Groups Issue
White Paper on Impact of Disasters on Small Businesses
Washington,
D.C.—HP and SCORE “Counselors to America’s Small Business”
today announced the second annual nationwide series of small business disaster
preparedness workshops.
The “Small Business Wellness
Workshops” provide small businesses with education and solutions to plan
for and recover from disasters – both natural and manmade.
Underscoring
the necessity of disaster planning for small businesses, HP and SCORE also recently
published a white paper, “Impact on US Small Business of Natural & Man-Made
Disasters,” which highlights the consequences a small business could face
if ill-prepared.
“HP has a long history of supporting
small business and is excited to work with SCORE again to educate small businesses
on how to protect themselves against unexpected natural and technology-related
disasters,” said Lisa Baker, director, Business Marketing – Americas,
Personal Systems Group, HP. “Our workshops were widely successful last year,
and once again, we will aim to help small businesses focus on their bottom line,
rather than on technology challenges.”
“With
our mission to foster the growth and success of small business, SCORE understands
that disaster planning is imperative, not a ‘nice to have,’” said
Ken Yancey, chief executive officer, SCORE. “As today’s small businesses
are increasingly dependent on their computer systems, these workshops combine
SCORE’s scenario planning expertise with HP’s data protection knowledge
to address the full spectrum of disaster preparedness.”
Workshops
Empower Small Businesses to Protect Themselves
Each year
due to storms, fires or unexpected hard drive collapses, an alarming number of
small businesses lose irreplaceable customer data, tax documents, employee records
and other critical information.
During the Wellness Workshops,
attendees will learn how to protect their core business information. Additionally,
a bonus session on “greening your business” provides attendees with
tips on making their businesses environmentally responsible.
The
HP and SCORE Small Business Wellness Workshops will be held at the following locations:
April
2 – Lions Gate Hotel, 3410 Westover, Sacramento, Calif.
April
29 – Waterford Fair Oaks, 12025 Lee Jackson Highway, Fairfax, Va.
May
13 – Independent Visitors Center, 1 North Independence, Philadelphia, Pa.
May
20 – Doubletree Hotel, San Jose, Calif. – held in conjunction with Business
Matchmaking Western Regional event
May 29 – Crowne
Plaza Hotel, 801 Greenwich Ave., Warwick, R.I.
Workshop
dates with locations TBD:
June 4 – Austin, Texas
June
11 – Birmingham, Ala.
June 25 – Nashville, Tenn.
July
9 – Raleigh, N.C.
Sept. 10 – Denver, Colo.
Sept.
17 – Milwaukee, Wis.
Oct. 8 – Cincinnati, Ohio
Oct.
22 – Louisville, Ky.
Nov. 19 – Las Vegas, Nev.
Dec.
2 – Tampa, Fla.
Dec. 9 – Kansas City, Mo.
Valuable
Data for Protecting a Business
The white paper published
by HP and SCORE demonstrates the many types of disasters small businesses to which
are susceptible, including large natural events such as hurricanes as well as
those caused by human or mechanical errors, such as incorrect keystrokes or hard
drive malfunctions.
The study shows how some businesses
floundered after a disaster, and how simple steps in preparedness could have completely
changed the outcome. With a few proactive steps, any company can safeguard its
valuable data to ensure that if the unthinkable happens, the company will still
survive.
More information about the white paper and the
event, plus event registration for the Small Business Wellness Workshops, is available
at www.score.org/HP_events.html.
