disasters today come in the form of cyberattacks, not natural disasters. Modern cybersecurity measures must be a part of your disaster readiness plan and should include:

• Endpoint detection and response (EDR)
• Multi-factor authentication (MFA) across the board
• Frequent and automated patching and vulnerability scanning
• Proactive threat monitoring
• Up-to-date compliance with important regulations

Your cybersecurity technology should tie directly to your disaster recovery planning. If ransomware and other cyber threats hit, how quickly can you isolate, contain, and recover?
By the way, many MSP clients assume they’re cyber safe just because they have you. Make it clear what your clients can and cannot expect of you as it relates to cybersecurity.

Training that creates alignment

When disaster hits, it’s an organization-wide issue, not just up to IT to solve. Every employee at your MSP should know how to access your business continuity plan, understand it, and know their specific role in a crisis.

To ensure BCP compliance and alignment:

• Hold training sessions for every employee in your organization and communicate when there are any major plan updates
• Be transparent and communicative with your clients; provide disaster playbooks that outline what they can expect from you during a disaster and what you’ll need from them

The more you educate your clients and your staff, the more loyalty you’ll see from both. You’ll build trust and be seen as someone who is invested in everybody’s success.

Thriving under any circumstances

Disasters are inevitable, but failure doesn’t have to be. Operationally mature MSPs bake disaster readiness into the core of their business and are confident that they can implement the protocols they’ve created.

Data-driven, tested, and regularly maintained disaster readiness plans build resilience, foster a sense of trust, and show that your MSP is prepared to protect your business and your client’s no matter what.

MSPs who take disaster readiness seriously are the ones who enjoy long-term profitability and growth, because clients will repeatedly invest in a partner who can weather any storm.

Curious how operationally mature MSPs got there? Check out our MSP Maturity Blueprint - a free resource packed with strategies for building a smarter, more profitable business.