Storing and managing data is an increasingly important process for companies.

There are a million ways to back up and manage information, some more efficient than others. Nearly as important as safeguarding data is the manpower cost of the task.

A recent survey claimed that at least 40 per cent of an IT department's workload was spent managing the company's data and storage asset needs.

According to the Storage Networking Industry Association Europe (SNIA-E), storage needs in any given company will have grown by at least 100 per cent in the previous year - placing further pressure on the IT department to not only ensure secure back-up, but the quick restoration of any lost information.

Unfortunately, too many companies rely on outdated manual methods to back up, migrate and restore data when they should be looking at a more centralised and tiered storage solution.

The key points for any business to consider are the impact of data storage on the company, the volume of data growth, year on year, and new regulatory and compliance demands.

Then ask, are there solutions in place to manage all of this data?

A prime example is one large North-East local authority. Until recently, it took two employees five days a week to manage the data - at least 15 hours a day.

It now takes one employee one hour a day to back up information from more than 300 servers.

The key is understanding the requirements of data back-up and, most importantly, the main reasons for data loss.

System failure and human error account for 80 per cent of all data loss, with software corruption and viruses accounting for about 18 per cent.

Managing your data efficiently results in more time for your IT department to deliver systems that give value to you and your customers.

This is one area where a little investment can produce a massive return.

* Michael McMeekin is managing director of Wisdom IT. Log on to www.wisdomit.co.uk

Published: 24/05/2005