What Certified Professionals are saying about DRI

This is a very, very intelligent community that really does a lot to keep the lights on in businesses, and I don't think they get a lot of credit for it. The IT department at a lot of big corporations doesn't believe there's a chance their system really can go down and they really need to have a business continuity plan, and the education and the feedback that we get from the people at DRI shows that we got to really seem to be the experts in the field. And I think we need to spread the word that and make people know that professionals in disaster recovery are a great resource for corporations and small business alike

- Certified Business Continuity Vendor, United States

I think most people look at business continuity at the natural events - hurricanes, tornadoes, things like that - and don't realize there are a lot of other risks behind that, cyber risks right now being number one, but there are a lot of other aspects of business continuity that one needs to think about, especially the people and processes, not just the technology.

- Certified Business Continuity Lead Auditor, United States

It's beyond the essentials. You have to have plans to be compliant, or that it's an insurance to ensure your business knows what to do. It's really about continued services to your customers. At the end of the day, you've provided something essential to a customer, and you need to be sure it continues to be that for them, because if it's not there then they're going to go somewhere else.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

The instructor was the best. This course [BCLE 2000] covered everything I needed to know and more. I’m getting job offers that are $50-$70K+ more than I was previously making within a week.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I don't think people really realize most of the people who are in business continuity are in it because it's more of a passionate type of thing. We aren't in it like IT or software development or something - that's great stuff, but it's really just doing the normal operations. This is more of a passion, I see this as most of these people or all of these people here are really passionate about being able to protect the assets and the people.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Outside of the industry, I think a lot of people don't know it exists. It's amazing when you tell people what you do, they're flabbergasted that it's an industry. But when you explain why you're there and the importance of our jobs and our positions within the industry, they start seeing the big picture, especially when they hear about all the events in the world, weather events, terrorist events, and they hear about companies being disrupted, and they realize they have to prepare their companies to be able to recover from those types of events.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

People look at risk in terms of insurance, but they don't look at risk in terms of what they need to do ahead of time to prepare for the unexpected. And I think now that we have a foundation, we have a profession, we have certification that gives more legitimacy to or organization, we're able to demonstrate the need for resiliency and preparedness in a more tangible way.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I have had the opportunity to conduct the BCLS 2000 course more than 60 times. Based on the comments of the students and my own experience, I am more convinced with each class that this course provides a clear and simple format to present DRI's methodology for establishing and maintaining and Business Continuity program.

- DRI Certified Instructor, Colombia

I want to offer you and the DRI team a sincere THANK YOU for the outstanding efforts in organizing the DRI International Collegiate Conference at UMD last Friday. I have been in DR for over 25 years, have attended many DR user group meetings, webinars, conferences, etc... and what you pulled off last Friday was amazing. I don't think I've ever gotten more out of a DR conference!

- Disaster Recovery Manager, United States

FYI - our local chapter has begun discussing one of DRI’s Professional Practices each month in our meetings. Yesterday our President presented SMA #4 (Developing Business Continuity Strategies), and he began by telling everyone that the Professional Practices are "the Bible" for the industry and how to locate them on the DRI website, and then he used the Professional Practices verbiage related to that SMA to lead the discussion

- Master Business Continuity Professional, United States

We use the DRI Professional Practices as the framework for our business continuity metrics. Having the certification provided the needed "clout" to develop and have Senior Leadership accept the metric framework we use today.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

DRI certification impacts my work in that I know that I have the foundation to apply best practices and lessons learned in improving the BCM program where I work.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Peers constantly refer to our department for consultation on risk related matters and for their business continuity plans, and very often they take into consideration the recommendations made by our department.

- Associate Business Continuity Professional, Singapore

When I facilitate exercises, attend professional seminars, meetings, and share business cards with peers it's noted that I am a certified CBCP. Our whole department has been through certification and it elevates our status when consulting with internal business units.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I felt I needed to be able to speak the language of the people I would be engaging with. I wanted to make sure that when I walked into a room to talk to business continuity professionals that I would understand what their issues were and what their concerns were and that I would be able to help them in the best way possible. And so becoming a Certified Business Continuity Professional gave me that opportunity to really understand what their needs were, what their concerns were, and that's taken me into some really wonderful directions in terms of what I'm doing.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

It really shows a level of expertise, a level of professionalism, a level of purposeful study in our profession. While there are various applications of the training we've all received, it really sets the standard of the conversation and the dialogue to be at a higher level than it would for, for example, someone who doesn't have that certification.

- Master Business Continuity Professional, United States

When I first got my certification, it was to prove to people that we didn't need to use an outside vendor or consultant that we had some internal resources. And I think the certification since then has given me instantaneous credibility where people know that I speak with a certain level of knowledge and then I can go into the language of our organization and expand up on how that will help that individual organization.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Certifications helped my career because I've learned a lot being a professional in the field. The education is something I absolutely needed to mold my department, and growing in business continuity.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Certification has lent credibility to the profession and the positions I've held. Quite honestly, it's like the college degree for our profession. You gotta have a college degree to get a good job, well, you gotta have a certification to get those particular jobs.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

A lot of our proposals require certified business continuity professionals, so being able to say I am a certified business continuity professional, to do this work and have the qualifications to do this work is definitely a selling point when we bid for projects. And after we get our projects, to be able to say here's what we're recommending as a professional to do for your organization.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

It's provided a way of showing folks that I've been in the profession for a number of years and gives some validation to the knowledge I've acquired over the years. It carries a lot of weight.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

In addition to a very generous compensation package, my DRI certification has earned me greater respect from my colleagues and I have been approached numerous times by recruiters for CBCP/MBCP-required positions

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Apart from being promoted, I think DRI certification for me, holds a greater value beyond promotion. It has provided me with multiple tangible as well as intangible benefits which includes greater respect within the BCM community and recruiters' interest in my profile.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United Arab Emirates

We see that if companies recruit people they ask for specific certifications. I'm working as a consultant and have the benefit that my certification has been recognized when I was applying for a temporary position.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, The Netherlands

The certification has enabled me to take the BCP plans that our organization has and be able to improve them yearly in order to comply with yearly requirements. The certification also opens many doors should I ever decide to apply for a position outside of the organization in which I am presently employed.

- Associate Business Continuity Professional, Canada

I want to express my thanks to your organization. I have worked in DR and BC areas for 25+ years, and absolutely love this field. BUT,for a LONG time, I had never got certified. I asked a few times, but the company (at that time) did not agree to pay for it. Suddenly, after 20+ years of service, I was let go as a "synergy savings" to the company. I tried to find work (any in IT), but it was a struggle. I decided to risk it and get certified by DRII (at my own expense). I really enjoyed the week long class (taught by Tom Weems in 2011). I quickly went from ABCP to the CBCP with the help from some great associates. Not long after I received my certification, I got several interviews for DR and BC positions. I was finally given an offer for CBRE to do an entire DR/BC program for IT from scratch. (DR person's dream) I have been here nearly 3 years as a full-time dedicated DR/BC person. Later, I raised my certification to the MBCP level and I am exploring getting additional certifications. I can truly say that I would not be here at this position without DRI certification. It has exceedingly more than paid for itself these past 3 years. I wish I could attend more conferences and give speeches and even write a book about DR/BC. I simply do not have the time. I am swamped with the amount of DR work for a global company (a pleasurable pain). So...I just wanted to say thank you to you and your organization. Your certification "literally" opened the door for me and my current career.

- Master Business Continuity Professional, United States

This is a way for me to continue this journey through business continuity. I feel very comfortable, when I listen to these people, I think "This is the area I want to be in. these are the people I want to be talking to." [sic this] - I've been to other CPM and those types of things, but I think this one has provided almost a family atmosphere and a camaraderie that I've enjoyed.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

To keep up my certification, and the different requirements you have to have, going to a conference is one of the easiest ways to get some points for certification.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

It was the opportunity to sit in a room, to sit in sessions with like-minded individuals, not folks who are just interested in "What is this going to mean?" or "This is something interesting," but people who really want to continuity to learn and continue to grow, and that's what comes up. In these sessions, the level of engagement of the panel speakers really talks to folks who are committed to this industry.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

The education here is meeting me at my level as a certified business continuity professional, that has been in my profession for years. I'm seasoned and I feel that when I come to this conference that every class I'm taking is elevating my knowledge, and so for that it's well worth my time.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Unlike a lot of other conferences that I go to, where a lot of it is theory, theory and that's all you ever hear, once in a while it's a few practical stories - what I enjoyed about this [Risk Management Work Group] session was it gave me the opportunity to interact with the participants where they needed to come up with the answers, they needed to identify the problems and the solutions, and I think we had some really good takeaways that are going to be practical implications in the work environment.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

There are plenty of networking opportunities at the DRI Conference, I'm happy to say that through all the different opportunities the conference has given me, I've been able to network with other professionals from all over the country, as well as the vendors, who are well-represented here at the conference. I'm happy to have had many meaningful discussions with many different people in my profession.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I like to talk to people and pick brains and say, "How do you do this? How do you do that?" Because even though I've been doing this for 15 or so years, my way might not be the best way. Granted, we're not reinventing the wheel, but someone always builds a better mousetrap, so someone's gotta have a better BIA.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I've made it every which way possible, by enjoying the time here, by participating in volunteer work, by meeting new people, asking them what they do, and just enjoying all the other opportunities the sponsors are providing.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I think that's one of the things we like best about the DRI conferences, is that it seems like a much more intimate conference than a lot of the ones we go to. From a networking perspective everything is very friendly, very easy to talk to and there seems to be a lot of interesting in speaking with the vendors and participating in the sessions. And everyone with DRI and the DRI Foundation are really easy to work with and really friendly, too, so that makes it easy.

- Certified Business Continuity Vendor, United States

I got to meet a number of people that are looking for strengthening their financial side of their business continuity and that's my strength, so I got to share some of what I know to others here, and that’s been fun for me.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

There's so many smart people that I'm seeing today, that it's not always in the presentations... it's actually in some of the side conversations. I'm picking up a lot of great information, and things I can bring back to my clients and my company.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I've made connections with a lot of people I already knew and some new people at this conference, it's always nice to see colleagues, friends, vendors, things like that. It's a wonderful opportunity to network.

- Certified Business Continuity Lead Auditor, United States

I've been volunteering for something since I was 16 years old. I've been in emergency management, volunteer fire department, volunteer rescue squad, I do a food bank at my house once a month, I do blood drives. And being able to go that extra step and do this at another location, and working with other continuity professionals to provide sustainability and resiliency within that community. We're not just coming in, taking up your hotel space - we're going out into the communities we're working with, and that's a really positive benefit.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

I attended the Volunteer Day at the last conference, and it's a good thing. You get a very good feeling that as BC professionals, your career, the things you are doing for resilience, are for industry, and especially important, I found this time, for resilience of community. You try to give back, not just your knowledge, but your effort, your sweat, back to the community. And all this to support this organization which is part of this concept of resilience and community.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, China

Volunteerism is something I'm very passionate about, and I find that to give back, it's not only good for the community, it's good for your own personal growth and development, and it's good for the soul. You can learn new things, new trades. For instance, at the Volunteer Day this year I was at the organic garden, and learned a lot about gardening that I don't learn in my day-to-day job or my regular life... It makes you feel good about yourself, to be giving back, you make connections with people at Volunteer Day that will carry beyond the conference. You make friendships, and it really is good for your own personal growth and development, in that you learn something, and you come away a better person. And you also come away with those relationships that you didn't have before.

- Master Business Continuity Professional, United States

There are many organizations that can provide direct support to individuals who have been injured or impacted by disaster, but the opportunity that the DRI Foundation brings is engaging with businesses to help bring some of this expertise, not just money but knowledge, to help these businesses be resilient, so the community can feel whole again that they're not just getting handouts but that these small business owners in the community can reopen their store. DRI coming in and supporting these resilient communities with their knowledge and their funding is a great opportunity for everyone continuing to recover from any kind of disaster.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Not only do we serve the business community, but we also provide meaningful help to the communities we serve as well. And I think that resilience not only exists within the business community and the public sector but it also exists in the larger community we serve as professionals. So the DRI Foundation helps to bridge that gap between the profession and the communities in which we work and live.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

Resilient organizations are resilient because of the individuals within that organization. A business can do whatever it wants to do to get back up and running, but if no one's showing up for those shifts, you’re still closed. So when you have resilient people within their home life and in their community, it makes your operation more resilient. I also believe the foundation does fantastic work with regard to giving back. As stewards of our own communities, we all need to give back, and I think it's a great opportunity to give back and further advance the mission.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States

It's very meaningful and valuable to show we’re truly a nonprofit organization that's not just training the people but also organizing the people to contribute outside of work, back to the community. That's very important, the importance is in the message we contribute to the society.

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, China

Resilience takes on a number of characteristics in an individual, in a community. What it means is allowing communities across the world to provide for themselves, to create an infrastructure, to create a support system that allows them not only to mitigate potential effects of catastrophic events, but to recovery quickly and efficiently from those events.

- Master Business Continuity Professional, United States

As soon as something happens, the DRI Foundation is there, assisting and sustaining the community and helping. I love that, because that's what our profession is all about, we step in and help out!

- Certified Business Continuity Professional, United States