ORLANDO, Fla., Sep 13, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Today, at its Data Center World conference, AFCOM, the world's leading data center association, announced the release of the study: "How to Stay in Business: A Data Center Institute Report on Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity." The study educates data center stakeholders at every level of an organization--from c-level officers to data center managers--on the adequacy of existing plans and recommendations for improving strategies around sudden and unplanned interruptions to business and IT operations.
This special AFCOM/Data Center Institute report emerged from a recent AFCOM survey of data center managers, which uncovered surprising results with regards to disaster recovery and businesses continuity processes currently in place. A few notable results from the study include:
-- More than 15 percent of data centers have no plan for business continuity or disaster recovery;
-- 50 percent of data centers have no formal plan for replacing damaged equipment after a disaster; and
-- Two-thirds of all data centers have no plan or procedures to deal with cybercrime.
Considering the remarkable lack of preparedness at many data centers, AFCOM's Data Center Institute created the "How to Stay in Business" report as a way to clearly outline the range of risks and events that might potentially affect both critical services and the infrastructure for which the data center manager is responsible. While business continuity and disaster recovery differ significantly from organization to organization, this study covers the essential elements that should be properly addressed to protect core data center services.
"Natural events and cyber security attacks lurk as constant threats to a data center's integrity. Recent events around the world--from earthquakes to phishing attacks--have shown the serious damage and compromised positions businesses can find themselves in if they are not properly prepared," said Jill Yaoz, CEO, AFCOM. "Every business and IT professional should be taking time to update his or her disaster recovery plans and make sure they can get back online quickly in the event of an emergency. Unfortunately, our research suggests many are not regularly updated or tested, which is a huge concern.
"While disaster recovery is not a one-size-fits-all proposition," Yaoz continued, "we feel our report offers best practices that can be applied to most any business and data center to help guide them to a stronger level of defense and preparedness."
Among the recommendations AFCOM's Data Center Institute provides in the study are the seven key components, such as electrical and security systems, that a business continuity plan needs to cover; the two priority recovery levels for every component; and the eight key steps to leverage the cloud for disaster recovery.
"How to Stay in Business: A Data Center Institute Report on Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity" was released during the 2011 Fall Data Center World conference, currently being held in Orlando, Florida. For more than 30 years, Data Center World has been known as the premier and largest global event of its kind. The conference is held twice a year in the United States, and earlier this year, AFCOM hosted its first-ever Asia/Pacific Data Center Symposium in Sydney, Australia to discuss issues affecting data center and facilities managers in this region of the world.
To download a copy of "How to Stay in Business: A Data Center Institute Report on Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity" please visit: http://www.afcom.com/members_digitallibrary_drreport2011.asp
If you are a member of the media and are interested in receiving a complimentary copy of this report, please contact Schwartz Communications at 415.512.0770.
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