–By Megan Kellett, Assistant Site Editor of SearchDisasterRecovery.com–

According to a recent study by New York-based Allied Business Intelligence (ABI) Research, Business Continuity/Disaster Recovery, the global business continuity (BC) and disaster recovery (DR) market is predicted to grow from $24.3 billion in 2009 to more than $39 billion in 2015. The study has been observing the market trends for business continuity and disaster recovery since 2004, and covers BC and DR in hardware and software services, as well as trends in both enterprise and small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Reasons for such an expansive growth in disaster recovery procedures and solutions may stem from several things. First, disaster recovery is becoming less expensive, meaning if companies previously thought they didn’t have the money to spend in their disaster recovery budget, there are now more cost-effective solutions available to them.

“With the advent of cost-effective software products, BC/DR is within the reach of just about any organization, large and small,” said Paul Kirvan, secretary of the Business Continuity Institute and a business continuity consultant. “Web search tools can uncover many tools and templates to facilitate this process. [Simpler DR/BC processes] are likely to continue as people decide, for whatever reason, to launch a BC/DR activity. They are not experts in the process, and will look for the cheapest way to put something in place.”

Second, the predicted growth in purchasing disaster recovery and business continuity products may stem from the fact that having a disaster recovery plan is simply becoming second nature for many companies who see the importance of fully protecting their data.

According to Kirvan, companies who recognize the importance of protecting their staff and business processes, the company’s image and competitive edge, and getting the company to resume normal operations after a disruption, then BC/DR plans are recommended. Kirvan also predicted that “in the next five to seven years, BC/DR is likely to be as important a business activity as filing tax returns. This will be largely due to the presence of globally accepted and, probably [in this country], mandatory standards and regulations that underscore the need for BC/DR initiatives.”

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