To be prepared to operate after the date change, you should prepare, implement and test back-up plans for all major systems, including such things as, possibly, manual invoicing and accounting. If they bought an application, they should call that supplier. Don't forget middleware that enables many applications to function. This is a small spoke in the wheel, yet it can cause the application to fail. Warf continues, We are finding many of our clients replacing PCs or desktop products rather than going through the expense of upgrading them to be Y2K compliant.
Replacement can be more cost effective.
A warranty may allow you to contact the vendor and insist on Y2K compliant equipment or software at the vendor s expense. You should require a Y2K warranty for all new equipment and software purchases. You should send a letter to both your vendors and your customers asking if they are Y2K compliant. This can be a separate document or a section in loan documentation that states that the borrower will be Y2K compliant and has developed a plan for doing so. Then, we compiled a complete list of our major vendors and suppliers and assigned a criticality rating critical vendor, key vendor and minor vendor to indicate the impact to our business if this vendor should cease business operations due to the year 2000, Russell says.