Now, that is a problem -- especially if your company expects to provide a consistent level of B2B service and continue growing globally. I don't know any IT pro who wants to answer to shareholders for lost revenue because the company didn't take IPv6 seriously.

Still, when it's questionable whether an IPv6 initiative will significantly increase your bottom line in the near term -- say the next two to four quarters -- it's tough to justify bumping it to P1 status.

The good news is, you don't have to. With careful planning, most enterprises can gradually integrate IPv6 without spending a lot of money, consuming a lot of IT resources, or disrupting day-to-day operations.

Of course you'll need to lay the initial groundwork -- obtain your IPv6 address range, arrange to get IPv6 circuits from your ISP, determine how you want to allocate addresses, and so on. If you haven't taken these steps yet, you're already behind the curve. Do it now. This part of the process can take a lot longer than you think. When you're ready to draw up your implementation plan, consider taking the following phased approach.

Phase I: Put your focus where it matters: on customers and the general public.