The growth of mobile working and demand for round-the-clock availability of communications systems is forcing organisations to consider the protection of messaging systems, along with the role these play in overall workflows and the effect downtime has on end-users, according to a survey commissioned by Neverfail.
The survey, of more than 200 UK IT managers, found that availability of Email and BlackBerry applications has become a key business priority due to its impact on communication and workflow in other applications. Thirty seven percent of the respondents have cited lost revenue as the primary impact of IT downtime on the business; and almost 20% of respondents estimated the cost of downtime to their business at £10,000 or more per hour.
Neverfail said the potential impact of downtime went beyond monetary loss, with respondents raising failure to prosecute criminals or even patient death as just two of the fallouts that could arise from IT failure. More than 90% of respondents have had an IT outage, while 25% of respondents had an outage of more than one business day.
Andrew Barnes, SVP of corporate development at Neverfail, said: "It’s clear that business and IT are inseparable, which is why when IT goes down, business goes down. This survey reveals the extent that business processes are at risk from IT downtime and sheds new light on the perception that IT continuity is a key part of a business continuity strategy.
"It is clear that while avoiding IT downtime might be part of a plan, the reality is that businesses are still not executing on those plans, with many organisations accepting that they are failing to adequately protect themselves against downtime, placing end-users at risk and ultimately threatening the revenue and reputation of the business."
