Meet the speakers at this year’s Continuity Insights Management Conference, then click here to learn more about the 2023 event.
Leah Andrews
Zoom Video Communications, Inc.
How do you avoid being complacent in your role?
In a word curiosity. I can spend hours lost in internet rabbit holes of information (and let’s face it, maybe a few funny pet videos). From new books, articles, webinars, to podcasts that may start in our own industry but more likely something adjacent that leads me to something very random but has analogies into business resilience. It helps me uncover ideas that I can extrapolate and view challenges from new perspectives.
What is the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I think it was a combo mistake that thankfully came with advice. As a newer practitioner I was on the “we MUST do business continuity, it’s so important” train and was struggling to understand why it was so hard to get the management support I thought the program deserved. While reviewing the program roadmap, an executive asked me some poignant questions about the why, materiality and what audience this was supposed to be important to. It was a huge eureka moment that started my pivot away from being a ‘chicken little’ planner. I reframed my entire approach to develop programs creatively tailored to what the organization needed and how the culture worked. Especially when starting new programs, I focus on what’s going to work in the wild and truly increase the resilience posture of the company.
What advice would you give to your younger self at the start of your career?
Some years I would tell myself to take the construction project manager job 25 years ago! 😊 It’s a tough one because I’ve been fortunate to have some amazing roles working with talented people and wouldn’t want to alter that serendipity / secret learning sauce too much. It wasn’t really linear and I appreciate that. I would probably tell myself to take more classes around coaching and other skills that make influencing and presenting resilience programs to executives more approachable. I’ve learned a lot through reading on my own and it’s easy to get busy, lazy or jaded about learning but it’s vitally important– especially with peers. There’s so much insight and shared experience to be gained!
What impresses you the most when you are considering hiring someone?
Almost always it’s the questions they ask and the research they’ve done about the company that frame them.
To learn more about Leah’s session and to view the full conference agenda, click here.
