Companies Want Y2K Assurances From Partners Too
While most companies have a Y2K plan in place or are knee-deep in working on compliance issues, that safety net is not going to be enough. An informal survey of PR NEWS readers shows that company executives are just as concerned about how suppliers, vendors and partners are tackling the millennium bug.
On Feb. 22, PR NEWS, in conjunction with public affairs firm APCO Associates, takes on the looming task of how companies are going to communicate Y2K issues to key publics. PR executives from corporations such as Mellon Bank and Siemens will share with attendees ways to troubleshoot this crucial issue.
"The survey results clearly illustrate vast disparities among various companies and industry sectors in their public affairs and communications preparation for the Y2K conversion. Respondents also show varying degrees of concern that Y2K could spark a crisis for their respective companies," says Mark Benson, president of APCO Insight, the opinion research arm of APCO.
Although some readers responded that their companies don't have plans and don't consider possible fallout a great risk, many more tell us that concerns run the gamut. Communicators acknowledge that potential problems vary from data corruption to financial performance.
Globally, news organizations are paying special attention to the Y2K issue, but so are a laundry list of other organizations. The American Society of Association Executives, for example, just wrapped up an event featuring David Powner, assistant director of civil agencies information for the U.S. General Accounting Office. (APCO, 202/778-1000)
Conference Details
February 22, 1999
"Strategic Communications for the Year 2000 Crisis," PR News & APCO, Capital Hilton, Washington, DC, 888-707-5814 or http://www.prnewsonline.com.