As 2012 winds to a close, businesses need to ensure that they have necessary contingency plans in place for the new year. Technology is likely to continue evolving at a quick pace, which means that business continuity planning has to account for data breaches.

According to a press release from Quorum, a leading provider of one-click backup, cloud disaster recovery should be a top concern for organizations in 2013. Specifically, as such systems are becoming more common in daily operations, company decision-makers need to guarantee that thorough risk assessments include preparations for cyber attacks.

"Crippled by the inherent drawbacks of tape and disk backup solutions, small to mid-sized businesses will in the coming year increasingly embrace hybrid cloud disaster recovery, which blends on-site with cloud-based recovery," the release said. "Using this approach, these businesses will eliminate the need for a secondary disaster recovery site, as well as the costs and complexities associated with maintaining and managing it."

Also among top concerns for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are mergers or acquisitions and data backup. Quorum highlighted how Hurricane Sandy underlined the need for business continuity plans to account for data recovery, as many hospitals had to evacuate and transfer patients. After backup generators failed, it was essential to keep information safe, so it would not be lost.

Weather-related disasters are also on the list. This blog has previously discussed how storms of all kinds can impact a company, even forcing it to temporarily close its doors or move employees to hot sites to keep them safe while still holding normal business operations.

Regardless of what the new year brings, companies of all sizes can greatly benefit by working with business continuity consultants. That way, owners can rest assured that they are prepared for a number of situations.