Businesses warned 'woefully slow' progress is not good enough

Gwynneth Flower, managing director of Action 2000, today announced that over a quarter of British companies were causing 'significant concern' through the inadequacy of their millennium preparations.

In the latest State of the Nation report, Action 2000 warned that 36% of businesses, employing between 10 and 249 employees, were risking major disruption through believing the millennium bug was either an IT problem or that a 'silver bullet' solution will eventually be found.

Flower commented: "The historical 'wait and see' attitude is not going to work against the millennium bug. This shortcoming of British business could be its downfall."

64% of companies that have done nothing to prepare for the millennium bug believe they have plenty of time to go, whilst a further 78% want to wait and see what happens. Flower explained: "These figures are grounds for concern. This lack of perception of the risk shows a worrying short-sightedness among British managers."

With over 24% of major businesses not reaching compliance, more and more companies are developing a 'heavy reliance on contingency planning' to ensure if things do go wrong, they have an immediate action plan in place.

Even in this important factor many companies appear to be dragging their heels:

• Four in five companies with 10-249 employees have not put millennium bug contingency plans into place.
• One in seven larger companies, with 250+ employees, lack any form of contingency planning
• Two-thirds of companies enjoying between 1-9 staff have no contingency plans at all.

Flower said of the situation: "Millennium bug problems, internal or external to a business, could disrupt a firm's ability to produce, deliver, sell and support products and services. This is why businesses must have comprehensive contingency plans."

Julie Crisp