Bouncebackability Index Reveals Only a Third of SMEs Have a Business Continuity Plan in Place

Published 29th August 2008

SunGard Bouncebackability Index Reveals Only a Third of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Have a Business Continuity Plan in Place

SunGard Launches SafetyNet 24/7 to Support Needs of Small Businesses
London, UK: 27 August 2008: A survey released today by SunGard Availability Services reveals a lack of business continuity planning amongst small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK, despite growing pressure from customers to prove that they can operate in all circumstances. SunGard Availability Services is the pioneer and leading provider of information availability and business continuity services.
The 'Bouncebackability Index', a survey* examining the preparedness of small businesses to cope with incidents of business disruption, reveals that only a third of managers of SMEs are taking steps to ensure that their business can continue to operate normally under any circumstances. But as consumers, they are far less understanding when a product or service is unavailable. As consumers, less than 10 percent of those surveyed would wait for a product to become available at a later date if they found it to be out of stock when visiting a retailer; while more than 80 percent would select another product or go to a different retailer.
Keith Tilley, managing director UK and executive vice president Europe, SunGard Availability Services , said: “It appears to be a case of 'Do as I say, not as I do' for small business managers. They admit to feeling pressure from customers to show their resilience and they clearly expect businesses to be able to provide them with the service or product they are seeking, and will go to a competitor if something is not available. Yet they are doing very little to protect their own business from this type of switching."
SMEs within the UK would struggle to resume normal business operations in the event of a business disruption. Forty percent would suffer total[1] or severe[2] impairment to business operations in the event of computer hardware failure; 45 percent would suffer total or severe impairment to business operations following a power cut or a flood; and only 10 percent would suffer no impairment and be able to function as normal in the event of a fire.
Less than 10 percent of SME managers surveyed had heard of BS 25999, the first British Standard for Business Continuity Management, which was launched in October 2007. The standard establishes definitions of key business continuity processes, and lays down guidelines for the development, testing and analysis of business continuity plans. On being told about the standard, nearly 30 percent of SME managers said that they would now plan to achieve certification.
In response to these survey findings, SunGard Availability Services has launched SafetyNet 24/7, (), a new range of services dedicated to supporting the needs of SMEs. SafetyNet 24/7 provides SMEs with free consultancy and low cost training, drawing on SunGard's 30 years of experience of business continuity.
SafetyNet 24/7 provides a range of highly cost-effective services that are tailored for organisations with between 50 and 200 employees. Small businesses can benefit from SunGard's industry-leading experience, expertise and infrastructure. SafetyNet 24/7 services include:
· SafetyNet Training - two separate one day courses focusing on developing a business continuity plan, identifying and managing business risk, and maintenance and testing of business continuity plans
· SafetyNet Workplace - allowing small businesses to relocate staff to one of SunGard's 20 plus UK Recovery Centres following a business disruption
· SafetyNet Technology - providing small business with up to eight standby servers and support from the world's most experienced recovery technicians
· SafetyNet Executive Briefings - meetings around the UK, specifically focused at small and medium sized businesses, to help raise awareness of Information Availability and business continuity management amongst SMEs
· The SafetyNet web site - . The first port of call for small businesses looking for advice on how to deal with a disaster and help in creating and implementing a business continuity plan
SafetyNet Executive Briefings offer busy managers in SME businesses a free, comprehensive two-hour breakfast seminar on business continuity. The sessions explore the risks, which threaten continued business operations and how businesses can implement an information availability or business continuity plan to protect themselves against these risks. The briefings also highlight the benefits of having a business continuity plan in place, namely maintaining existing customers and winning new business. The sessions are run by SunGard Availability Services experts around the country, details available from the website or 0800 358 5150.
Small businesses that are interested in business continuity management following their executive briefing can then attend SafetyNet Training, which is made up of two separate one day courses. The first course focuses on developing a business continuity plan, identifying and managing business risk and provides an introduction to BS 25999; the second course is devoted to the maintenance and testing of business continuity plans. For a nominal fee, SafetyNet Training provides small businesses with specialised training from SunGard Availability Services' award winning consultants. SunGard is the only business continuity provider to offer such training.
*About the Research
The Bouncebackability Index is based on research carried out by YouGov on behalf of SunGard Availability Services during May and June 2008. Respondents were small business owners and managers drawn from across the UK. 1,126 people were interviewed through on online omnibus survey.
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Notes to Editors

About SunGard Availability Services
SunGard Availability Services is the pioneer and leading provider of information availability solutions, helping to ensure that 10,000 customers in North America and Europe have access to their business-critical information systems. With 4 million square feet of operations space, SunGard offers a complete range of information availability solutions that include professional services, recovery solutions and managed IT solutions. SunGard provides services to support an always-on production environment, as well as over 30 technology platforms to support customers who require a traditional 24-48 hour recovery time frame. SunGard also has technology and systems management services for application and data centre outsourcing, as well as business continuity consulting services and planning software. Visit SunGard Availability Services UK at www.sungard.co.uk
SunGard Availability Services (UK) Limited has been recognised as Service Provider of the Year an unprecedented five times in the Business Continuity Awards’ ten-year history, and has been a finalist on all but one occasion: a track record unequalled in the industry. In 2008, SunGard was presented the 10th Anniversary Award for Outstanding Excellence in Business Continuity. SunGard and its customers have also achieved success in the Most Innovative Product, Most Effective Recovery, Industry Personality, Lifetime Achievement and Consultant of the Year categories, amongst others.
Representing Intellect, the trade association, on the steering committee for BS 25999, SunGard helped to define the first standard of its kind, which is alerting the wider business community to the importance of business continuity management. SunGard then became the first business continuity expert to secure certification against the BS 25999 Standard. It is now in the unique position of being able to assist its customers - both large and small alike - through the certification process drawing on its own experience.
About SunGard
With annual revenue of $5 billion, SunGard is a global leader in software and processing solutions for financial services, higher education and the public sector. SunGard also helps information-dependent enterprises of all types to ensure the continuity of their business. SunGard serves more than 25,000 customers in more than 50 countries, including the world’s 50 largest financial services companies. Visit SunGard at www.sungard.com
Trademark Information: SunGard and the SunGard logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of SunGard Data Systems Inc. or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries. All other trade names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.