I'm sure many of you watched with amazement, and a bit of fear as did I this past weekend, as the snow just kept on falling in New York and other eastern states.  This latest weather phenomenon literally paralyzed most of the eastern seaboard and was severely felt in many surrounding states as well.

Working from home may sound like a faraway dream, but with the inception of the Internet, it has become a reality. Today, more and more organizations are allowing their staff to work remotely instead of coming into the office every day. The results have been positive - employers notice an increase in productivity, work quality, and staff loyalty.

Natural and man made disasters and chaotic events underscore the challenges of  disaster recovery in the real world. Having a comprehensive business continuity plan isn't just an IT concern; though. Nothing less than the survival of your company is at stake.

We know, we know; sometimes there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. More than ever before our busy personal lives and hectic working ones are demanding more and more of our attention and even the best laid plans and good intentions can get waylaid by a sheer lack of time.

Companies today face an unprecedented number of problematic occurrences. The frequency and severity of weather-related events seem to be increasing and reliance on a complex network of technology and supply chains is expanding. Both trends leave businesses vulnerable to a variety of existing and emerging risks.

When we think about potential disasters that could affect us both personally and professionally, it is common to picture the most dramatic of natural disasters...fire, flood, earthquake, tornadoes.  And absolutely, there is a distinct possibility that you will experience at least one of these natural disasters in your lifetime.

Meetings that result in little more than wasted hours are counter-productive and a surprisingly large drain on resources. After all, if your best people are spending the majority of their working day locked in a meeting room, drinking endless cups of coffee, making copious notes, and yet leaving with little or nothing to show for it, you’re quite simply throwing money down the drain.

In today's "instant gratification" society — in which heightened customer expectations and 24x7 accessibility demands really burden small business — little time remains for much else. Small businesses often don't have the resources or inclination to track the latest computer news, security threats, or even common break/fix tips.

For the last two weeks, I have been using our social media postings to support Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  It became very clear to me last year, the tech world had a huge connection to the ugly reality of Domestic Violence, from the dark side of GPS usage to stalk victims, to the bright side of Safety Apps for quicker responses to a victim in crisis.

For this week's posts on Social Media, I have been focusing on Business Continuity, yet again.  There are several reasons for this, the main being that Tuesday here in California was The Great California Shake Out-an observance developed by FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) to remind California residents of the importance of earthquake preparedness.