BLOG | The Recovery Mistakes That Cost Small Businesses and Not-for-Profits the Most

Tasmanian small businesses and not-for-profits rely on their systems, people and suppliers to keep daily operations moving. When an outage, cyber incident or system failure occurs, even a short disruption can affect customers, staff, volunteers, and the community service you provide. 

A strong recovery plan helps your organization respond quickly and confidently. However, a few common mistakes can turn a manageable issue into a longer and more costly disruption. 

Mistake #1: Assuming backups are enough 

Backups are an important part of recovery, but they are not the whole plan. They may help restore your data, but they do not tell your team what to do next. 

Your organization still needs to know which systems should be restored first, who is responsible for each step and how long recovery is expected to take. Without clear priorities, important decisions may be delayed until the outage is already underway. 

• Recommendation: Create a simple recovery plan that lists what needs to be restored, the order of priority, and who is responsible. 

Mistake #2: Not testing the recovery plan 

A recovery plan that has never been tested may not work when you need it most. 

Testing can reveal backups that will not restore correctly, outdated instructions, missing contact details or systems that take longer than expected to bring back online. Finding these gaps early gives you time to fix them before a real disruption occurs. 

• Recommendation: Test your recovery plan at least once a year and after major changes to systems, suppliers or team responsibilities. Treat every unexpected result as an opportunity to improve the plan. 

Mistake #3: Not defining roles and responsibilities 

When a disruption occurs, someone needs to make decisions quickly. Your team should know what must be prioritized, who needs to be contacted, and when an issue should be escalated. 

This is especially important for small businesses and not-for-profits, where staff and volunteers may manage several responsibilities. If ownership is unclear, valuable time can be lost working out who should take the lead. 

• Recommendation: Assign roles before an incident. Make sure each person knows what they are responsible for, who they need to work with, and when to escalate the issue. 

Mistake #4: Forgetting about communication 

A recovery plan needs to cover people as well as technology. Staff and volunteers need clear instructions; customers and stakeholders need timely updates, and suppliers may need to adjust their services. 

If email, phones, or normal communication tools are unavailable, confusion can spread quickly. 

• Recommendation: Create a communication plan for staff, volunteers, customers, stakeholders, and suppliers. Include backup contact methods and nominate someone to manage updates. 

Mistake #5: Treating recovery planning as a one-time task 

Recovery plans can become outdated quickly. Staff change, volunteers move on, systems are replaced, and organizational priorities shift. 

If your plan relies on old contacts, retired systems, or outdated steps, it may slow down recovery instead of supporting it. 

• Recommendation: Review and update your recovery plan regularly. Revisit it whenever there are major changes to your people, systems, suppliers, or services. 

Preparation supports a faster recovery 

A tested plan, clear responsibilities, and reliable communication can help stop a disruption from becoming a crisis. 

By addressing these common mistakes now, Tasmanian small businesses and not-for-profits can reduce uncertainty, minimize downtime and recover with greater confidence. 

Recovery planning is not only about technology. It is also about having a practical strategy that supports your people and keeps essential services moving when the unexpected happens. 

ACTION Item(s)

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