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To: tech who wrote (2464)	2/18/1998 11:23:00 AM
From: tech	Respond to of 3391

Federal Reserve Warns of Dire Consequences _____________________(news) Link: infoseek.com Federal Reserve Board member Edward Kelley, Jr., has the dubious assignment of being the FED's spokesman on y2k. In recent testimony, he warned about the consequences of banks' failing to become compliant. He is concerned about the possibility that the problem might become "systemic." That is a very scary word. It is the heart of the problem for banking. The FED can regulate banks doing business inside the United States. It can do nothing except advise foreign banks. He admits that some foreign banks are not taking steps to solve the problem. I'd like to know: How many? How big are they? And how can the FED keep them from interacting with compliant U.S. banks (none yet) without causing a breakdown in the international banking system? * * * * * * * ''The stakes are enormous, actually, nothing less than the preservation of a safe and sound financial system that can continue to operate in an orderly manner when the clock rolls over at midnight on New Year's Eve and the millennium arrives on the scene,'' Kelley told the Florida International Bankers Association in Miami. . . . Kelley said the U.S. central bank was concerned about both domestic banks and foreign banks operating in the United States if computer systems are not corrected and tested well ahead. ''Operating problems at individual banks must not be allowed to spread and become systemic,'' Kelley said, possibly making banks unable to meet their obligations. . . . Kelley said the Fed was talking to bankers and regulators from around the world that have U.S. operations and was concerned that some were not taking the steps necessary to be ready for Year 2000.

To: tech who wrote (2464)	2/18/1998 11:31:00 AM
From: tech	Respond to of 3391

Great Britain: Insufficient Resources to Solve the Problem _______(news) Link: ft.com Robin Guenier, who ran TASK Force 2000 until the government stopped funding it, recently reported that there are not enough resources to spend the 30 billion pounds necessary to save Britain from y2k. Richard Holway says industry can absorb only 15 billion. He underestimates the ability of thre free market to bid up prices. The 30 billion will be spent if it is made available. It will buy 15 billions worth of services at today's prices. This is from the FINANCIAL TIMES (Feb. 16). You must register on the site. After registering, search for: UK: Fizz goes out of 'bomb' battle * * * * * Few think Robin Guenier, pioneer of the UK's awareness programme, was exaggerating the cost to the UK at more than œ30bn. Recent figures from some large UK corporations -- more than œ73m for Reuters, œ88m for British Petroleum, œ100m for BAA and œ250m for Unilever -- suggest he understated the situation. But cost, for Mr Guenier at any rate, is no longer the issue. He says: "It does not matter what the amount is or how we calculate it. We simply cannot spend that amount because we do not have the resources to spend it on." Richard Holway, author of a comprehensive annual report on the UK software industry, analyses the number of software specialists available for employment on remedial work and calculates that the most the UK could spend by 2000 is about œ15bn. He also says that the most the whole of UK industry has spent to date on defusing the bomb is less than œ1bn. The inescapable consequence of either Mr Guenier's or Mr Holway's calculations is that by 2000 there will be a yawning gap between what should have been done and what remains to be accomplished, with small and medium-sized companies and government departments bearing the brunt of the shortfall. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Keep a close eye on the ConSyGen/Chase partnership in Europe. There is much need for a automated factory approach. The resource problem in Europe is even more of a issue than it is here. ConSyGen and Chase will be able to provide a fast, accurate, and cost effective solution.

To: tech who wrote (2464)	2/18/1998 11:50:00 AM
From: tech	Respond to of 3391

Canadian Businesses: 10% Have Taken Action _____________________(news) Link: canada.cnet.com A recent report from Canada's Task Force 2000 indicates that 90% of Canadian businessmen know about y2k. About half plan to take action. About 10% have actually taken some action. It is obvious that Canada is not going to make the 2000 deadline. But one official claimed that Canada is doing great, compared to the rest of the world. Sadly, he's probably correct. The article raises the question of the domino effect in the international economy. What if Korea isn't compliant? Nobody asked the Big Question: What if Japan's banks aren't compliant? This is on C/Net (Feb. 3). * * * * * * * "The situation is not business as usual," said Douglas Lagass‚, director of research at the Year 2000 Research Group. "People will get nervous in a year or so from now, and that may affect the economic system more than the problem itself." . . . "I think it's great," said Gaylen Duncan, president and CEO of Information Technology Association of Canada. "It's a wake up call to Canadian businesses." Lagass‚ agrees, but he believes the government is leaving most companies on their own. "The government is not creating any accountability for the organizations that have created the infrastructures, like the transportation system, the telecommunications system, the news system and Hydro, and I think their should be more interest placed in making sure those companies comply." In a Statistics Canada survey of more than 2,000 companies, 90 per cent said they are aware of the millenium bug but only half said they plan to take action. Of those, 10 per cent have put a formal plan in place. . . . The task force also asks that lending institutions, the insurance and legal communities, and accounting firms refuse dealings with any business without a formal Y2K plan of action. "I think if this doesn't work, we'll have to escalate 'should' to 'must,'" Duncan said, "but I don't think we'll have to do that. We've got so many armies going out and asking for action plans." Canada is doing the best job it can, Lagass‚ said. Compared with the rest of the world, it's doing a great job. But an understanding of business interdependency is of the utmost importance. "Canada can have its whole house in order -- Y2K OK -- but if Canada wants to deal with Korea, and Korea is down, it will bottleneck, which will domino into a massive disruption. The possibility of that is quite high." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The slow pace of companies addressing Y2k in Canada would, at least, help to explain the poor performance of Agiss. However, Agiss still needs to get their act together and provide business to justify their exclusive rights to the ConSyGen toolset in Canada.

To: tech who wrote (2464)	2/18/1998 12:00:00 PM
From: tech	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3391

Replace 12,000+ Suppliers in 1999? No Problem! __________________(news) Link: thestar.com Most large firms have around 15,000 suppliers. Most (probably all) of these suppliers are noncompliant. BCE, the Canadian telecommunications firm, says it will fire any noncompliant supplier after mid-year, 1999. This is another way of saying that BCE will have to locate approximately 12,000 new suppliers in the second half of 1999. Maybe more. How? And how will GM do the same? And Ford. And every other large manufacturing firm? Meanwhile, 90% of Canadian firms have yet to begin y2k repairs. Rhetoric is one thing. Reality is something else. Reality is falling dominoes, all over the world. This is from the Tortonto STAR (Feb. 8). * * * * * * * * * Many Canadian companies risk extinction unless every business leader, from top chief executive officers to corner-store owners, drafts a battle plan to eradicate the millennium bug, a federal task force warns. For those who ignore this countrywide call to arms, the consequences will be dire, Jean Monty, task force chairman and president of telecommunications giant BCE Inc., said yesterday ''Time is running out fast . . . and for some it might already be too late,'' Monty told a Toronto news conference after releasing the group's final report, titled ''A Call for Action.'' ''One faulty link can weaken the whole chain and break it.'' . . . The report shies away from calling for any laws or regulations requiring formal disclosure. Those kinds of measures won't be needed, Monty said. ''You can't legislate because it's too complicated,'' Monty said, suggesting the market will force most businesses to shape up. To prove his point, Monty said Montreal-based BCE will tear up contracts with any of its 15,000 suppliers if they haven't routed out their millennium bugs. ''By the middle of next year, we'll be looking for other suppliers.'' . . . Still, a recent federal survey found more than half of Canadian businesses polled had no plans to deal with the millennium bug, although 90 per cent recognized the threat. . . . In Ottawa, Industry Minister John Manley said there will be no government grants or tax credits to help businesses defray the costs of computer retro-fits, The Star's William Walker reported.