INDUSTRY INTELLIGENCE POWERED BY THE DCA
Talk to all your vendors and third parties who are providing
support for you as you need to understand the challenges
they may be experiencing.
be an impact on people so communication
is key – explain why you are doing this
and try to advise how long this restriction
might be in place for. Washing hands and
distancing one’s self from others is also a
sensible move. It is important to prepare
those visiting your site so they can bring
their own essentials if catering or vending
machines are no longer in use. Whatever
it is you do to keep customers and staff
informed is a very prudent measure.
and you are no longer able to do so, now is
the time to complete all of the tasks you
previously put off. Take this opportunity
to get everything up-to-date, whether this
is working on a project business plan or
organising proactive activities to increase
brand awareness which could include
4) Reviewing your disaster
recovery plans
You may or may not have those kinds of
plans in place for your own organisation,
but the important thing, particularly as
a provider of services, is to talk to all
your vendors and third parties who are
providing support for you as you need
to understand the challenges they may
be experiencing. You may question
whether they have a DR plan in place and
if they understand the impact it could
have on your business due to a lack of
resources on the services they deliver to
you. Whether it’s the cleaning company,
security or plant maintenance in the data
centre, it is vital that you understand what
they’re doing to maintain the services they
provide to you.
Steve Bowes-Phipps, DCA Advisory
Board Member and Senior Data Centre
Consultant, PTS Consulting
5) Communication
Communication with clients and
customers is vital – it is crucial for them
to understand what it is you are doing.
Initially, you may wish to do this via email
but sometimes clients prefer a phone call.
At the very least, you should consider
putting up a status page on your customer
portal or website and keep it regularly
updated in light of COVID-19 activity.
6) Staff and people
If your job usually involves meeting
people, visiting customers and/or sites
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