Big data may be a relatively new term, but what it describes is already critical to business: large volumes of data that are the lifeblood of many enterprises. Collecting this information is important – it can be analyzed for insights in to past performances as well as real-time activity, helping decision-makers update/modify their business strategy to make improvements going forward. If you don’t have the data, you can’t make the most informed decisions.
Or in other words, as the old saying goes:
You can’t manage what you don’t measure.
Back in the day, just a handful of large-scale enterprises had the infrastructure, resources, and indeed the need to handle big data. Only the biggest businesses and the federal government were candidates; the technology was far beyond the reach of the average business owner. Things have changed – think about retail, and the difference between now and only a few years back.
For instance, a bookseller would have a brick-and-mortar store (the only option at the time). It was fairly simple to track the sales of books and ancillary items. The owner could review the numbers to see what sold fastest and which items were most popular. The more progressive retailer might have a loyalty club to monitor – now they could see who was in the shop most often and guess at what brought them in. With online shopping, suddenly a digital breadcrumb trail of not only consumer purchases, but also of their shopping behavior was available. Businesses could use this information to gain more insight into target markets, and the individuals that comprised them, than ever before. What else did customers look at online? Which pages on the website got the most views? How did customer navigate through the site? Which reviews were most influential? All data that could be gathered and analyzed. Suggestions for what books might appeal to customers took a high-tech turn for the better. Enter Amazon.
The industry giant runs their business on big data – and nowadays, so do many small retailers. Data has become democratized. Local government, too has digital tools like never before to accomplish important activities like records keeping, taxes, code enforcement, and more. A business no longer has to be huge to get its hands on big data.
Everyone’s Data is “Big” Data
Today, even the smallest enterprises have access to cost-effective digital tools to help them accomplish things that would have been a dream for any industry leader of yesterday. Intelligence is gathered from more places more precisely for more businesses than ever before. Enterprises have come quickly to rely upon it. Big data has gone Main Street—and that means, unfortunately, something else to worry about.
How is your digital data protected in the event of a disaster?
Big Data and Disaster Recovery: a new (digital) solution to an old problem.
Fire, flood, storm, earthquake. Disasters do happen, and trying to mitigate the risks associated with them happening – either through prevention (think fire-proof safe), or having a backup plan for if/when they do occur (duplicate copies anyone?) – is sound business practice. Losing your data can be a disaster in itself. Not only are records lost, but operational continuity, which is often dependent on technology, can be disrupted, leaving your business essentially dead in the water. No matter what the size of your enterprise, that means you need a well-thought-out disaster recovery plan in place.
The good news is that a cloud-based disaster recovery system to protect your big data is not only a viable, but also affordable solution – especially when you consider the cost of not having a system in place in the event of an actual disaster.
The benefits of housing your data in the cloud are many:
- With synched replication, real-time electronic copies of your data allow the implementation of protocols like auto-failover, which links your system to the viable copy when an outage occurs.
- Total restoration means that instead of needing to reload and reconfigure in the event of a disaster, your entire business environment is replicated – no recreating the wheel or the network structure required.
- Scalability is nearly infinite in the cloud. With no physical onsite capacity requirements, as your data grows, so does the additional digital storage available.
- The cost factor is one of the most compelling advantages of using the cloud for your big data. No need to invest in more IT infrastructure. The servers, storage (and sometimes the IT personnel) are “housed” in the cloud, and typically available to you for only a fixed monthly fee.
Security in the Cloud
Compliance is important for many, and the integrity of data is important to all. You’ll want to make certain that access and authorization protocols are in place, and that the company you select to provide your cloud-based disaster recovery system is capable complying with the regulations applicable to your industry.
You’ll also want to ensure they have the network connectivity to deal with your volume of data. Latency and bandwidth define the speed and capacity of a network, and too much of the first and not enough of the second can adversely affect your restoration.
If you’re ready to take your data seriously and protect your enterprise from an unforeseen catastrophe, 5i Solutions can help.
Paper documents and local storage are always under threat – a fire, and all your big (and little) data goes up in smoke. 5i Solutions offers modern records management to mitigate risk for your organization. Digitization, electronic backup, and cloud redundancy protect your information and ensure your operational continuity no matter what.
5i’s cloud-ready disaster recovery solutions are custom-tailored to your current environment, workflows, and regulatory requirements. Your vital data is captured automatically day-forward, and old paper records can be digitized and added to the cloud.
We offer:
- Automated system coordination and testing
- Protection 24/7, 365 against disaster
- Business continuity and disaster recovery for your data AND your configuration
- Super-secure Cloud Vault technology, with encryption, network security, and key management.
- Threat management, penetration testing, monitoring, logging, and on-demand reports to ensure the continued integrity of your data.
5i keeps your vital data is secure from those who don’t need it and available to those who do (and are authorized to) 24/7 from anywhere in the world. We know that big data isn’t just for big corporations. Let us help you make sure the information that runs and improves your business is secure, and that a disaster won’t catch you unprepared.
5i Solutions. One single, secure point of intake, access, and storage. One singular solution.
5i Solutions, Inc.