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Following Hurricane Katrina, Disaster Planning Remains a Low Priority for Many Businesses
By GLENN J. KALINOSKI
Executive Editor
Customer Inter@ction Solutions
A report released Monday offers disturbing news regarding disaster planning by American businesses.
The report released by AT&T and the International Association of Emergency Managers revealed that a significant percentage of businesses surveyed do not have business continuity plans in place. "Disaster Planning in the Private Sector: A Look at the State of Business Continuity in the U.S." included the results of a survey of more than 1,200 businesses conducted between January and August. The findings included the fact that nearly 40 percent said business continuity planning was not a priority.
The study also found that nearly one-fourth of companies that have suffered a disaster have not taken steps to prevent or minimize business interruptions in the future. Other findings included:
* Almost two-thirds of companies that suffered a disaster experienced lost business.
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* Sixteen percent lost between $100,000 and $500,000 per day and 26 percent admit they don't know how much it cost their company per day.
* Less than half of the companies that have had business interrupted by a disaster have updated their business continuity plans during the past six months.
* More than 40 percent of companies have not established redundant servers or backup sites for critical business functions.
* Nearly one-third of companies have not implemented basic security technology, such as firewalls, intrusion detection or password authentication.
* An increasing number of companies are relying on experts to handle business continuity planning. Nearly 30 percent of companies use a service provider for business continuity needs. Among firms where business continuity is considered a priority, nearly 38 percent are outsourcing this function.
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