81% of Businesses in Asia Pacific and Japan Might Not be Able to Recover Lost Data and Systems
Announcement posted by EMC 08 May 2012
Singapore – May 8th, 2012
News Summary:
- 81% of organisations are not very confident that they can fully recover after a disaster, according to a new survey of 2,500 companies in Asia Pacific and Japan
- 71% surveyed have lost data and/or suffered systems downtime in the last year
- Hardware failure (60%), data corruption (49%) and loss of power (44%) were cited as the primary causes of data loss and downtime
- 42% of organisations cite loss of employee productivity as the most likely consequence of data loss and downtime
- 44% of organisations who store a backup copy offsite for disaster recovery still use tape for recovery, and 37% still use CD ROM (although 62% now use disk-based storage)
- 83% of these organisations want to replace tape all together, highlighting the need for next generation backup and recovery
Full Story:
EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) today announced results of ‘The Disaster Recovery Survey 2012: Asia Pacific and Japan’, which found that 81% of companies in this region are not very confident that they can fully recover systems or data in the event of a disaster, and that 71% of all organisations lost data or suffered systems downtime in the last 12 months. These findings highlight the need for backup transformation from antiquated technologies that are not suited for today’s data growth or availability expectations. A move to next-generation backup and recovery solutions ensure continued business operations in the event of a natural disaster, malicious activity or more routine and common disruptions to IT systems. In fact, the research has shown that the causes of systems downtime are often the commonplace disruptions to IT, such as hardware failure or data corruption, rather than natural disasters or other major incidents.
Commissioned by EMC and conducted by independent research company Vanson Bourne ‘The Disaster Recovery Survey 2012: Asia Pacific and Japan’ looks at the state of backup and disaster recovery in the region to understand how well companies are prepared for data loss and systems downtime.
Survey Findings:
Disruption happens: downtime and data loss more likely from an IT problem than a natural disaster
The research showed that it is not the extraordinary that creates problems, and it can take just a little to cause a lot of disruption, even something as simple as data corruption. The three most common causes of data loss and downtime are:
1. Hardware failure: 60%
2. Data corruption: 49%
3. Loss of power: 44%
This compares to just 20% of respondents citing natural disasters as a cause of systems downtime or data loss, and 17% of respondents attributing systems downtime or data loss to employee sabotage. Regardless of the cause, 60% of organisations reviewed and changed their procedures for backup and recovery in response to an incident.
Furthermore, 51% of businesses increased their spending on backup and recovery after a disaster. This is against a backdrop where 31% of organisations surveyed did not feel they were spending enough on backup and recovery. On average, the research found that businesses across the region are spending 10.48% of their IT budgets on backup and recovery.
Economic impacts: Lost revenue attributed to systems downtime
The study identified that there are measureable business impacts from systems downtime, with the top three cited as:
1. Loss of employee productivity: 42%
2. Loss of revenue: 40%
3. Delay in product/service development: 39%
Systems failure resulted on average in two lost working days for the businesses in the survey. Based on an average eight hour working day, this is the equivalent of 32,000 man-hours for a company employing approximately 2,000 employees. Additionally, each organisation lost an average of 484GB of data during a 12 month period. Given that 1MB of data is approximately the equivalent of 25 email documents in size, losing 484GB of data would be the equivalent of losing 12.1 million emails.
Despite loss of revenue being rated as a major consequence of systems downtime, the research also revealed that many companies are not doing enough to protect essential customer data. 61% of organisations do not have a disaster recovery plan for their CRM systems, while only 27% of organisations who do have a disaster recovery plan for their applications would require their CRM applications to be up and running first following systems downtime.
Furthermore, businesses in Asia Pacific and Japan are failing to take advantage of insurance premium benefits that a comprehensive disaster recovery plan can engender. 55% of companies across the region are obliged by either insurance policies or regulatory requirements to have a disaster recovery plan in place. More importantly, however, 39% of the organisations surveyed are offered reduced premiums by their insurance provider according to the strength of their IT systems backup/disaster recovery strategy. However, 33% of organisations do not know if their insurance provider offers such reduced premiums – or they had never considered it at all – highlighting a missed opportunity for many businesses.
Outdated solutions: 44% still depend on tape and 37% still use CD Rom for backup and recovery, but this looks set to change
For backup and disaster recovery purposes, 44% of organisations still rely on tape. Looking at the operational cost associated with tape, organisations in the region spend on average more than $58,821 USD including transportation, storage, test and replacement of tape for the purposes of offsite disaster recovery. Meanwhile, 37% of companies rely on outdated CD-ROM for backup storage. Surprisingly, 14% of organisations have an employee take a copy of their backup home with them for safekeeping.
However, 62% of businesses in the region are already using modern disk-based backup and recovery solutions. This trend looks set to increase, with 83% of tape-using organisations looking to move beyond tape. The top three reasons cited for this planned move are:
1. Faster backups: 38%
2. Speed of data recovery and system restores: 35%
3. Durability (disk-based methods have a longer lifespan): 28%
Preparedness for routine disruption or more significant incidents starts with a next-generation backup approach that leverages disk with data deduplication and network based replication technologies. The survey shows the reaction after disruption is to spend more on backup and recovery, but the damage is done in terms of time and money during a downtime as well as longer term damage to customer loyalty. By raising the visibility of the most common problems facing companies today and the associated economic consequences, organisations can proactively review their own strategies for backup and recovery to ensure they can meet business requirements.
Quotes
Aakash Gandhi, Chief Technology Officer, Infoplex “This research raises a number of interesting issues around backup and recovery, not least that businesses need to take a proactive approach to ensuring their systems can cope well before an incident occurs. From our own experiences, it seems clear that a next-generation disk-based approach to backup and recovery is best placed to get business-critical applications up and running immediately, so that the economic impact such events have are minimised. By careful planning and ensuring we make the right investments, we are confident that we are well prepared for systems downtime, whatever the cause.”
Shane Moore, Director Backup and Recovery System, EMC
“Asia Pacific and Japan, along with the rest of the world, is facing uncertain economic times. Against this backdrop, it is more important than ever for businesses to ensure that they are protected against systems downtime and data loss or they are to withstand the damaging effects of loss of productivity and revenue. By establishing a well thought-out and strategic approach to backup and recovery that utilises the next-generation solutions available today, businesses can withstand the consequences of day-to-day outages as well as more serious incidents, while reducing the total cost of ownership of their backup systems.”
Country Focus
Australia
Focusing on Australia, the research revealed that 70% of companies in this country are not fully confident that they can recover systems/data following downtime. In fact, 72% of Australian organisations have experienced data loss or downtime in the past 12 months, with 62% of respondents to have experienced this citing hardware failure as the leading cause. Where data loss or downtime had been experienced, 49% of companies recorded a loss of employee productivity as a major consequence. Additionally, while 58% of organisations in Australia are still using tape for backup and recovery, 61% currently use disk-based systems and 84% of tape users would like to move beyond tape for backup purposes.
Japan
Focusing on Japan, the research revealed that 89% of companies in this country are not fully confident that they can recover systems/data following downtime. In fact, 50% of Japanese organisations have experienced data loss or downtime in the past 12 months, with 55% of respondents to have experienced this citing hardware failure as the leading cause. Where data loss or downtime had been experienced, 38% of companies recorded a loss of employee productivity as a major consequence. Additionally, while 58% of organizations in Japan are still using tape for backup and recovery, 66% currently use disk-based systems and 68% of tape users would like to move beyond tape for backup purposes.
Korea
Focusing on Korea, the research revealed that 93% of companies in this country are not fully confident that they can recover systems/data following downtime. In fact, 55% of Korean organisations have experienced data loss or downtime in the past 12 months, with 55% of respondents to have experienced this citing hardware failure as the leading cause. Where data loss or downtime had been experienced, 42% of companies recorded a loss of employee productivity as a major consequence. Additionally, while 38% of organisations in Korea are still using tape for backup and recovery, 61% currently use disk-based systems and 92% of tape users would like to move beyond tape for backup purposes.
China (Greater)
Focusing on China, the research revealed that 74% of companies in this country are not fully confident that they can recover systems/data following downtime. In fact, 85% of Chinese organizations have experienced data loss or downtime in the past 12 months, with 80% of respondents to have experienced this citing hardware failure as the leading cause. Where data loss or downtime had been experienced, 48% of companies recorded a loss of employee productivity as a major consequence. Additionally, while 32% of organisations in China are still using tape for backup and recovery, 64% currently use disk-based systems and 99% of tape users would like to move beyond tape for backup purposes.
India
Focusing on India, the research revealed that 72% of companies in this country are not fully confident that they can recover systems/data following downtime. In fact, 80% of Indian organizations have experienced data loss or downtime in the past 12 months, with 65% of respondents to have experienced this citing data corruption as the leading cause. Where data loss or downtime had been experienced, 48% of companies recorded a loss of employee productivity as a major consequence. Additionally, while 76% of organisations in India are still using tape for backup and recovery, 72% currently use disk-based systems and 84% of tape users would like to move beyond tape for backup purposes.
South East Asia
Focusing on South East Asia, the research revealed that 83% of companies in this region are not fully confident that they can recover systems/data following downtime. In fact, 74% of South East Asian organisations have experienced data loss or downtime in the past 12 months, with 60% of respondents to have experienced this citing hardware failure as the leading cause. Where data loss or downtime had been experienced, 39% of companies recorded a loss of employee productivity as a major consequence. Additionally, while 39% of organisations in South East Asia are still using tape for backup and recovery, 59% currently use disk-based systems and 83% of tape users would like to move beyond tape for backup purposes.
Survey Methodology For ‘The Disaster Recovery Survey 2012: Asia Pacific and Japan’ – commissioned by EMC, Vanson Bourne interviewed 2,500 IT decision-makers in private and public sector organizations in Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Each organization ranged between 250 and 3000-plus employees and represented a variety of industries including manufacturing, retail, financial services and telecoms, among others.
Additional Resources:
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About EMC EMC Corporation is a global leader in enabling businesses and service providers to transform their operations and deliver IT as a service. Fundamental to this transformation is cloud computing. Through innovative products and services, EMC accelerates the journey to cloud computing, helping IT departments to store, manage, protect and analyze their most valuable asset — information — in a more agile, trusted and cost-efficient way. Additional information about EMC can be found at www.EMC.com.
About Vanson Bourne Vanson Bourne, a specialist research-led consultancy, carries out user research within a technology context. The company interviews senior decision makers from a variety of functions, across a whole range of industries, in organizations from the smallest to the largest, in markets around the globe. Vanson Bourne's clients range from start-ups to well-known companies that need expert guidance, delivering robust and credible research-based analysis.
