We have a new "standard" in this article: "the most critical of the critical systems are done"

Some Fortune 500 Y2K Late

By Laura Randall, Newsbytes.

August 12, 1999

Fewer than half of US Fortune 500 companies expect all of their computer systems to be ready for Year 2000-related failures, in part because they are devoting much of their attention to ensuring that their top "mission-critical" systems are Y2K-compliant, a new survey has found.

About 18 percent of the companies surveyed said they expect that 75 percent or less of their critical computer systems will be "completely tested and compliant" by Dec. 31, the study by technology and management consulting firm Cap Gemini America Inc. found. About 36 percent said they expect between 76 and 99 percent of their applications to be ready, while only 2 percent anticipate that Y2K work will be completed on 50 percent or less of their systems.

"What this means is few systems are totally clean, but the most critical of the critical systems are done," said Howard Rubin, the chairman of the computer science department at Hunter College who prepared the report for Cap Gemini.

The main problems companies are dealing with now in their Y2K preparation efforts are the "unknown unknowns," or "things they didn't know they didn't know about," Rubin told Newsbytes.

About three-quarters of the companies said they had experienced Y2K-related failures of their computer systems in the second quarter. The majority of the failures - 92 percent - involved financial miscalculation or loss, followed by processing disruptions (84 percent), customer service problems (38 percent) and logistics or supply-chain disruptions (34 percent).

The companies showed improvement in meeting Y2K deadlines they had set for themselves, although 81 percent continued to report an "accelerated incidence" of missed deadlines, the study found. About 92 percent of the firms admitted to missing deadlines in similar surveys taken in December and May.

With full Y2K readiness out of their reach, more firms are viewing the Y2K "bug" as a business problem as well as a technology problem and turning control of Y2K issues over to top management, the study found. The number of top managers planning to take charge of their firm's Year 2000 "crisis management centers" has risen by 35 percent since May, to 84 percent, according to the Cap Gemini report.

The seemingly widespread lack of readiness for Y2K shouldn't be a major cause for concern, Rubin said. He pointed out that many companies had set a June deadline for Y2K compliance, in effect to create a six-month "buffer" in which they could deal with any unexpected problems or delays.

The Y2K report is based on a survey of information technology managers at 144 US corporations covering all industrial sectors, as well as 17 federal, state, and local government agencies. The company intends to issue another report on Y2K compliance in about three months, Rubin said.

http://currents.net/newstoday/99/08/12/news1.html

-- Gayla (privacy@please.com), August 13, 1999

Answers

First, it was, "Oh, this is a piece of cake; we'll have everything done by December 31, 1998, and coast through 1999."

Then, it was, "Well, maybe we'll only have our 'mission-critical' systems done by December 31, 1998."

Then, it was, "Well, we'll have our critical systems done by March 31... er... June 30... er... September 30."

Now, it's "We'll absolutely, positively have our really critical mission-critical systems done by December 31."

-- Lane Core Jr. (elcore@sgi.net), August 13, 1999.

The article starts out:

"Fewer than half of US Fortune 500 companies expect all of their computer systems to be ready for Year 2000-related failures, in part because they are devoting much of their attention to ensuring that their top "mission-critical" systems are Y2K-compliant, a new survey has found. "

Then at the tail end of the article - qualification for the survey appears:

"The Y2K report is based on a survey of information technology managers at 144 US corporations covering all industrial sectors, as well as 17 federal, state, and local government agencies."

Since the survey was spread out to federal, state and local government agencies, I have atendancy to believe that the remaining 127 companies were not all members of the Fortune 500. Even if they were - would it be fair to interpolate the survey data as a good cross section of the F-500 group? I don't believe so.

I am not disputing the percentages shown for the companies polled - my problem is in the application of that data in regard to all companies in the group.

Furthermore - most companies I have worked with over the years steered well clear of surveys or any other information that may have a bearing on the value of the stock. I can't help but wonder how they, Cap Gemini & Hunter College, got this information.

Yours in COBOL... Dino!

-- (COBOL_Dinosaur@yahoo.com), August 13, 1999.

Slippage is nothing new in the IT world. As Lane pointed out, we've heard nothing but future dates (We heard 12/31/98 so much I got sick of it). So, the music will rumble on and on right down to Dec 31.

Clearly many won't make it. I know what I've had to go through to get my programs compliant and I certainly don't believe everybody else is taking y2k as serious as I have (just look at the y2k smirks you get when the subject is brought up). Some will make it yes, I agree, but there will be a lot of companies out there that will not make it in time.

What will happen? We'll know shortly.

-- Larry (cobol.programmer@usa.net), August 13, 1999.