RESEARCH FINDS EMPLOYEES OVERLOOKED
IN DISASTER PLANNING

ITAC Discovers Most Business Continuity Programs are More Concerned with Protecting Data Than Connecting Employees

NEW ORLEANS, LA - May 23, 2005 - Today at the WorldatWork 50th Annual Conference, ITAC, the Telework Advisory Group for WorldatWork, revealed that less than half of the private and public sector organizations contacted by ITAC in 2004 had included telework in their business continuity plans. This finding is surprising since nearly one in five U.S. companies suffered a disaster in 2004 that caused their companies to cease operations for a period of time, according to a Partnership for Public Warning study commissioned by AT&T.

Telework enables an organization’s employees to continue working when faced with many disaster-related interruptions, be they man made or natural, by using current communications and computer technologies to work from home, on the road, or at a client’s office, simply anywhere. Other terms for telework include telecommuting, virtual work and mobile work. Business Continuity refers to organizations having contingency plans in place that allow the organizations to stay up and running or quickly recover from a disaster.

“Many organizations take an ostrich approach towards disasters thinking it won’t happen to them, “ said Robert L. Smith, Jr., Director of ITAC, the Telework Advisory Group for WorldatWork. “ However with survey research finding 43% of companies hit by severe crises never open their operations again, businesses must plan for unexpected disasters.”

From its research sponsored by the AT&T Foundation and Cisco Systems, ITAC has produced a comprehensive publication, “Exploring Telework as a Business Continuity Strategy: A Guide to Getting Started,” to instruct organizations on how to survive disasters. The 100+ page report provides eight detailed steps on how to incorporate telework as part of an organization’s business continuity strategy. In addition the report describes Technology Solutions that enable people to work remotely at anytime, and provides strategies for federal agencies to survive disaster. Further the report provides brief case studies of organizations that have effectively incorporated telework into their continuity plans.

The ITAC report is written to help HR executives, CIO’s and CEOs of private and public sector organizations determine the best way to incorporate employees into their business continuity plans. An Executive Summary of the 100+ page report is available for downloading for free from ITAC’s web site, www.workingfromanywhere.org. Executives wanting to learn more about telework as a business continuity strategy can order, while supplies last, one free copy of the complete document for their organization. Additional copies can be purchased for $34.95. The report can be ordered online from the ITAC web site or by calling WorldatWork at 877-951-9191 and select option 7.

About WorldatWork
WorldatWork (www.worldatwork.org) is the world's leading not-for-profit professional association dedicated to knowledge leadership in compensation, benefits and total rewards. Founded in 1955, WorldatWork is based in Scottsdale, AZ and focuses on human resources disciplines associated with attracting, retaining, and motivating employees.

About ITAC
On January 1, 2005, ITAC became the Telework Advisory Group for WorldatWork. Prior to this year, ITAC was the International Telework Association and Council (ITAC). As part of WorldatWork, ITAC continues its mission of advancing the growth and success of work independent of location through groundbreaking research such as this year’s Guide, an annual conference held every September and monthly e-mail communications to its members on the latest developments in telework. Information on ITAC and its activities is available on the Web at www.workingfromanywhere.org or by telephone at 301-650-2322.

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