While Indian businesses are galloping in the wake of economic liberalization contributing significantly to the country’s growth, sadly they fall short of planning for a disaster recovery.
Nearly 50 per cent businesses in India do not have a disaster recovery (DR) plan in place for their IT infrastructure and even more 60 per cent have no business continuity for their workplace requirements, a recent survey has revealed.
The catastrophic spate of disasters that occurred in 2011 has driven the issue of disaster recovery to the top of boardroom agendas highlighting the huge cost to businesses that natural disasters and their aftermath can cause. Although these are extreme examples, the consequences of common events such as fires and vandalism can also seriously damage a business.
In order to take the pulse of global business ‘preparedness’, the latest survey by Regus, the world’s largest provider of flexible workplaces, canvassed the opinions of over 12,000 business people in 85 countries and found that a significant proportion of firms are taking a huge risk with their shareholder’s assets and failing to take proper precautions. In India nearly 400 companies participated in the Regus survey, conducted in metro cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai.
While Indian businesses have shown remarkable resilience in the wake of natural disasters like earthquake and tsunami and terrorist attacks in the past, the Regus survey shows that Indian businesses lack a conscious DR plan. Nearly 43.5 per cent of companies from India believe that cost of disaster recovery prohibits their planning.
However, a significant 63.5 per cent companies in India were ready to buy a workplace disaster recovery facility if the option is priced affordably.
Compared to India, nearly 45% businesses globally do not have a disaster recovery (DR) plan in place for their IT and even more (55%) have no business continuity for their workspace requirements.
Key findings of the Regus survey include:
45% of firms globally do not have an IT DR plan in place ensuring systems are up and running within 24 hours;
Globally 55% of firms have no workplace recovery that could be available within 24 hours;
33% of respondents globally report that they perceive the cost of DR as prohibitive;
However, more than half of respondents (55%) declared that they would invest in workplace recovery if the service were suitably priced;
Although larger firms are better prepared for disaster recovery than smaller companies, 26% of larger corporates still remain without a DR facility for their IT systems, and 40% have no workplace DR facility;
Financial services (71%) and ICT businesses (66%) were more likely to have a business continuity plan although more than 40% of firms in these sectors have no workplace recovery arrangement.
Madhusudan Thakur, Regional Vice-President, South Asia, Regus, comments: “The research reveals that across the globe around half of firms have no formal business continuity strategy for their IT or their workforce. With reports indicating that the average incident can cost up to US$500,000 this lack of planning could spell disaster for many firms.
Most businesses appear to run this risk due to the high perceived cost of DR, but also report that they would be willing to pay a monthly fee to access a workplace disaster recovery facility in case of emergency. This is an important indication that although too many businesses are taking a gamble, their mentality is changing. As affordable products and services become available around the globe, it is likely that more businesses will finally stop hoping for the best and seriously start planning to prepare for the worst.”