Many Michigan Businesses Not Ready for Emergencies

Pre-Katrina Survey Shows Almost a Third of State’s Companies Have No Business-Continuity Plan

HostReview.com
Tuesday, December 20, 2005; 09:11 AM

DETROIT, Dec. 20, 2005 — More than two years after the August 2003 blackout, a report issued today by AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and the International Association of Emergency Managers found that almost one-third of Michigan companies do not have business-continuity plans in place. Although nearly a quarter of companies have experienced a disaster in the past, 40 percent still feel that contingency planning is not a priority for their business.

“Disaster Planning in the Private Sector: A Look at the State of Business Continuity in the U.S.” surveyed 100 senior technology executives with direct business-planning responsibilities in Michigan.  

The survey found that although many businesses are still not adequately prepared, more than half of companies do consider it to be important priority. The 2003 blackout placed renewed emphasis on contingency planning, when businesses ranging from banks to supermarkets to auto plants and chemical plants were down for days. The costs are real; losses were estimated at $220 million by the Detroit Regional Chamber and University of Michigan’s Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations.

“Preparation and practice are critical for weathering disasters of any kind, and stakes are high for businesses and for citizens” said Laura Carlisle, regional vice president - Business of AT&T Inc. “When the 2003 blackout hit parts of the state, the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel was evacuated and the traffic was re-routed to the Ambassador Bridge in six minutes. The Detroit and Canada Tunnel Corporation had run that drill repeatedly after Sept. 11, 2001. Businesses should be equally prepared.”

Of the companies with such plans, 49 percent report testing them in the last year and more then half of those in the last six months (26 percent). Both figures are below the national averages. The consensus of business-continuity experts is that plans should be tested at least every six months. Almost a fifth, (19 percent) have never tested their plans, which is considerably above the national average.

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Updating the plan is also critical, and Michigan companies seem to understand that; 76 percent made revisions in the past year ; and 51 percent, in the past six months. This is about the same as the national average. None say that their plans have never been revised.

Recognizing the increasing importance of their networks to their day-to-day operations, 80 percent have implemented such Internet security precautions as firewalls, intrusion detection, hacker protection and password authentication or plan to do so in the near future. Nearly one-third (29 percent) have used or plan to use in the next six months a service provider for outsourcing.

 Educating employees in security issues is a key part of network protection, and 88 percent of Michigan companies who include cyber security as part of their business-continuity plan have made it part of their program, even more than the 80 percent who have developed defined corporate security policies.

“Michigan has a solid level of preparation,” said J. Robert Johnson of the city of Sterling Heights Office of Emergency Management, “but there are still too many companies without plans and where continuity planning is too low a priority. Michigan was not affected by the great blackout a generation ago, so the 2003 blackout should remind us that business disruptions follow their own patterns and that preparation is the best defense.”

About the New AT&T

AT&T Inc. is one of the world’s largest telecommunications holding companies and is the largest in the United States. Operating globally under the AT&T brand, AT&T companies are recognized as the leading worldwide providers of IP-based communications services to business and as leading U.S. providers of high-speed DSL Internet, local and long distance voice, and directory publishing and advertising services. AT&T Inc. holds a 60 percent ownership interest in Cingular Wireless, which is the No. 1 U.S. wireless services provider with more than 52 million wireless customers. Additional information about AT&T Inc. and AT&T products and services is available at www.TheNewATT.com.