Irish firms ignore disaster recovery

The poll also found that 43 per cent of Irish firms did not have any plans to implement business continuity processes in the foreseeable future. Most respondents blamed lack of IT budget provision for this poor state of their contingency planning.

"The main hurdles to implementing a business continuity solution are cost/budget constraints and management buy-in. In many organisations, business continuity is perceived as an IT issue only, which means it competes with other IT budget demands," said Duncan Brown, director of IDC UK Consulting.

"Business continuity should not be seen solely as an IT issue. It is imperative that IT managers work hard to create an understanding of the wider implications to senior management so that they understand that business continuity is vital to reduce their company's exposure to risk."

IT vendors, the report said, have claimed that business continuity is critical to positioning their services and solutions, but have so-far failed to demonstrate its importance to non-IT personnel, by highlighting return on investment considerations.

The IDC study released at the Business Continuity and Storage Conference in Dublin, stated that the process to change perceptions and highlight the importance of disaster recovery must be carried out throughout the value chain.

www.idc.com