YEAR 2000 - Speaking louder than words

Action 2000 points out that the bottom line lies in co-operation not appropriation.

The year 2000 problem is being discussed everywhere, and every timet appropriation. you pick up an IT publication it is almost impossible to avoid reading an article about it.

This is due, at least in part, to the excellent job that Taskforce 2000 has done in raising public awareness of the problem. Unfortunately, however, while companies' knowledge of the problem is very pervasive, positive action is much less common.

It was to address this lack of activity that Margaret Beckett, president of the Board of Trade, announced the establishment of Action 2000, a group whose remit is to focus strongly on the real action that businesses will need to take in order to fix their systems in time for the millennium.

Action 2000 is made up of four core year 2000 groups: delivery promotion; advice and best practice, self assessment and information; monitoring; and people skills. It is likely that special focus groups will be set up to consider the special needs of small businesses, for example, supply chain issues and the particular problems of embedded systems.

A supply chain focus within Action 2000 will be important for dealers and resellers which are increasingly being put on the millennium spot by customers asking for assurances. A few years ago, the same users considered the year 2000 problem a scam by suppliers to enable them to sell more.

However, many now believe that it is the dealers' duty to care for their customers. Simply pointing them in the direction of a possibly relevant and probably expensive assessment tool may not be good enough. Surveys show that user cynicism among the smaller businesses is growing and it is dealers that may take the brunt.

Blame for the year 2000 problem has been subsequently apportioned to suppliers, programmers and users - depending on who is talking. The bottom line is that everyone needs to be actively taking steps towards compliancy.

Accepting that, short-term action must be taken to ensure it will be business as usual in the millennium.

This means that dealers should be talking to their suppliers now. Many suppliers have been active in making their products compliant or, in the case of some installed equipment, will be able to offer a solution. Some have information packs or internet pages which will be able to help, and we too have produced a year 2000 reference source on our Website.

Action 2000 can help. It can offer all parts of the supply chain practical advice and solutions on how best to fix the problem. Its emphasis is on action, not on raising awareness, and its vendor-independent status means that the advice and solutions provided will be the most appropriate.

However, this action does not absolve the supplier community, including the intermediary channels from their responsibility to clients to overcome the widest, most serious and most time-bound problem the business IT community has yet had to face.

John Perkins is the National Computing Centre's director of membership and chairman of the 'Advice and Best Practice' Group of the recently created Action 2000.