HP and SCORE Host Nationwide “Wellness” Workshops for Small Businesses

 HP and SCORE recently announced the second annual nationwide series of small business disaster preparedness workshops.  If there's one in your city, then it might be a worthwhile event for you to attend to learn a little about disaster recovery, disaster preparedness, and business continuity. 

The “Small Business Wellness Workshops” provide small businesses with education and solutions to plan for and recover from disasters – both natural and man made.

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.

Workshops 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.

Business Matchmaking brings together buyers from all federal agencies and many Fortune 500 companies to meet with small businesses offering various products and services. Since its inception, Business Matchmaking has generated more than 52,000 one-on-one appointments resulting in more than $1 billion in contracting opportunities for entrepreneurs through regional events held all across the country and in online sessions.

Valuable data for protecting a business

The white paper published by HP and SCORE demonstrates the many types of disasters to which small businesses 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.