Security Spending Lags at Mid-Level

Sep 1, 2004 12:00 PM

Nearly half of mid-sized U.S. companies say they have not raised spending on security since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, even though six in 10 executives called security spending a sound investment, a new study has found.

The survey and study of nearly 100 chief executives in companies with annual revenue between $20 million and $1 billion, conducted by the New York-based Conference Board, also found that 39 percent of executives say security is a cost that should be tightly controlled.

“Clearly, one of the keys to effective security management is convincing the chief executive of the business case for security,” Tom Cavanagh, author of the report, says.

The report's “most alarming” finding, Cavanagh said, was that only 28 percent of the nearly 100 companies surveyed had established an off-site center for emergency operations. It is difficult for businesses to continue operating in the event of another terrorist attack without one.

While nearly half of the chief executives surveyed said they held at least monthly meetings with their top security officer, 26 percent said they had not held any such meeting over the past year.

Most of the surveyed companies reported they had not significantly increased security expenditures since the Sept. 11 attacks — 45 percent say they have not increased spending at all and 1 percent have cut back on security spending.

Spending increases have been most prevalent in the areas of critical infrastructure industries — transportation, energy and utilities, financial services, telecommunications, IT and healthcare. The smallest companies reported the lowest security spending increases.

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© 2012 Penton Media Inc.

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