October 11, 2004—The results of a national survey recently released show a significant difference between perception and reality regarding the disaster preparation of Fortune 1000 companies, according to C-suite executives. The study, commissioned by SunGard Availability Services and conducted by Harris Interactive, found potential deficiencies in companies’ ability to access business-critical information when faced with power outages, natural disasters, hackers and computer viruses.
“The results of this study have revealed some disturbing facts about the disaster preparation and business continuity planning of some of our country’s largest businesses,” said Jim Simmons, group chief executive officer of SunGard Availability Services. “Problems continue to exist in several key areas of disaster preparation, yet it seems as though firms are not making a significant effort to address these issues.”
The survey revealed that when asked to grade their company’s ability to access business-critical information quickly after a disaster, executives gave themselves an average of B. While a slight upgrade over last year’s grade of C+, the perception doesn’t match the reality of the situation.
In wake of the third anniversary of 9/11, executives say their companies are less prepared to deal with a disaster than they were just one year ago. In 2003, 67 percent of those surveyed revealed that their company was more prepared to deal with a disaster than it was prior to the terrorist attacks of 9/11. The 2004 study revealed that 58 percent feel more prepared than they were prior to the Blackout of August, 2003. In addition, the survey concludes 38 percent of companies are not increasing financial resources allocated to address this issue.
According to the Harris Interactive survey, 22 percent of executives stated that their company did not meet regulatory requirements for business continuity, information security and/or electronic records retention.
Thirty-six percent of executives stated that their company considers computer hackers to be the biggest threat to their access to business-critical information.
The concern over power outages has doubled in the past year and now is the primary concern for 20 percent of executives. Power outages caused the most recent disruptions in the past year. Thirty-three percent report that power outages were responsible for their last disruption in technology services.
Viruses/security breach and hardware failure followed closely behind at 22 percent each.
Additional highlights from the survey include:
- Fifty-four percent of executives surveyed admitted to experiencing a disruption of their technology services in the past year.
- While companies have realized that disruptions occur, 30 percent have not tested their systems to assure access to business-critical information in more than six months. Ten percent have not tested these systems in more than a year.
- Fifty-six percent admitted that their company’s board discusses policies regarding access to business-critical information either not very often or not at all.
For more information, contact Harris Interactive.
