Final moments of the millennium
millennium update
de's
dorrts
What's NewS Issue 10 December 1999
The big moment is upon us - our
switchover to the year 2000.
After nearly three years of intensive
preparations by hundreds of colleagues
throughout the Rabobank network, we
are now ready to put our millennium
preparations to the test. But this
changeover, the first phase of which
will occur between 31 December and
1 January, will make different demands
on us than the equally decisive
conversion to the Euro of last year.
Strict scrutiny
Cautioned confidence
Final steps
C' I 'he challenge of the Euro conversion
-L was of a different character than
what we can expeet this year,' says Hans
Reusch, the millennium project manager
who also played a lead role in the Euro
switchover. 'The Euro was an exercise
that required not only that people inten-
sively prepare hut also that they directly
act during the transition weekend itself.
For instance, many people were kept busy
inputting new conversion rates. Now, it
rnight sound strange, but this year our
main task will essentially be to wait - to
stand ready to directly react to events that
will hopefully never take place. So this
will demand a very different kind of disci
pline.We'll have to make sure our atten-
tion stays focused and sharp, that we re
port according to a strict Schedule, and
that we're ready to instantly implement
any necessary contingency plans.'
Our internal preparations have been
intense. We began with an exhaustive
worldwide inventory of all our informa-
tion technology (IT) systems. Then, the
Rabobank Group's independent Test Cen
ter 2000 checked and certified all business
critical systems as being fully Y2K compli-
ant. (We assume our readers are aware
that the source of the Y2K bug is an in-
Do save all data to local disks before you shut down your
laptop computer at the end of the year;
Do send only essential e mail between 27/12/99 and 7/1/00:
no holiday greetings.
ability of older systems and embedded
software to recognize the year 2000 as a
valid date.) Meanwhile, our local and
global Communications and telephone in-
frastructure were thoroughly scrutinized
and SWIFT tests were carried out both in-
ternally and in conjunction with our lead-
ing financial counterparties. We have im-
posed a freeze on the installation of new
IT systems until March 31, 2000 and
strict measures have been imposed with
an eye towards minimizing millennium re-
lated credit risk. The objective of all these
and many other detailed preparations was
to make sure that we could continue to
deliver value in all of our products and
services to our valued cliënt base. We re-
cently completed and tested business con-
tinuity plans (BCPs) as well as our specific
transition period plans (TPPs), which con-
sist of detailed procedures, for instance re-
porting requirements, that need to be
strictly carried out both before and during
the transition periods themselves. (We
note at this juncture that 23 Eebruary to 6
March also represents a key millennium
sensitive transition.) Lastly, in recent
weeks we conceived several radical 'crisis
scenarios' to test all our procedures and
our essential lines of communication.
'Having taken these steps as well as elabo-
rate preparations for the physical comfort
of staff during transition, we can now say
with some confidence that everything is
internally under control, but this certainly
doesn't mean we are immune from possi-
hle externally generated millennium
threats,' Reusch warns.
With business and finance increasingly en-
twined in a global electronic grid, and
- Don't create new Public Folders between 27/12/99 and 7/1/00;
add as little new information to existing folders as possible;
- Don't try to access the Internet gateway for Internet e mail
or other communication while it is dosed down on 31/12/99
and 1/1/00.
with our continuing operations vitally de-
pendent on the availability of power and
other infrastructure and services, we re-
main vulnerable to disruptions elsewhere
in this highly complex web. This explains
why key staff have been instructed to take
such simple precautions as ensuring their
laptop PCs and mobile phones are fully
charged, with sufficiënt reserve battery
power at hand; why spare beds and spe
cial communication devices are present in
the crisis management centers; and why
one out of three Rabobankers is being
asked to work or to remain on call.
'All of us are sensitive to the fact that this
transition is making real demands on the
farnily, just as last year's event, and this is
something that we won't forget once the
challenge has finally been overcome,' says
team co-leader Harrie Paulissen. 'We will
try to make it up to everyone involved.
Having said that, we need to keep our
eyes on the ball. It is essential that we
observe all of these carefully elaborated
procedures as the weekend progresses,
especially the reporting requirements, and
that we don't fall into a false sense of
complacency if everything happens to run
smoothly at first. People will be working
in three shifts around the clock, and
potentially serious disturbances could
erupt at any time.'
One final set of guidelines needs special
attention - the list of four simple 'do's'
and 'don'ts' which are highlighted in the
hoxes on this page. Clearly, a tremendous
amount of work has been done to ensure
that the transition to the new millennium
will also represent a cause for celebration
from the IT standpoint. With all of RI's
systems now millennium compliant, it's
important to avoid placing undue stress
on the network, and also to fully elimi-
nate any potential vulnerabilities associ-
ated with this sensitive time window. If
these simple guidelines are followed, says
Reusch, 'we're confïdent that the turn of
the century will go smoothly as planned.'
Detailed information is available in the
milennium card that was recently
distributed. For further questions, lease
contact your local millennium coördina
tor or our help desk at 31 30 216 6888
or check www.rabobank.com/v2k
