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| Gartner Dataquest Survey Shows Companies Reprioritizing Telecommunications Plans After Events of September 11 |
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SAN JOSE, Calif., October 31, 2001 - Following the events of September 11, 50 percent of enterprises in the United States expect to reprioritize and refocus their internal 2002 budgets to permit increased spending on telecommunications services, according to survey results by Dataquest Inc., a unit of Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT and ITB).
An even larger percentage of enterprises in those states directly affected by the events of September 11 indicated they would shift budget dollars into both fixed and mobile telecommunication services. On-premise equipment purchases and outsourcing of communications services, however, were impacted less significantly. This survey was conducted from September 27-30 to identify potential shifts in business practices after the events of September 11. Other important findings indicate that nearly half of the companies subscribing to disaster recovery services will increase their dependence on those services, and 25 percent of the remaining companies are now more willing to consider disaster recovery options. In addition, telecommuting will become more prevalent for nearly 25 percent of the companies surveyed. "From the general business operations perspective, 40 percent of U.S. enterprises indicated they would restrict business travel in the near term, only 1 percent long term, and rely on teleconferencing as the predominant alternative to face-to-face meetings with business associates, clients and suppliers, while restrictions last," said Peggy Schoener, senior analyst for Gartner Dataquest's Telecommunications and Networking group. "Video conferencing and online collaboration will also play an important role in communications during this period, but don't expect these services to replace face-to-face meetings in the long term." When asked to prioritize among 10 key business issues, including business security, safety and disaster recovery, survey findings indicate that, in general, enterprises have not panicked and continue to focus on the same fundamental business issues after the attack as before: profit and loss, business strategies addressing the weakening economy and market competition. "Terrorism and the added security and business survivability measures it could spawn are not on the front burner for most companies," Schoener said "Of concern is that a large proportion of enterprises may lack a comprehensive threat assessment of the potential impact of terrorism on their business operations. Of course, another significant terrorist attack may well change that." Additional information is available in the Gartner Dataquest End-User Analysis Report "Enterprises Refuse to Buckle Under Terrorism Threat: Focus on Business Fundamentals and Telecommunications Spend." This document looks at how the public network services market will be affected by competition, technology and evolving user requirements after the events of September 11. This research is published by Gartner Dataquest's Telecommunications and Networking group. This group provides analysis for the full spectrum of telecom and networking issues. To keep up to date on the latest telecommunications issues, please visit Gartner's Telecommunications Focus Area at www.gartner.com/1_researchanalysis/focus/telecom_fa.html. To subscribe to Gartner Dataquest programs, please call 408-468-8000. Reports can be purchase on the Internet at www.gartner.com. Gartner Dataquest is the recognized leader in providing the high-technology and financial communities with market intelligence for the semiconductor, computer systems and peripherals, communications, document management, software and services sectors of the global information technology industry. Gartner, Inc. is a research and advisory firm that helps more than 11,000 clients understand technology and drive business growth. Gartner's divisions consist of Gartner Research, Gartner Consulting, Gartner Measurement and Gartner Events. Founded in 1979, Gartner, Inc. is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, and consists of 4,300 associates, including 1,200 research analysts and consultants in more than 90 locations worldwide. The company achieved fiscal 2001 revenue of $952 million. For more information, visit www.gartner.com. |
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Contact: Christy Pettey 408-468-8312 christy.pettey@gartner.com |
