For Immediate Release
Contact: Diane Neri
Telephone: (712) 233-9030, Ext. 1037
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Disaster Preparedness and Business Continuity Planning
Sioux City – Deb Hale, Security Administrator at Long Lines LLC; Jami S. Haberl, MPH, MHA, Executive Director, Safeguard Iowa Partnership and Clinton S. Meadows, Planner, Iowa L.E.I.N. Region 1 – Fusion Center will present a program to help your business with disaster preparedness and business continuity planning.
Today businesses are investing a lot of time, money, and resources on data, technology, equipment and other resources. They are purchasing Business Interruption Insurance Policies to fund the restoration of the business in the event of a disaster or a business outage. Most businesses do not have a plan for what to do with the money provided by these policies or how to get the business back on track. Business Continuity Planning continually confronts the unlikelihood of a disaster. An interruption could be something related to a winter storm, the loss of electricity to the general area, or the complete inaccessibility of a facility for an extended period of time. The cause of the interruption doesn't matter, being capable of gaining management control of the interruption does. The continuity plan is used to help the business be back up and in full operation in a shorter amount of time. This seminar will discuss what needs to be done and the logical steps that a business can take to protect themselves and their assets with special emphasis on the IT department.
Siouxland Employers’ Council and Iowa Workforce Development (IWD) will be hosting this seminar. The event will be held on Thursday, November 8, 2007, from 8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. The location is Western Iowa Tech Community College, 4647 Stone Avenue, Building B Room 138 in Sioux City.
Deb Hale is responsible for the Data and System Security at Long Lines. She is also responsible for the Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity for the company. Deb has been in the IT field for more than 30 years. In 2001 Deb attended Disaster Recovery Institute and received her Certification as a Disaster Recovery Planner. Deb is a Handler on the Internet Storm Center. The Handlers are a volunteer group of 40 people from around the world that monitor the Internet 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The Handler group is a project of SANS Institute. Deb also assists in curriculum development for new programs and classes at SANS Institute in Maryland. Deb is involved in curriculum development for a new Associate Degree Program in Computer Forensics and Security. Deb is a member of the TriState Disaster Committee and the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), Infragard Omaha Chapter and the Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce.
Jami Haberl joined the Safeguard Iowa Partnership on September 11, 2007. Prior to joining, she served as a Senior Program Manager at the Iowa Foundation for Medical Care and the Executive Director for the Centers for Disaster Operations and Response at the Iowa Department of Public Health. As Executive Director, she provided functional oversight of the public health and health care preparedness program, served as the State of Iowa Bioterrorism Coordinator, and served as the Region 7 and 8 representative for the State Directors of Public Health Preparedness’ executive committee. She was instrumental in the development and implementation of the public health and health care regional preparedness program.
Clinton S. Meadows is a planner with the Fusion Center. The Fusion Center is the latest initiative for the State of Iowa’s Homeland Security Strategy. It is a centrally focused system that is regionalized to serve as a “clearing house” for all generated homeland security data and information to ensure interpretation, assessment and prevention. Its mission is to form a partnership with local communities and business leaders ensuring sensitive information is given to those who need to know and ensuring NW Iowa is prepared.
This presentation will address:
• What is business continuity planning?
• Difference between disaster recovery and business continuity planning
• How a business identifies its critical assets
• Types of risks businesses face today
• The cost if you don’t plan
• Benefits of public/private partnerships for disaster preparedness planning, response & recovery
• Safeguard Iowa Partnership initiatives
• Latest initiatives for the State of Iowa’s Homeland Security Strategy: Fusion Center
• Partnerships between local communities and business leaders to ensure that Siouxland is prepared
Business owners, top management, IT, security, human resources and others wanting to ensure business continuity in the face of disaster should attend.
There is a $25 registration fee to attend this meeting. To register for the seminar, contact Diane Neri, Iowa Workforce Development, at 712-233-9030, Ext. 1037 or by e-mail at
. Please register by Tuesday, November 6, 2007.
Siouxland Employers’ Council is an employer group in Region 12, supported locally by Iowa Workforce Development, and is part of the statewide Employers’ Council of Iowa system. This employers group addresses workforce issues, and provides both educational and networking opportunities for employers.
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