DISASTER RECOVERY 
JOURNAL

P. O. Box 510110
St. Louis, MO 63151
(314) 894-0276 
Fax: (314) 894-7474
Internet www.drj.com 
E-mail drj@drj.com

PUBLISHER &
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Richard L. Arnold, CBCP
richard@drj.com

SENIOR EDITOR
Janette Ballman
janette@drj.com

MANAGING EDITOR
Jon Seals
jon@drj.com

ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Ed Pearce, CBCP
ed@drj.com

COPY EDITORS
Richard Sandhofer
richards@drj.com
Pamela Clifton
pamelaclifton@hotmail.com

ADVERTISING 
Robert Arnold
bob@drj.com

_____________

Corporate

President/CEO
Richard L. Arnold, CBCP
richard@drj.com

Vice President 
Robert Arnold
bob@drj.com

CONFERENCE COORDINATOR
Patti Fitzgerald, CBCP
patti@drj.com

CONFERENCE REGISTRAR
Merce Knese
mercedes@drj.com

CIRCULATION
Laura Baugh
laurab@drj.com

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
Jeff Dato, MBCP, KPMG
John Jackson, IBM
Edward S. Devlin, E.S. Devlin & Associates
James Hammill, CBCP, JMH Consulting Inc.
Pat McAnally, SunGard Availability Services
Brian Turley, Strohl Systems
Belinda Wilson, Hewlett-Packard


INTERNATIONAL
CONTACTS
England: Thom Hetherington
Business Continuity 
Phone: 0161-237-1007
thomh@tempus.demon.co.uk

Australia: Anthony J. Harvey
Journal of Business Continuity
Phone: 0011-613-953-0055-8
fax: 0011-613-953-0528
sector@notability.com.au

Japan: Shinji Hosotsubo
Quake Japan Co., Ltd.
Phone: 03-3215-2880
fax: 03-3215-2881

Brazil: Jose Carlos Ferreira
Disaster Recovery Mercosul
Phone: 55 11 3666-9506
conc2000@uol.com.br
www.drms.com.br

Click Here for a Printable Version

DRI International Raising Awareness of BCM

By THOMAS C. MAWSON, CAE

Since mid-2002, DRI International has been actively promoting the business continuity management profession to a number of audiences. In September 2002, DRII retained a public relations firm and began an aggressive campaign to reach out to audiences outside the typical disaster recovery/business continuity market.
The public relations campaign has one primary goal – to raise public awareness of the vital role of business continuity management and, most importantly, the role that certified professionals fill in assuring business continuity in enterprises throughout the world today. To get this message across, we are utilizing a variety of methods in order to reach a variety of qualified audiences. Here is a summary of recent efforts and successes.

The Media
DRI International began the campaign by targeting specific business-related media to approach. Early success led to articles in Washington Business magazine and other publications for the middle-Atlantic region of the United States. National and international business publications began to pick up press releases from DRII, resulting in articles about the criticality of business continuity, the role of business continuity planning in assuring corporate continuity in the case of interruption, etc.
As a result, general articles about BC have appeared in Wall Street Journal and similar media. Since the campaign began, DRI International board members, certification commission members, and executive staff have been interviewed by ABC News, Call Center magazine, Security magazine, Business Insurance magazine, Certification magazine, Business Finance magazine, and CSO online (an online service for chief security officers), to name a few. Most recently, one member of the certification commission was interviewed for an article in Federal Computer Week newspaper.
The ultimate goal of the media campaign is to feature regular placement of articles about BCP and the work that professionals do in this field to protect their respective companies, divisions, agencies, etc. and the world economy in general media.
The highlight of the year (thus far anyway) occurred on March 4, 2004, when DRI International held a press conference in New York City. At this event we announced that the week of March 8, 2004, had been declared Global Business Continuity Awareness Week.
In recognition of this momentous announcement, DRI International received a commendation from the U.S. House of Representatives commending certified professionals in business continuity for their vital role in maintaining the continuity of their company’s operations and the critical role this plays in assuring stability of the U.S. and world economy.

Vertical Markets
A second, very effective method for reaching large audiences is to approach trade associations and professional groups with interests in business continuity issues. Here we have enjoyed success by placing articles in the national publications of the American Society for Industrial Security, Building Owners and Managers Association, International Facility Managers Association, Convenience Store Operators, National Association of College and University Business Officers, and others.
DRI International Board members have also been featured speakers at several industry-related forums. A recent highlight was on May 11, when DRII Chairman of the Board John Copenhaver, CBCP, of Marsh Risk Consulting, was the keynote speaker at the annual meeting of the American Industrial Hygiene Association. In 2003, DRII Treasurer Paul Thomas, MBCP, was a featured speaker at the annual meeting of the Screen Graphics Association in St. Louis.
Additionally, executive staff and DRII leaders have made numerous presentations to groups within the emergency management/business continuity/disaster recovery fields. DRII’s executive director has presented programs on the value of DRI International certification to audiences as diverse as government emergency executives at both the FEMA Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg, Md., and at the General Services Administration headquarters in Washington, D.C., at the Disaster Resistant California conference in Sacramento, Calif., as well as at recent user group meetings of Sungard Availability Services.
The message to all of these audiences is clear and concise. Professionals engaged in business continuity management play a vital role in assuring the resilience of their companies in the face of any types of interruptions – natural or man-made. DRI International provides the certification and education to prepare the professionals of tomorrow for this vital role.

Two New Faces Join the DRII Board
DRI International welcomes two new individuals to its board of directors, as of March 2004. Joining the board are Brian Miller, CBCP, newly-elected president of DRI Canada, from Toronto, Ontario, and Gen. Dennis Reimer, director of the Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism in Oklahoma City, Okla. Visit the DRII Web site (www.drii.org) for biographical background on both of these individuals.

©Copyright 2004 Systems Support Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without the express written permission of System Support Inc. is prohibited.