Meet the speakers at this year’s Continuity Insights Management Conference, then click here to learn more about the 2023 event.
Mark Armour
Brink’s Inc.
What career mistake has given you the biggest lesson?
I’ve made too many mistakes to count but three, in particular, come to mind:
- I once escalated an issue without informing the individual that reported it that I was doing so. I learned to always be transparent and over-communicate.
- More than once I’ve tried to manage the response to a large event by myself or exclude people who I felt might slow the process down. While bringing everyone to the table may seem burdensome, it almost always yields better results. Sometimes slowing things down is exactly what is needed.
- In the past I’ve been too protective of my program and how it is run. Over time, I’ve learned that trust and empowerment of my team and counterparts results in less work for me, greater levels of buy-in and accountability while delivering better results.
What was your first “win” that made you confident that you were doing the right thing?
I can’t say I’ve ever been fully confident that I’m doing the right thing. I’m constantly experimenting and re-assessing what I do. That said, one of my proudest moments came when an executive informed a rather persistent colleague of mine that we would not, under any circumstance, perform a BIA.
What is the biggest risk that you’ve taken?
As with the other questions, I could give multiple answers here as I don’t believe quality work or improvement are possible without taking some risks. That said, I can say unequivocally that the biggest risk was challenging the business continuity establishment by questioning our profession’s widely accepted methodology and proposing an alternative approach based on principles and not deliverables.
To learn more about Mark’s session and to view the full conference agenda, click here.
