Disaster Recovery Journal

On the cover of our last Journal (Winter 2007), we celebrated our 20th anniversary by publishing pictures of all our past covers. This compilation was very eye-catching and received a lot of compliments at our recent conference, Spring World 2007. Several attendees shook my hand and commented on the use of disaster photos on our cover. Though we have changed in recent years to feature a variety of covers, the disaster photos have been a mainstay of DRJ. It is a tradition I started in the beginning of my publishing days.

The disasters were very relevant in our early days and I felt they would catch the attention of anyone who looked at the cover. Disaster recovery revolved around disasters, so I felt it was very appropriate. As the industry has evolved, we now report on much more than disasters and recoveries, but I still like to see disaster photos on the magazine cover. I am aware that the incidents that cause business outages are often not big disasters. Instead, they can be small problems such as data loss or power outages. There are also lots of other issues involved in the business continuity world, such as insurance, legal requirements, regulations, training, communications and data storage.

We sometimes feature photos on our covers that reflect on these other areas of business continuity. I enjoy seeing these covers and am very impressed by how our graphic capabilities have improved over the past two decades.

But, for the most part, I still love to put disaster photos out there. They draw attention and get people talking about what happened and when. It is great to look back over the past 20 years of Journal covers and see all the photos of incidents that have occurred. Some of them evoke tragic memories; others provide us with a glimpse of how a small disaster can have a big impact.

I hope everyone enjoyed the past edition and learned a little about DRJ’s 20th anniversary. I love sharing our past with you. Many of you have been with us from the beginning, and can probably relate to most of the photos and disasters that were featured.

We will continue our 20th anniversary celebration at our next conference, Fall World 2007. This show will be in San Diego, Calif., Sept. 16-19. I hope to meet more of you at our next show. It is a great gathering place for us “old-timers” and for all the new practitioners in the business continuity field.

I always like meeting and talking with our attendees at our conferences. It is fascinating to hear their stories, whether they are just starting out in their job – or have been there for decades. We all share a common thread, and that is to protect our organizations from the threats and risks of today.

The Fall World show is very popular. For the past two years, we have had to cut-off registration several weeks before the show begins. The hotel, the San Diego Sheraton Hotel and Marina, also fills up quickly.

Our conference is the best value in the industry for everyone from C-level executives to those new to the industry.

Don’t miss your chance to attend. Register early and reserve your spot. And remember to make your hotel reservation early too. Once we reach capacity, we will be unable to take your registration. You can find out more about the fall conference by viewing the brochure on pages 81-87 of this issue. Our comprehensive speaker lineup will be available very soon and will be mailed out to our subscribers. If you have any questions or comments, please e-mail us at drj@drj.com. I look forward to seeing you at the next show!

"Appeared in DRJ's Spring 2007 Issue"