Recap: DRJ Spring 2019 Conference

Disaster Recovery Journal (DRJ) hosts two annual conferences for business continuity, disaster recovery, and risk management professionals. The DRJ Spring 2019 Conference, “Managing Risk in an Uncertain World,” wrapped up last week. Quantivate’s Vice President of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) Services, William “Bill” Hord, is a regular speaker at DRJ conferences and delivered a presentation on ERM challenges. Read his recap of the conference below.

I always enjoy speaking at and attending the DRJ conferences, and this year’s DRJ Spring 2019 was no exception! It started with a smooth and quick check in at the gorgeous Disney Coronado Springs Resort in Orlando, Florida. Sunday is the opening day (and generally when I speak); this year, my educational topic was on the “Top 10 ERM Challenges.” Speaking to a packed crowd, I took a quick poll, which indicated that half of the audience members were repeat attendees, while the other half were first-timers. One big reason why DRJ conferences are so beneficial is that the returning attendees bring perspectives on issues we are all facing and the ability to re-connect, while the infusion of new attendees brings altogether different points of view and the chance to enhance your network professionally and personally.

While I have been part of the educational sessions for the last six DRJ conferences, it’s also a huge opportunity for me to improve my own risk management awareness by attending the multitude of quality educational sessions. These ranged from topics such as “Managing Risk in an Uncertain World” to “Cyberattack – How do you Recover?” All in all, I took in several hours of diverse risk management topics, all providing actionable insights. When you couple this with the ability to speak directly with other professionals throughout the risk management spectrum and from all types of markets, you begin to understand why this conference is so highly attended and takes place twice a year.

I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention the numerous vendors on display with more than ample exhibiting times, which allows all the attendees to carefully craft their educational sessions, downtime, and networking opportunities. Add in that this all takes place in a phenomenal location, and it’s easy to see why there are so many returning attendees and vendors alike. If you haven’t been to a DRJ Conference, you should, and I have a feeling you will be raising your hand one day in my educational session indicating that you’re no longer a newbie, but a proud returning attendee.

Read more about the conference here: DRJ Spring 2019 Sees Continued Growth

About the Author:

William “Bill” Hord is the VP of Enterprise Risk Management Services at Quantivate, where he helps organizations across the country build and shape their risk management programs. He has more than 28 years of experience in executive management within the financial services industry focused in risk management, business continuity, financial software, and lending & collections.

Read more risk management insights from Bill:

• Maximizing Risk Results: Combining Qualitative & Quantitative Risk Assessments

Learn about the benefits of combining risk assessments to maximize the accuracy of your risk and opportunity predictions.

• Strategic Advantage Through Key Indicators

Review the importance of leveraging and monitoring key risk and performance indicators (KRIs, KPIs) in your risk management strategy, with examples and recommendations.