Mobility Serves as a Natural Defense Against Disasters

One of the selling points of a virtual PBX system based on VoIP is that it follows you anywhere. Rarely do we consider the role that this anywhere access can play when a natural disaster strikes, however.

There are many reasons that virtual PBX systems make sense, not least of which is the cost savings and the added functionality such as find-me-follow-me and mobile access. Usually this anywhere access that comes from using a PBX in the cloud is framed in terms of mobility, however. But anywhere access also serves as a disaster preparation measure.

That’s because if there is an electrical outage with a typical business phone system, often the phone system will go down. Or if there is a heavy snow storm, it can be hard to keep the phones manned. There also are many other natural disasters that can strike, of course, all of which hurt access to the business.

With a virtual PBX system, however, businesses can easily pivot in the case of emergency.

For instance, employees can switch to accessing the phone by mobile device if the power goes out or connectivity gets cut at the office. In the case of heavy snow, workers can work from home and pivot their office phones to their home landline or cell phone.

This is one of the under-discussed advantages of a virtual PBX. When coupled with other cloud services, businesses become a lot more nimble in the face of disasters. A natural disaster will still disrupt a business, but a lot less; firms that have their files in the cloud and their communications via a virtual PBX can adjust in minutes, not hours or days.

This is crucial to avoid lost revenue and wasted employee hours. When we’re at home, it is just an inconvenience. But when it comes to the office, it also is a matter of lost revenue.

Disaster preparedness is often overlooked until it is too late. But with a virtual PBX and usage of cloud services, businesses are more or less prepared even if they don’t prepare. When the disaster strikes, the pivot is easy.

This is another reason why anywhere access matters. It is about more than just being able to use your business phone from the road.

Edited by Maurice Nagle