Twenty percent of organisations with business continuity plans have no idea if they will actually work in a crisis because they've never tested the plans, according to a Stratus Technologies survey.

Stratus Technologies focuses on helping its customers keep critical business operations online without interruption. The survey, part of Stratus' 'Taming The Hydra' Webinar series on business continuity, revealed a surprising lack of readiness for maintaining operations during natural or man-made disasters, even among the nearly 80 percent of companies that named business continuity as a priority. Business continuity is broadly defined as the ability to maintain critical business processes during a disruption of normal operating conditions. Disruptions can be anything from a natural disaster to a major systems failure.

Stratus asked whether business continuity is a priority at their companies; whether they actively follow a plan to ensure business continuity; if they believe that implementing a business continuity plan provides a significant competitive advantage; and how often they test their business continuity plan. Business continuity was a strategic priority for 76 percent of the companies surveyed, 69 percent said they followed a business continuity plan; and 86 percent believe that a business continuity plan is a significant strategic advantage. However, only 45 percent of companies following business continuity plans tested them more than once a year. Of the remaining companies, 35 percent tested yearly, and 20 percent not at all.

"The survey shows a gulf between thought and action in business continuity," said Sri Sridharan, Stratus' vice president of solutions services. "On the positive side, it is obvious the vast majority of companies understand that business continuity is a strategic issue. But their plans have less value unless there are processes in place for constantly testing and refining them."