BRPA - In The Loop

Vol. 2, No. 4, August, 2009

Welcome

Jason Merante (Accenture) – BRPA Secretary

Hello readers, and welcome once again to BRPA – In The Loop.  I hope that everyone is enjoying our beautiful summer weather and spending time with family and friends.  As we continue through summer and approach the hurricane and flu seasons, let us be ever vigilant at work and at home as we continue to focus on preparing our businesses and families to prepare for disasters.  I hope you enjoy this edition of our BRPA newsletter!

[Return to Top]

A Word From our President

Tom Dziurgot (Grainger) – BRPA President

No update from Tom this time.  Please check back again in our next edition… 

[Return to Top]

Summary of Last Meeting

Dan Johnson (Bank of America) – BRPA Program Director

We had another great BRPA meeting that took place at the Secret Service Office in downtown Chicago. This meeting was the first BRPA meeting ever conducted at this location. The room was spacious and the speakers were excellent. It was also a great network opportunity for all who attended. There were over 70 members in attendance and from the survey responses they were all very pleased with the program. Q-Tech sponsored the breakfast from Alonti and Chris Pope gave everyone an overview of Q-Tech’s services.

The theme of this meeting was ‘Are You Secure?’ There were three presentations for this meeting. The first presentation featured Robert Verenna and Joseph McCulley from the Secret Service who educated everyone on electronic crimes and internet fraud. The second presentation featured Jason Witty from Bank of America who presented ‘Potential Cyber Security Effects for Business Continuity Professionals’. The third session featured Jim Satterfield from Firestorm who presented lessons learned from actual events, how to be prepared for anything and also conducted a brief test exercise.

The presentations from the Secret Service and Bank of America are not available due to their confidentiality policies, but the Firestorm presentations can be found on the BRPA web site:

[Return to Top]

Preview of Next Meeting

Dan Johnson (Bank of America) – BRPA Program Director

Next Meeting Logistics and Description

This meeting will be a full day session held on September 22, 2009 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Office of Emergency Management (OEMC) in downtown Chicago:  1411 W. Madison St. It will be our annual BRPA Appreciation Lunch, but most importantly it will be the 20^th Anniversary Meeting for BRPA!

The theme of the meeting is ‘20^th Anniversary BRPA Celebration! There will be presentations from the Chicago Fire Department, Office of Emergency Management and the Chicago Police Department. The Police presentation will be on the lessons learned from the terrorist attack in Mumbai India last fall. We will also have Lynn Willenbring from Minneapolis MN., who will present the lessons learned from the 2007 Minneapolis Bridge Collapse.  There will be raffle prizes, awards, a wonderful lunch with dessert and other surprises for everyone in attendance. You don’t want to miss this meeting!

It is expected that there will be very large turnout for this meeting, so it will be an excellent opportunity for your company to sponsor this event! We are looking for sponsors for the lunch and raffle prizes. All sponsors will have the opportunity to address our members by giving them an overview of your company and telling them the benefits of using your services. If you are interested in sponsoring this event, please contact dan.johnson@brpa-chicago.org.

BRPA 2009 Program Calendar

Aug 18          Special Event – BRPA Golf Outing

Sept 22         BRPA 20^th Anniversary: Office of Emergency Mgmt. – Downtown Chicago

Nov 17          RSM McGladrey – Schaumburg (1/2 day session)

Dec 8            Holiday Luncheon: Wildfire Grill – Glenview

Jan 12           Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) – Downtown Chicago

Mar 16          Blue Cross Blue Shield – Downtown Chicago

Apr 20          BRPA Training Session – Grainger (Niles)

May 18          Location TBD

2009 – Supporting BRPA / Speakers

[Return to Top]

Guest Column

Deb Ladendorf

Preparedness at Home

As business continuity professionals, many of us are paid to worry about and plan for the worst-case scenarios that might impact our organizations.  We spend our time developing, documenting and exercising elaborate plans to ensure the sustainability and survivability of our organizations.   We are a thoughtful, analytical, and responsible group of planners who work tirelessly to educate and inform business units and colleagues of emergency procedures and policies.  But how many of us actually take our own advice and prepare for emergencies at home?   How many of us encourage our colleagues and employees to have emergency plans for home and family?

My family and friends all know I am involved in risk management, emergency planning, and business continuity.   They tell me that when I go to see a Broadway musical, while my friends are admiring the grandeur of the theater’s art and architecture, I am looking for the sprinkler heads, emergency lighting and exits.   Before the curtain goes up, my evacuation plan is in place!   I have also been known to give survival guides to nephews who snowmobile in the backwoods of upper Michigan.  The favorite gift I received this year was an NOAA weather radio.  Why then am I inadequately prepared for emergencies at home?  I suppose, if you are at all like me, we deal with the issues day in and day out; by the time we get home, we want to think about something else.

If you already have a plan in place for your family, I admire you and aspire to be as prepared.  If you haven’t planned for emergencies at home, I encourage you to begin the process.   For those who attended the July BRPA meeting, we received a copy of Disaster Ready People for a Disaster Ready America by James W. Satterfield and Harry W. Rhulen.   This book provides an excellent guide to plan for disasters at home in twelve monthly, manageable “assignments”.   The book leads you through identifying risks, developing contact lists and communication plans, sheltering in place, evacuation planning, protecting your identity and financial interests, travel planning, pandemics, pet planning, and keeping plans current.  The American Red Cross and Ready.gov websites also have sections dedicated to emergency planning at home, with the Red Cross website having many of the materials available in languages other than English.

H1N1 swine flu probably presents the most pressing case for family emergency planning right now.  As you continue your H1N1 planning at work, I encourage you to develop an action plan for home.  Imagine the worst-case scenario of a more virulent strain with no or limited vaccines available.  As local authorities look to reduce the spread of illness, non-essential movement of people, goods, and services may occur.  How will your family prepare for this potential eventuality?  The first steps we can all take are preventive actions that result in healthy personal habits like:

• Coughing and sneezing into a tissue and disposing the tissue.  Or if tissue isn’t available, coughing/sneezing into the bend of your elbow.
• Washing hands frequently and effectively.
• Trying not to touch eyes, nose or mouth.
• Staying home when you are sick.
• Getting a flu shot.  It may not protect you against H1N1, but it will reduce your risk of more common flu strains.  This in turn, will reduce your vulnerability to other illnesses that weaken your immune system.
• Finding healthy ways to deal with stress.   Exercise and eat healthily to maintain your immune system.

[Return to Top]

Member Benefits

John Mantsch (RJ O’Brien) – BRPA Vice President

Annual BRPA Elections

It’s that time of year again when everyone needs to start thinking about BRPA’s elections.  If you are interested in either guiding or supporting BRPA, then this is the time for you to step up and offer your support to help BRPA expand and mature in the future.  All of the board positions will be open in 2010 but now is the time that we would like to hear from anyone who is interested in running for a position in 2010.

Since all Board positions only run for a one year term, elections will be held at the end of each year to see who will guide BRPA for the forthcoming year.   The following is a list of board positions that will be filled for 2010:

Board Positions Include:

President

Vice President

Secretary

Treasurer

Communications Director

Membership Director

Program Director

Special Events Director

We currently do not have a volunteer to act as the Chairman of the Election Committee.  One of the duties of the Chairman of the Election Committee will be to issue an announcement to all of our members detailing the responsibilities and duties of each position.  We anticipate that this announcement will be issued in November for the January elections.  If you are interested in volunteering for this critical role, or if you want to be on the election committee, please let us know.

Key Dates:

• During the December 8^th meeting, a review will be given of each position.
• Election ballots (with voting instructions) will be sent out in late December to the primary contact for each BRPA member.  Voting is limited to one vote per company and is also limited to companies who are current with their yearly membership dues.
• All votes will be submitted to the Election Committee by midnight, January 9th.
• The Election Committee will tally all votes.
• Election results will be announced by the Chairman of the Election Committee at the January 12 BRPA meeting being held at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Other Highlights:

• All nominees must be members with dues in good standing.
• Only one vote is allowed per member company.
• Only member companies current with their yearly dues can vote.
• It is recommended that the position of President should be filled by someone who has served on the board for a minimum of 2 years.
• There are no other limitations placed on any of the other positions.
• The terms of office shall be one year, commencing at the conclusion of the January meeting.

So, if you are interested in supporting BRPA in 2010, then please contact Tom Dziurgot (BRPA President) at Thomas.Dziurgot@Grainger.com or John Mantsch (BRPA Vice President) at JMantsch@rjobrien.com.  You can support BRPA by running for a board position, volunteering to work on one of our events, or volunteering for the election committee.

One of the strengths of BRPA is that it is a completely volunteer organization.  So please contact either Tom or myself if you want to become a member of the board or if you just want to give your support to BRPA.

[Return to Top]

Other Announcements

Alane Waktins (Kraft Foods) – BRPA Communications Director

BRPA’s Humble Beginnings

BRPA is a professional association of Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity professionals based in the Chicago area.  Though the organization now includes members from many states, it was established in 1989 as a grass roots effort of several Chicago area companies including Allstate, Grainger, Hewitt, Discover Card, Underwriters Laboratories, AC Nielsen, and Northern Trust.  DR professionals working for these companies attended the first DRJ conference in Atlanta that year and while sitting around a table one day determined there was a need for a locally based organization that could forward the concerns of the private sector in the Chicago area.  In contrast, the Association of Contingency Planners (ACP) which was in existence in 1989, leveraged concerns at an international level, with several chapters across the U.S., including Chicago.

And, so, BRPA was born in September 1989.  The first President was Tom Borta of Allstate, who has since retired.  Arnie Miller, now with Sentry Systems, was the second Treasurer, and continues the role to this day.  Bernie Geist, of Grainger, was the first Secretary.  Mike Jaroscak, then with Hewitt and now Allstate, was membership Director for the first seven years.  Vice President was Jim St. Germain, of Underwriters Laboratories.  The original BRPA board served thru 1990.  Subsequently, elections for board positions have been held annually.

The context of our profession in 1989 was a different than it is today.  Back then, the profession was considered primarily IT/Disaster Recovery as opposed to Business Continuity and IT Risk Management.  Hot site recovery was just coming on the horizon.   Jim Thompson was Governor of Illinois, and the City of Chicago did not have an Office of Emergency Management & Communications (OEMC).  The department of Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Services (EPDS) was the only Emergency focused organization around at the time, and it was sourced by the fire department as opposed to the city of Chicago.  Richard M. Daley, then newly elected Mayor, determined the future of Chicago would include an Emergency Management office; the OEMC was created in September 1995.  The idea came from Jerome Hauer, the first Director of New York’s Office of Emergency (OEM), first established under New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Establishing a public/private partnership between BRPA’s member companies and local agencies was an early initiative in BRPA.  In 1990, Jack Hickey, then Chief of Emergency Services (Cook County Sheriff, Emergency Services and Disaster Agency) and Arnie Miller, his Deputy Chief, bridged a public/private partnership between BRPA and local government agencies.  There were advantages for government to get companies back on their feet quickly.  First, businesses that are running normally begin paying taxes again; second, they get employees back to work and the community returns to normal.  Conversely, government could leverage BRPA companies to access resources of the business community.  There are things the government can do with companies that they cannot do with individual citizens.  An early example was the Des Plaines River flood whereby Allstate found they needed entry to their facilities and had to cross secure police lines.  BRPA brought in people from the state and federal level to explain the different levels of authority to members.  Establishing public/private partnership and educating members on the layers of government authority is still part of BRPA today.

BRPA experienced another topical shift during Y2K, which awakened businesses to how they could be impacted if their computers failed to operate.  Business Impact Analysis (BIA) changed as a result of Y2K and BRPA started to include business, security, and risk management topics as part of its programs. 

In the early days of BRPA, the board wrestled with the roles of vendors and practitioners on the board.  Would BRPA be an organization run by practitioners or influenced by vendors?  They came to the conclusion that BRPA would be vendor agnostic and it remains that way today.  It takes the generous support of member companies, practitioners, and vendors to generate nine events each year.  The events provide an opportunity for practitioners to share their knowledge and experiences; individuals further their professional development thru speaking opportunities and publishing articles in the BRPA newsletter; and vendors can establish long-term relationships with prospective companies. 

Most importantly, BRPA sources the community of professionals who work in what is now a very broad playing field.  BRPA remains a non-profit organization with a perspective of inclusion and open discussion.  Thank you to the founding members and all who have contributed to BRPA over the years!

Upcoming Events of Interest

1.    CAMPIT will also host ‘Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity/High Availability/Resilient Infrastructure – September 10th, Rosemont, IL.  Be a panel speaker!  http://www.targetedconferences.com/events/2009/disaster2.htm

2.    CAMPIT hosts ‘Backup and Recovery Strategies’ – November 19^th, Rosemont, IL
http://targetedconferences.com/events/2009/backup.htm

3.    ICOR University offers courses in BCM, Crisis Management & Communications, Data Center Management, Organizational Resilience, Social & Personal Resilience (including Pandemic Planning), and Supply Chain Risk Management – many courses offered online and as self study as well.  BRPA Members receive a 10% discount on ICOR courses.  Use Voucher #BRPA-09010 when registering.  http://www.theicor.org/

4.    DRJ Fall World 2008 September 13th-16th in San Diego.              http://www.drj.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2480&Itemid=810

5.    ITEC Chicago will host ‘Disaster Management 101’ on October 21^st, Soldier Field Event Center, Chicago.  http://city.goitec.com/chi/agenda.html

6.    Technology Executives Club of Chicago, IT Security Briefings, Top Trends & Tools.new tools Dates: 9/16/09, 10/14/09, 11/4/09.  Hear from BigFix, Laurus & Websense on current topics in IT security. http://www.technologyexecutivesclub.com/webinars/security.php

7.    CPM East October 28-30th in Orlando. http://www.contingencyplanning.com/

8.    BRPA Southern Wisconsin is hosting a Fall H1N1 Local Business Summit in conjunction with the City of Milwaukee, September 14, 2009 9-11am in Pewaukee, WI. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=kqgGqSJwvFyDqM_2f63wcmYw_3d_3d

9.    TechExecs, Senior IT Executives Network Chicago hosts a CIO Panel Forum featuring Virtualization & Social Networking September 17, Metropolitan Club of Chicago.  http://www.techexecs.net/chicago.htm

10. ContinuityLink is offering two courses: ‘Comprehensive BIA Process – Methodology’ - November 16-17th & ‘Auditing a Business Continuity Program’ - November 18-20th – both in Chicago http://www.continuitylink.com/

11. Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce hosts “Preparing for the Flu Pandemic: A Forum with Public Health Leaders” on Thursday, September 17, 2009, 11:30a.m at the Union League Club.  To register call:  Rosemary Reed at (312) 435-5946.  http://ww2.chicagolandchamber.org/sub/event_calendar_detail.asp?EVE_ID=1252

12. AITP’s Infrastructure Special Interest Group (SIG) is hosting “Managing Infrastructure Cost” September 21st (8:30 – 10 AM) at OMICRON-USA, 8725 W Higgins, Chicago, IL.  RSVP by September 18th to Justin Nemeth, justin.nemeth@BarnierGroup.com.  This and other AITP SIG events can be found at:   http://www.aitpchicago.com/DesktopDefault.aspx

[Return to Top]

Member Highlights

Chris Sarcletti (CME Group) – BRPA Membership Director

Thank You to BRPA Members

Thanks for your support during this amazing 2009 for our organization.  Our Individual, Corporate, and Sponsor members have shown great support for the organization and we wanted to once again say thanks for many the ways you support BRPA, including:

• Sponsoring breakfasts and lunches at our meetings
• Presenting at our meetings
• Sponsoring holes at the Golf Outing
• Offering giveaways to members
• Assisting with events like the Golf Outing and Holiday Luncheon
• Promoting the organization

BRPA is successful because our members support the organization in so many different ways. It is your support that has helped us increase our membership base to over 70 active member organizations with over 400 members and prospects on our monthly distribution list.

Thanks and please let us know if you can think of any ways that we can offer more benefits to our members.

[Return to Top]

Special Events

David Pomerantz (Latisys) – BRPA Special Events Director &

John Mantsch (RJ O’Brien) – BRPA Vice President

[Return to Top]

Closing Thoughts

Thanks again for reading our newsletter.  We welcome your feedback as we continue to update this newsletter based on the needs and suggestions of our BRPA members.  As always, we are only an email away: newsletter@brpa-chicago.org.

[Return to Top]

Copyright © 2009 www.brpa-chicago.org