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    AI in Disaster Recovery: 3 Ways Companies Set Themselves up for Success

    December 17, 2019 | By Sue Clark |

    Companies are turning to artificial intelligence (AI) as part of their disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity (BC) plans.

    With AI, organisations can more quickly analyse data and identify the potential risks and gaps that exist within their current environment. AI can model the impact of various disasters, forecast disruptions and act as security surveillance. When disaster strikes, AI can commence the DR response faster than any human can, saving precious time and resources.

    While AI offers several benefits for DR teams, incorporating AI into your DR programs isn't as straightforward and simple as you may expect. To fully take advantage of AI in DR, you must lay the groundwork, but don't worry, we're here to help. Here are three ways to set yourself up for success with AI in DR.

    1. Train Your Employees

    AI can help businesses get back up and running quicker after outages, and in some cases, avoid a potential issue altogether. But someone still needs to maintain and manage the AI, and that won't happen if your employees don't know how the AI programs actually work.

    You need to make sure your employees are prepared to work in the age of AI. To get the most out of your technology, your team must be trained in the tools they're using.

    The good news is that teams are ready to learn. In one survey, 67% of workers said it will be important to learn new skills to work with AI in the next 3-5 years, even though only 3% of executives said they plan to increase investment in training and reskilling programs significantly in the next three years.

    Making that investment is the best way to prepare for AI in DR. Take stock of the skills you already have in house, the skills you need to teach your staff, the skills you might need to hire for and the skills that could be outsourced to an outside partner.

    2. Clean Your Data

    Data is key in any thriving business, and AI can help predict data failure that could potentially derail your operations.

    But this is only the case if the data that’s part of your DR plan is clean.

    Make sure you've removed any corrupt or inaccurate data. Take out any duplications and eliminate any noise. AI can synthesize and pull insights from data much faster and more effectively than humans, but its predictive abilities are only as good as the data you feed it.

    The last thing you want is to chase faulty predictions based on messy data.

    3. Consider Colocation

    AI requires significant computational power, and data centres can provide the required graphic processing units to support it. But given the demands, you might not want to spend the resources supporting a data center in house. Colocation might be in your organisation's best interest.

    Colocation lowers your total cost of ownership, enables you to implement technology and service advancements in a faster and more cost effective way, and allows you scale as needed, while focusing on your core business.

    Get Started With AI in DR

    Resilient organisations proactively assess emerging threats and risks. They prioritise communication and collaboration and have plans in place to quickly and effectively address vulnerabilities. AI is making all this easier by enabling companies to analyse data faster and improve their response time.

    However, it's important to remember that AI is just a tool that's only as effective as the environment it resides in. By taking the necessary steps, you'll give your organisation a greater chance of getting the most out of AI as part of your DR plan.