Your Salesforce Org Doesn’t Need to Stop Growing. It Just Needs Some Guardrails.

At the scale that most companies operate in the cloud, data loss and corruption are no longer just IT problems; they’re business ones. According to ITIC, the cost of downtime can reach up to $2.4 million per day. And if it’s a cyberattack like ransomware, it’s not usually a quick recovery. An IDC study reveals that 62% of organizations hit by ransomware experience business disruption lasting "a few days to a week."

These statistics highlight the need for any company to protect their data. But for growing organizations, the risks are even more pronounced. 

More Data = More Risk

Part of running a smooth business operation is anticipating and mitigating risks. When it comes to your SaaS applications like Salesforce, the same factors that signal growth—an increasing number of users, information, and intricate relationships within your data—also signal risk, with added complexity and vulnerability. 

‍A growing org is more complex because the data becomes more interconnected and can be linked to other sales opportunities, support tickets, etc. The increase in data also makes it more challenging to ensure consistency and prevent synchronization errors with external systems. 

‍A growing org is more vulnerable because the more data you have, the higher the chances of human error, system abuse, or cyber-attacks. These factors increase the likelihood of data loss or corruption. Also, as the number of people using Salesforce grows, default permissioning can compromise security by allowing users to access more data than they should.

How To Minimize Risks Without Hampering Growth

Think of a child first learning to ride a bike. You want to encourage their independence and exploration while keeping them safe, so you make sure they wear a helmet when they ride.

The same principle applies to your Salesforce org. As your business takes off, your Salesforce instance grows alongside it, accumulating valuable customer data, vital sales records, and mission-critical information. But just like a child needs a helmet before hitting the road, your growing Salesforce needs some guardrails.

Here are a few ways to safeguard your Salesforce org and manage the risk of data loss as Salesforce grows:

Define Your Recovery Goals

Decide how much downtime your business can handle before it faces detrimental impacts (recovery time objective) and how much data you are prepared to lose before it is deemed unacceptable (recovery point objective).

Inventory Your Data

Create a complete list of all data objects (e.g., Accounts, Contacts, Opportunities) stored in your Salesforce instance. Include any custom objects and fields you've created.

Reduce Your Risk of Data Loss or Corruption

As data becomes less relevant yet still needs to be retained for compliance, move it outside of production to reduce your risk exposure in the event of data loss and corruption.

Have a Data Recovery Plan in Place

Even with the measures above, data loss can still happen. You should back up everything in your org, including data, metadata, files, attachments, etc., and have the tools to restore data into production quickly and easily.

Train Your Team and Stakeholders

As a Salesforce Admin, you are responsible for educating your users on best practices for keeping data safe in Salesforce and keeping key organizational stakeholders aware of the business continuity plan for Salesforce.

Continuously Improve and Adapt

Regularly review, test, and update the business continuity plan and stay current on data protection best practices within Salesforce.

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In our Minimizing Data Risks Checklist, we explain each step in more detail and provide tips to implement the steps. Download it here.