Questions to ask your ICT Manager

If there were a major fire in the server room, how long would it be before each of these services could be restored: email, telephones, school MIS and accounts?

-Can you show me any records of the systems' reliability over the past 12 months? Do you regard the reliability as acceptable? If not, how could we improve it and how much would it cost?

-If a generous donation of £250,000 was given to the school specifically for ICT developments (in addition to the normal budget) what would you recommend we spent it on, and what would be the advantages for the school and end users (Pupils, Staff, Parents)?

-How many individuals are sufficiently privileged administrators that they can see my (the Head's) documents, emails, etc.?

-If your budget was suddenly cut by 50%, how could you cope, and what would be the effects on the School and the end users?

-Can you retrieve a file which was last seen one month ago, and how long would it take to retrieve?

-What would be the effect of our main Internet connection being severed by a JCB somewhere? What services would we lose? Have we any backup systems in place, or would they have also been severed by the same JCB?

-Can you retrieve a file which was last seen one month ago, and how long would it take to retrieve?

-What might happen if a major incident occurs while you (or any one specific member of your staff) are away on holiday abroad for 2 weeks?

-For each member of your technical staff (including yourself) what would be the immediate effect on the running of the system if they suddenly (with no notice) left? What specific tasks would it be difficult for the others on your team to perform, and how long might it take to recover fully from the loss? Is there adequate documentation to minimise such a problem?