Emerson Network Power, a business of Emerson (NYSE: EMR) and the world’s leading provider of critical infrastructure for information and communications technology systems, in conjunction with the Ponemon Institute, today released the results of the Data Center IQ Survey, the latest report in the Data Center Benchmark Series. Survey results, and a condensed, online version of the quiz are available at www.EmersonNetworkPower.com/Benchmarks.

The study was designed to determine the domain knowledge of data center personnel in the U.S., while also collecting data on application of best practices and current operating conditions within participants’ data centers. The survey report includes the results for 25 knowledge questions that comprise the quiz, as well as 12 operating practice questions. Results are presented by individual question as well aggregated by industry, data center size and participants’ age range and functional role. All knowledge questions are multiple choice and run the gamut from simple, such as what does PUE stand for, to more complex, such as identifying the seven capabilities a DCIM tool must provide.

“Our goal as an organization is to provide the industry with the tools, technology and knowledge to optimize data center performance, and this report supports that goal in a fun and interactive way,” said Dan Draper, marketing director, data center programs for Emerson Network Power in North America. “With the survey and the quiz we want to shed light on trends and best practices and help participants identify gaps in their knowledge. Working with the Ponemon Institute, we were able to benchmark industry knowledge of terms, practices and trends related to data center availability, productivity, risk management, speed-of-deployment, and cost management.”

The quiz questions are based on basic information and reported research from a variety of industry sources, including the Uptime Institute, The Green Grid, Emerson Network Power’s Data Center User’s Group and IEEE. On average, participants achieved 9.4 correct responses out of the 25 total knowledge questions. Only seven participants out of the 570 who took the quiz achieved a perfect score. Other results include:

Data center and facility managers scored the highest on the quiz, averaging 11 correct responses. IT management/operations professionals scored lowest with an average of 7 correct responses.

Participants with data centers larger than 10,000 square feet scored better than those with smaller data centers.

Participants in the 30-49 year age range scored better than those younger and older.

In terms of vertical industries, participants from the colocation sector scored the best, with an average score of 12, followed by cloud/hosting and financial services at 11. 

The full report, along with the condensed version of the quiz and prior reports in the Benchmark Series is available at www.EmersonNetworkPower.com/Benchmarks.