There is a theory that the real problem does not lie with the large corporation but with suppliers. It goes....XYZ airline fixes their Y2K problems on time. The FAA mandates that certain parts (tires, engine parts, etc) be replaced and serviced on a scheduled basis. A plane takes off on Jan 1, 2000 and the tire blows out on landing and the plane crashes. Where is the liability? The Airline was in compliance, but was unable to get the replacement tires from their supplier, who was not compliant. The airline gets sued. They sue the supplier. The supplier sues his outsourcer who couldn't get the software updated. The outsourcer sues the software vendor, who goes out of business. Meanwhile, people are dead, or, to avoid the whole problem, the airline doesn't fly for a few days. This impacts earnings for the airlines, but really impacts your company because you can't fly to a meeting with a potential customer, and you cant drive there because the gas pumps run dry due to the fact that the refinery maintainence system shut down (embedded). Infrastructure is really the thing that scares most people in the know. Talk to a number of large companies, and they will tell you that they cant figure out if they will even have power to run the factories, let alone workers, who can get to the job. Pretty scary.
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