Four Steps to Immunize an Organization against H1N1: New Study by Info-Tech Research Group

Four Steps to Immunize an Organization against H1N1: New Study by Info-Tech
Research Group

LONDON, ON, Nov. 5 /PRNewswire/ - Info-Tech Research Group's latest report
outlines four specific areas that IT departments need to consider when
preparing for the very real threat of an H1N1 outbreak this winter. If
ignored, a business could experience a substantial slow down or a complete
halt in productivity.
"Organizations will need to have a well rounded plan in place that encompasses
threats to business productivity including sudden catastrophic natural
disasters, and terrorist attacks as well as the slow and subtle threat of a
large scale disease outbreak which we are facing this flu season," said Darin
Stahl, lead analyst for Info-Tech Research Group.
The report "IT Planning Guide for Infectious Disease Outbreaks," outlines the
four specific areas of information technologies and IT governance that are
critical to enable successful business continuity in the event that an H1N1
outbreak impacts an organization.

1. Collaboration tools and technologies
2. Enterprise and desktop applications
3. Service desk tools and desktop support
4. Virtual private networks (VPN) and virtual desktops

Recommendations in collaboration highlight web conferencing tools as the most
effective tool allowing employees to collaborate in real time on business
documents, spreadsheets and enterprise applications while quarantined in their
homes. Organizations without a web conferencing technology standard should
quickly choose and implement an on-demand Web conferencing solution or
recommend a free solution for 1-on-1 meetings in the event of an actual
emergency.
Employees will also need home access to the enterprise applications they use
on a daily basis at work. Organizations which provide most or all of their
employees with company laptops can sit pretty knowing that there is not much
work to do to ensure applications are accessible, but those with large
departments of employees working from stationary workstations will need to
consider a virtual desktop implementation.
Of course, IT staff will also need access to helpdesk and systems management
tools to support remote workers. In the event that an organization does feel
impact from an outbreak, an "outbreak service level agreement" is imperative
as IT is sure to be inundated with requests and expectations need to be set to
ahead of time.
Common practice in business continuity plans is to rely on consumer broadband
networks to provide connectivity through a VPN connected to corporate
applications.
"IT departments should be prepared if public/consumer broadband networks
become clogged under the strain of masses of employees working from home,"
Stahl warns. "There is no easy solution to this dilemma, but organizations
need to be prepared to put money towards providing employees in business
critical roles with costly yet committed connectivity."

About Info-Tech Research Group:

With a paid membership of over 21,000 worldwide, Info-Tech Research Group
(www.infotech.com) is the global leader in providing tactical, practical
Information Technology research and analysis. Info-Tech has a ten-year history
of delivering quality research and is one of North America's fastest growing
full-service IT analyst firms.

For interviews with Info-Tech Research Group, contact Rachel Flewelling at
rflewelling@infotech.com or 1-888-670-8889 ext. 3061.

Follow Info-Tech Research Group on Twitter (@infotechPR) and Facebook
(www.facebook.com/InfoTech.Research.Group)

SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group

For interviews with Info-Tech Research Group, contact Rachel Flewelling at
rflewelling@infotech.com or 1-888-670-8889 ext. 3061; Follow Info-Tech
Research Group on Twitter (@infotechPR) and Facebook
(www.facebook.com/InfoTech.Research.Group)