Let us make a clear statement here.

IT systems are useful and help Your business if and only if they are properly set up, maintained and updated on a regular basis. Anything else gives You an IT system with partial benefits and limited usability at best. At worst Your IT system has become a risk to Your business.

The usefulness, reliability and safety of Your IT system are directly linked to how much time is spent on maintaining it. Time is the most valuable resource at Your disposal. Most likely its spent on doing proper business and not on IT stuff that is not your core business. A lack of time leaves you with two options: trust and money.

What does that mean in most cases ?

Trust: You trust in some of your employees doing other jobs to be able to maintain the system on a part time basis.

Money: You pay someone to come around periodically and tell you that everything is “A-OK”.

You will likely recognize the risk when it’s too late. When Your data is gone and the people You trusted just shake their heads at any request to restore it. It might not even be their fault. Maybe it is simply beyond their capabilities.

If You are lucky the data might still be salvaged, but the cost and hassle of doing so will stay with You for a very long time.

And what is the cost of not doing business at all ?
What is the price of a lost day ? A week ?
Or a more pertinent question: what is the price of Your personal peace of mind ?