From Candice: I am a Business Continuity Partner leading an ISO 22301-certified programme, with historical hands-on responsibility across risk management and incident management. I have built and maintained a practical, audit-ready framework that supports operational resilience while enabling business growth.

Alongside programme leadership, I remain an active BC practitioner. I have deliberately stayed close to the technical aspects of the discipline, ensuring my knowledge remains current and grounded in real-world application. I believe staying in the detail keeps you at the forefront of emerging trends, evolving threats, and innovative solutions across the resilience landscape.

I am an active member of the Women in Resilience committee, leading webinar initiatives that amplify diverse voices and practical insight across the industry. I am passionate about driving meaningful change and advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion within business continuity and resilience.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge? 

I wanted to become a BCI Awards Judge to see the very best of our profession in action — the innovations, the progress, and the achievements teams are most proud of. Judging challenges my own perspective on what “good” looks like and keeps me sharp on evolving standards and new approaches. It is an opportunity to contribute to raising the bar across the industry while continuing to learn from peers who are pushing resilience forward.

Christian De Boeck works as a consultant, trainer and coach. He is ISO-22301 (Lead Implementer / Lead Auditor) and CGEIT certified and an approved trainer for PECB, ISACA and the Data Protection Institute. He is also the leader of the Belgium Chapter of the BCI.

His early life was academic as a researcher and doctor of science, and since more than 25 years, he is now supporting businesses, managers and leaders in their quest for greater resilience and sustainability.

During his career, Christian has worked for numerous local and international companies of all sizes in Belgium and Europe, with a strong exposure to the financial and energy sectors.

Christian specialises in defining and implementing resilience strategies (also to meet the legal requirements of DORA, NIS-2) and CER, with a particular focus on aligning IT with ‘operational’ activities (production, supply chain, etc.). He has successfully implemented and tested many business continuity and disaster recovery plans.

Over time, Christian has added ESG (sustainability/low carbon transition, DEI and the human aspects of resilience) to the portfolio of services offered.

He aims is to offer the broadest and most comprehensive coverage possible of the risks that can affect a company's performance and survival.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

For Christian, becoming a BCI Award Judge is a way to pay back the BCI and its community for all services, research and broad network acquired through his membership.

Christian has now gained some experience and crossed numerous situations where a better and deeper continuity implementation would have better served certain organisations to navigate through turbulent times. He’s now willing to dedicate some time to the community and work in developing excellence in the profession.

Cary Jasgur serves as the Global Technology Resilience Lead for Solventum, he has over 30 years of experience in Enterprise Resilience, Business Continuity, Disaster Recovery, Crisis Management and Communications, Emergency Management, Incident Management, and Pandemic Planning. Cary has developed and led many Enterprise Resilience projects in global financial services, global healthcare, higher education, global biotech, global pharmaceuticals, global insurance, global legal, and federal, state, and local government markets, within the United States and Europe.

Cary currently holds an FBCI, MBCP, and PMP, and has served two (2) terms as the Chair for the Editorial Advisory Board for Disaster Recovery Journal, as well as his second term as a member of The Business Continuity Institute USA Chapter Committee. 

Cary has spoken at several industry conferences on a variety of topics within the Enterprise Resilience space. In addition, Cary is the author of three (3) articles on Enterprise Resilience published in the Journal of Business Continuity and Emergency Management. Cary holds a dual Master of Science degree in Organizational Leadership and Project Management and Leadership, as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in Technical Management.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge? 

I really wanted the opportunity to be able to recognise the individuals and organizations in our industry with the prestige of a BCI award, being able to show that there are trailblazers setting the path for the rest of us to follow, the in benefit and furtherment of our industry to address not only the challenges we face today, but those that await us in the future. Additionally, I felt that it would also serve as a learning experience for myself, in seeing how others in the industry to charging into the future and breaking into new and uncharted territories.

Erik Hanson is a resilience and risk practitioner with a background spanning emergency management, IT backup and recovery, and organizational continuity. He brings technical depth and a people‑centred approach to building and maturing resilience programs. His experience includes developing business continuity frameworks, strengthening crisis response capabilities, and supporting large, complex transportation operations in maintaining essential services during disruption.

Erik’s resilience journey began in emergency management through Search and Rescue and ongoing training, forming a foundation in structured planning, coordinated response, and community‑focused service. He later worked in IT backup and recovery before transitioning fully out of IT to focus on organizational resilience, integrating risk‑informed thinking, cross‑functional coordination, and long‑term program development.

He currently leads business continuity for one of the largest ferry systems in North America—a critical transportation network that connects remote and coastal communities—reinforcing his belief that operational continuity and community wellbeing are inseparable.

As the BCI Canada Chapter Leader, Erik promotes inclusive, accessible programming and practitioner engagement. He has presented at BCI chapter events and industry conferences. His professional credentials include ISO 22301 Lead Implementer among others.

As a judge, he values clarity of purpose, rigorous method, measurable outcomes, and demonstrable community impact

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge? 

I wanted to be a BCI Awards Judge to shine a light on the people and practices moving our profession forward. Organizational resilience protects communities and supports employees when it matters most, and I’ve seen firsthand how meaningful that work can be. Recognizing excellence strengthens our profession’s reputation and motivates practitioners to aim higher. Serving as a judge is a way to give back to a field that has shaped my career and values. I’m proud of the calibre across BCI and motivated to honour contributions that show our members at their best.

From Eugenia: I am a risk and resilience professional with over 20 years’ experience spanning Business Continuity Management (BCM), Crisis Management, information security and privacy compliance. I have been a member of the Business Continuity Institute since 2007 and remain actively engaged with the Melbourne Chapter.

My career includes extensive leadership roles in the telecommunications sector, where I led large‑scale BCM programs across Europe, Asia and Australia, including ISO 22301 certifications. A highlight was leading COLT’s UK operational readiness for the London Olympics, ensuring continuity of critical services during a period of heightened national risk.

Throughout my career, I have supported organisations through significant disruptions including terrorism‑related incidents, natural disasters and complex cyber events. During the pandemic, I supported NSW Government organisations through response and recovery following a large‑scale data breach, and I now advise critical infrastructure operators and public sector organisations through my role at IIS Partners.

I am currently based in Great Ocean Road region, where I continue to volunteer with professional bodies including BCI. Volunteering remains important to me — it provides a strong sense of connection to the profession, a sense of belonging to the broader community, and a meaningful way to contribute to the ongoing maturity of resilience practice.

While based in Victoria, I maintain strong personal ties to Europe and continue to visit family and friends in Barcelona.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge? 

I am honoured to have been invited back as a Judge for the BCI Awards, having found the experience incredibly enriching. The program allows me to contribute to the profession, volunteer with BCI, and engage with cutting-edge innovation in our field. It also provides a valuable opportunity to expand my network of BCI professionals.

As I enter my third year as a BCI Awards Judge, I do so with a strong sense of continuity and commitment to the program. Having now judged across multiple award cycles, I bring a more informed, balanced perspective and a deep appreciation of the innovation and effort required to deliver excellence in resilience practice. I remain passionate about the profession, aligned with the values of the BCI Awards, and committed to supporting the ongoing success and integrity of the program.

Greg Surtees MBCI has over a decade's experience building and embedding resilience frameworks across major organisations in retail, transport, education, government, and healthcare. He is particularly adept at designing resilience programmes from scratch, tailoring them to the unique culture, scale, and regulatory context of each organisation.

Greg has held senior resilience roles at Network Rail, Sky, the University of Sunderland, and Tesco, where he designed and implemented a global Business Resilience Blueprint across nine markets across Europe and Asia. He also played a lead role in coordinating Tesco's UK crisis management response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

At Network Rail, Greg developed the strategy for the 'Better Resilience' initiative - a cross-disciplinary programme nominated for Transformation of the Year at the CIR Business Continuity Awards 2025. Earlier in his career, he transformed the business continuity posture of Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust from non-compliant with the NHS’s business continuity standards to fully compliant within a single year.

Greg holds the MBCI designation from the Business Continuity Institute and brings expertise in business continuity, crisis and incident management, regulatory compliance, and resilience programme design.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge? 

Having worked across diverse sectors — from the NHS to retail to national infrastructure — I've seen first-hand how transformative outstanding resilience practice can be. The BCI Awards celebrate exactly that: the innovation, dedication, and leadership that raises the bar for our entire profession. As someone who has built resilience programmes from the ground up, I understand the effort behind truly exceptional work, and I want to help recognise it. Serving as a judge is an opportunity to give back to a community that has shaped my career, and to champion the best our profession has to offer.

Lisa Jones, MBCI, is an award-winning business continuity and organizational resilience executive with more than 20 years of experience leading enterprise programmes across healthcare, technology, financial services, and global consulting environments. Recognized as a 2025 Consultant of the Year within the resilience profession, she brings deep technical expertise alongside strategic leadership capability.

Lisa has designed and implemented global business continuity and crisis management frameworks, led ISO 22301 readiness and certification initiatives, and advised executive teams on governance, risk, and enterprise resilience strategy. She has managed large, cross-functional portfolios, facilitated executive-level exercises, and delivered board-facing briefings that translate complex continuity requirements into measurable business value.

Her career progression, from early operational roles to senior resilience leadership, provides her with a practical understanding of organisational dynamics, stakeholder engagement, and programme maturity development. She is known for strengthening accountability structures, building resilient cultures, and aligning continuity strategy with broader enterprise objectives.

In addition to her executive work, Lisa is the host of The Leadership Story podcast, where she engages women leaders and allies in conversations on resilience, career progression, and authentic leadership. A former BCI USA Chapter Lead and Diversity & Inclusion Chair, she served as the Technical Advisory lead for the 2023 BCI Good Practice Guidelines.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

I am motivated to serve as a BCI Awards Judge because I believe the awards play a vital role in recognising excellence, reinforcing professional standards, and shaping the future of the resilience profession. Having built and assessed enterprise programmes across sectors, I understand the discipline, innovation, and leadership required to deliver meaningful impact. Judging is an opportunity to give back to the profession, uphold the credibility of BCI recognition, and ensure submissions are evaluated fairly, consistently, and with consideration for diverse organisational contexts and approaches to resilience.

From Mabel: I am a Resilience Leader - Influencer and global Risk Leader with more than 20 years of experience designing and leading enterprise-wide Business Continuity, Crisis Management, Disaster Recovery, and Enterprise Risk programs across the U.S., Europe, and Latin America. My career spans aviation, financial services, construction, and critical infrastructure, where I have helped organizations strengthen governance, manage uncertainty, and build sustainable resilience frameworks.

I have overseen multi-million-dollar resilience portfolios, aligned global programs with ISO 22301 and regulatory standards, and supported executive leadership during high-impact disruptions, including civil unrest and the COVID-19 pandemic. These experiences have shaped my ability to evaluate initiatives not only for technical excellence, but also for practical implementation, measurable impact, and long-term sustainability.

I am passionate about recognizing meaningful achievement and advancing high standards within our profession. I believe strong evaluation requires fairness, cultural awareness, and an inclusive mindset that values diverse approaches to resilience. Bilingual in English and Spanish, I bring a global perspective, disciplined judgment, and a deep commitment to ethical leadership and equitable assessment.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

I want to become a BCI Awards Judge because I believe recognition shapes the future of our profession. Throughout my career in resilience and risk leadership, I have seen how celebrating excellence elevates standards, inspires innovation, and encourages organizations to move beyond compliance toward meaningful impact. Serving as a judge is an opportunity to give back to a community that values integrity, preparedness, and continuous improvement. I am motivated to contribute my experience, fairness, and inclusive perspective to ensure achievements are evaluated thoughtfully, equitably, and in alignment with the highest professional standards.

Margaret J. Millett, MsBC, FBCI (Hon), MBCP, is the CEO & Founder of Seamless Horizon. Inc.  She has driven Business Resilience across Fortune 300 IT and Financial Services companies in the U.S. and Ireland. She is the 2023 Business Continuity Institute (BCI) Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and a sought-after global speaker and author.

Margaret currently serves on the DRJ (Disaster Recovery Journal) Executive Council. She serves as the past Chair of the Alzheimer’s Association of Eastern North Carolina and has been appointed to the North Carolina Symphony Society Board and Dress for Success Triangle NC. She has also previously advised the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.  She has spoken at numerous Business Resilience related conferences in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

As a senior, experienced global executive professional who is enthusiastic about rewarding excellence in our industry, this is the perfect opportunity to give back to our community. Being a judge is an opportunity to collaborate with other experienced professionals and receive a unique look at what our peers are doing with programs across the globe.

I have been a BCI Global Award Judge in the past. I was extremely impressed by both the quality and standard of the submission. This exceptionally standard gave me significant insight into the breadth of excellent business continuity management working being done around the globe.

From Matthew: I am an organisational resilience professional with experience across business continuity management, crisis management and emergency response. My work has focused on building practical, risk informed capabilities in complex operational environments, ensuring organisations and the people within them can anticipate, assess, prevent prepare, respond and recover from disruptions with confidence.

Over the years I have led programmes, supported incident management structures, and strengthened governance to ensure decisions are risk-based, clear and defensible under pressure. For me, resilience is not only about frameworks and plans. It is about enabling leaders to make sound decisions, supporting teams during uncertainty and creating environments where people feel prepared rather than exposed. My approach is to combine strategic oversight with operational realism.

I am a qualified assessor and verifier of accredited training programmes, which has shaped how I evaluate capability, evidence and professional standards. I truly value clarity, accountability and continuous improvement, but also recognise the human realities behind teams and incidents. I believe strong resilience is built through inclusive practice, honest reflection and investment in people as much as process and technology.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

I wanted to become a BCI Awards Judge to contribute to a profession that exists to protect people and sustain critical operations. Throughout my career, I have worked in high consequence, regulated environments where interoperability, leadership under pressure, and a shared situational awareness determine outcomes. I am motivated to recognised work that demonstrates real capability, collaboration across organisational boundaries, and measurable improvement in resilience maturity. I believe judging must go further than documentation, and examine how arrangements perform under pressure and how they support the people who rely on them.

Melissa Kenney is a resilience practitioner with extensive experience across the social housing, local government, and finance sectors. She blends technical business continuity expertise with a people first mindset, ensuring that continuity plans, exercises, and resilience strategies are practical, engaging, and genuinely effective in real world situations.

Melissa is recognised for her creative, narrative led exercising style, using realistic, story driven scenarios to help teams build confidence, enhance decision making, and better understand how disruption unfolds. Her ability to translate complex risks into accessible, relatable learning experiences has made her a trusted partner for operational teams and senior leaders alike.

Her cross sector background gives her a strong understanding of operational pressures, governance expectations, and the challenges faced by organisations delivering essential public and customer facing services. She uses this insight to support teams in strengthening resilience, improving assurance, and embedding a proactive culture of preparedness.

Melissa is passionate about advancing resilience as a whole of society effort - recognising that effective preparedness relies on collaboration, shared learning, and supporting the communities and services that people rely on every day. She is committed to raising professional standards and driving continuous improvement across the resilience community.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

I wanted to become a BCI Awards Judge to help celebrate the exceptional work being done across our profession and to support the continued growth of innovative, people centred resilience practice. The awards showcase the very best of our industry, and I’m passionate about recognising those who push boundaries, learn from experience, and make a meaningful impact. Joining the judging panel is an opportunity to give back to the community that has shaped my own development and inspired my work.

From Mikaiiro: The early years of my professional journey consisted of software development, database management, and system management in logistics, energy, and financial sectors. While not a business continuity professional, the continuity of operations was always one of the main considerations. My experience at the Finnish National Emergency Supply Agency between 2005 and 2017 offered responsibilities to construct datacentres for national preparedness purposes. During this period, I also worked closely with several critical infrastructure operators to assist them in their business continuity challenges from the datacentre perspective.

The next turn took me to KPMG Finland’s business continuity services practice where I passed my CBCI certification in 2020 and became an MBCI shortly afterwards. With an excellent, diverse team I help a wide variety of clients to improve their capability to remain operational through systematic use of the business continuity lifecycle. I have added to our exercise toolkit by introducing a new type of exercise based on the pre-mortem technique.

I have recently made yet another career move and joined a major Finnish financial institute's business continuity team. Different kind of role, different kind of organization, and different challenges. But a great opportunity to learn and see how a bank conducts its business continuity and resilience.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

In 2023 I answered the call to have new awards judges and was accepted. I have since judged award applications from all over the world. To serve as a judge, has been an opportunity for me to contribute to the pool of BCI community’s knowledge by recognising and promoting the innovations that have the potential to inspire current and future members, support professionals in their business continuity activities, and even shape the business continuity industry in the spirit of continuous improvement. From a personal development perspective I feel that an awards judge is a privileged position where I can promote great achievements of this awesome community and simultaneously learn about new and innovative business continuity and resilience solutions in the process.

Penelope Killow MSc, MBCI is a UK-based senior resilience and continuity leader with nearly thirty years’ experience across financial services, energy, automotive, and engineering sectors. As Senior Vice President, Global Business Resilience Manager at Moody’s Corporation, she drives the transition to an operational resilience model worldwide. A prominent member of the BCI community since 2007, Penelope has served as Chair of the North Midlands BCI Forum and is respected for mentoring, training, and leadership within the industry.

Her expertise spans crisis management, geopolitical risk, third-party resilience, software implementation and regulatory engagement, with a proven track record leading global programmes impacting tens of thousands of employees. Penelope is known for fostering collaborative cultures, pragmatic outcomes, and is a trusted advisor to senior leaders and clients. Beyond her executive role, she advocates for diversity and inclusion, is a Menopause Friendly Employer champion, and volunteers as Chair of Governors for a local junior school. She holds an MSc with distinction and a Six Sigma Greenbelt certification. Penelope divides her time between London and North Derbyshire, enjoying family life. Her dedication to resilience and professional development makes her an outstanding candidate for the BCI Judge position.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

I am delighted to serve as a BCI Awards Judge to help recognize excellence within our business continuity and resilience community. Having been involved with the BCI for many years, I greatly value its role in setting standards and celebrating innovation. This opportunity feels like a natural extension of my commitment to the profession, offering a chance to contribute my experience and champion inclusive values. I am motivated to support the recognition of outstanding contributions and ensure the judging process reflects fairness, professionalism, and respect for diverse perspectives.

From Rajesh: My journey into business continuity, resilience, and crisis management was shaped by an early career in the armed forces, followed by a deliberate transition into the corporate world in 2006. Since then, I have worked across a wide spectrum of industries—including hospitality, aviation, telecommunications, consulting, IT/ITeS, and today, the global hyperscale data center ecosystem—anchoring Corporate Security as my core professional domain throughout.

In my current role at Microsoft, I serve as the Country Security Operations Manager for India, responsible for driving security operations, resilience, and risk governance across a rapidly expanding data center footprint. This role has reinforced the reality that business continuity and resilience are not standalone disciplines but deeply embedded operational capabilities—tested daily through scale, complexity, and evolving risk landscapes.

Across each industry and role, I have had the opportunity to build and mentor teams, establish scalable operating models, strengthen capacity utilisation, and institutionalise resilience frameworks tailored to organisational context. A defining milestone in this journey was being among the early Lead Implementers and Auditors of ISO 22301 in India when the standard was introduced in 2012—an experience that significantly shaped my structured, outcome‑driven approach to continuity management.

A brief yet enriching phase in consulting further broadened my perspective, enabling me to support diverse organisations and emerging start‑ups with bespoke continuity and resilience solutions. This exposure reinforced an important lesson: while frameworks may be global, effective resilience is always contextual, pragmatic, and human‑centred.

My long‑standing association with the Business Continuity Institute (BCI)—as an MBCI—has been instrumental in sustaining this professional evolution. Over the past three years, I have had the privilege of serving as a Judge for both the BCI Global and Regional Awards. This role has offered a rare vantage point into how organisations across geographies translate resilience theory into operational reality.

Serving as a judge has significantly sharpened my thinking. Reviewing diverse submissions has deepened my appreciation for innovation under constraint, leadership during disruption, and the practical application of standards beyond compliance. The experience has also reinforced the importance of fairness, transparency, and consistency in evaluating resilience maturity—principles I consciously carry back into my work at Microsoft, ensuring our programs remain grounded in global best practices while delivering real‑world impact.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

I chose to become a BCI Awards Judge because the global and inclusive nature of the awards strongly resonates with my own professional values. Evaluating submissions from practitioners and organisations across regions provides continuous learning—exposing me to new ideas, adaptive practices, and emerging trends in resilience.

The role encourages analytical rigor, curiosity, and objectivity, while offering the opportunity to celebrate excellence and innovation without bias. Most importantly, it aligns with my belief in diversity, equity, and inclusion, ensuring that impactful work—regardless of geography or scale—is recognised and amplified.

For me, judging is not just about evaluation; it is about giving back to the profession, strengthening the global resilience community, and continuously refining how we define and deliver resilience in an increasingly complex world.

With over a decade of experience in the Business Continuity (BC) and Resilience industry, I have dedicated my career to advancing my expertise in this critical field. After obtaining my CBCI qualification in 2019, I continued my professional development to MBCI certification. My role as a BC Approved Teacher allows me to run CBCI training courses, empowering colleagues to achieve AMBCI and MBCI qualifications.

I’ve gained a wealth of experience working as a BC Consultant in a large organisation, supporting approximately 60 plan owners and their teams in developing robust, actionable BC plans. My experience includes incident management support, conducting client audits, and leading quarterly Plan Owner forums to foster collaboration and continuous improvement.

I volunteer as a Deputy of the BCI North West England and Committee Member for BCI Midlands Chapter.  I contribute to our BC community by creating a monthly newsletter. I believe in the importance of global collaboration, having participated in events hosted by BC chapters in US, Italy, Spain, and South Africa. In 2025, I hosted a webinar on Mentoring and Mentee relationships and in 2026 initiated a LinkedIn series, “Let’s Talk Business Continuity,” to engage fellow professionals, showcasing my commitment to enhancing the BC culture.

 Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge? (Max 100 words).

Being a judge for 2025 really enhanced my experience and confidence. It was great to apply the information and skills learned when taking my CBCI 07 to judging the applications. I want to be a BCI Awards Judge because I am enthusiastic about Business Continuity and eager to discover this passion in others. With my extensive experience and insights, I still have that commitment to excellence which makes me a great candidate to recognize and celebrate outstanding achievements in the Business Continuity field. Additionally, I now have the time to expand my involvement in Business Continuity, and judging the BCI Awards allows me to promote diversity while leveraging my professional knowledge and experience to contribute meaningfully to the community.

Sanjay is a global enterprise risk and resilience leader with more than two decades of experience establishing and scaling Business Continuity, crisis management, operational resilience, Audit and risk management programs across leading global IT services organisations. He currently serves as Global Head – Enterprise Risk & Resilience at LTM (a Larsen & Toubro Group company), where he leads enterprise risk portfolios spanning Business Continuity, Audit and Risk Management. He led the organisation’s ISO 22301 certification and expanded the resilience framework across more than 50 global delivery centres worldwide.

Sanjay has guided organisations through major real-world disruptions, including the global pandemic, ransomware incidents, geopolitical conflicts, and large-scale natural disasters, ensuring continuity of services for global clients.

A long-standing member of The Business Continuity Institute, he actively contributes to the profession through judging international awards, mentoring practitioners, and supporting resilience awareness initiatives. He was named Business Continuity Resilience Manager of the Year (2023) by CIR Magazine (UK) and has received multiple global awards recognising excellence in business continuity and resilience leadership.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

Serving as a BCI Awards Judge for the third consecutive year reflects my continued commitment to recognising excellence and advancing the business continuity profession. The role provides an opportunity to engage with practitioners across the globe, celebrate outstanding achievements, and gain insights into evolving BCM practices. With over two decades of hands-on experience, I aim to bring a balanced practitioner’s perspective to the judging process and ensure entries are evaluated with fairness and professional rigour. I hope to contribute to a credible awards process that recognises true excellence and encourages organisations worldwide to continually raise the bar in resilience.

A global resilience leader with extensive experience in business continuity, crisis management and physical security, currently serving as Global Security and Business Continuity Director at the world’s largest international law firm. Responsible for resilience strategy and incident response across more than 170 offices worldwide, with a focus on embedding practical, operational capability rather than paper-based compliance.

Over the course of a long career within the firm, has guided the organisation through significant global events including the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical conflict, ransomware attacks, extreme weather and civil unrest. Works closely with executive leadership and boards to ensure resilience is understood as a strategic enabler that supports confident decision-making under pressure.

Has led the organisation through ISO 22301 certification on multiple occasions, with the firm becoming the first law firm globally to achieve accreditation. This experience has provided a deep understanding of governance, audit discipline and continuous improvement within a complex international environment.

Passionate about strengthening the profession, sharing practical lessons learned, and supporting the next generation of resilience leaders. Maintains a strong interest in the responsible use of technology and AI to enhance risk visibility and crisis response, while keeping human judgement at the centre of effective resilience.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

Business continuity has shaped much of my professional life, and I have seen first-hand the difference strong resilience capability makes during moments of uncertainty. I wanted to become a BCI Awards Judge to help recognise work that genuinely delivers under pressure.

It is also an opportunity to give something back to a profession I value highly. I am motivated to support fair, balanced and inclusive assessment, ensuring excellence is recognised across different sectors, regions and organisational sizes.

From Stephen: My initial experience with Business Continuity involved establishing the first Business Continuity Management System (BCMS) whilst working for a department within my local authority. Finding this new challenge both engaging and rewarding, I was eager to explore subsequent opportunities.

I then transitioned to the Council’s Emergency Planning Team, where I led the organisation's internal Business Continuity efforts and launched the Liverpool Business Continuity Management Forum (LBCMF), offering free advice and support to local businesses as part of the Council’s responsibility under the Civil Contingencies Act.

In 2011, I was honoured to be shortlisted as Public Sector Business Continuity Manager of the Year at the CIR Awards in London, though I did not win the award.

I left the Council in February 2012 to join Biscon Planning Ltd as a Business Continuity Consultant and later advanced to the position of Director. My role at Biscon has allowed me to work with a diverse range of clients, supporting them in initiating, enhancing, training, and exercising their BCMS programs. This includes policy management, conducting business impact analyses, developing plans, training teams, and testing these plans through exercises.

Additionally, I have assisted several clients in achieving and maintaining their ISO22301 certification.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge? 

Becoming a judge for the 2025 and again in 2026 Business Continuity Awards presents a unique opportunity for me to influence industry standards, recognise excellence, and expand my professional network.

I aim to gain insights into innovative resilience strategies, enhance my personal credibility, and contribute to the advancement of business continuity practices. Judging will enable me to connect with leading professionals and demonstrate my expertise on a prestigious platform.

I believe this role will allow me to give back to the industry while bolstering my own reputation. Additionally, I intend to leverage this experience to support my application from MBCI membership to FBCI.

Founder & Principal Consultant, RMANAGING LLC

Todd Ray is an experienced organizational resilience practitioner and advocate with more than 2 decades in business continuity, crisis management, disaster recovery, and operational risk. Through his consulting firm, RMANAGING LLC, he works with organizations to strengthen resilience capabilities, embed continuity into operations, and prepare leaders to navigate disruption.

Todd specializes in creating and managing comprehensive Business Continuity Management Systems and I.T. Service Continuity Management Programs for the United States critical infrastructure and highly regulated industries, such as the Pharmaceutical and Financial Services sectors. In addition, he is an active member of InfraGard and a Certified Critical Infrastructure Liaison Office for the U.S. Government.

Todd is passionate about elevating resilience as a strategic capability for organizations and communities. He contributes to the profession through mentorship, industry collaboration, and service to the Business Continuity Institute as a co-leader of the Operational Resilience Special Interest Group and a BCI Competency Assessor.

Why did you want to become a BCI Awards Judge?

As a judge, it is crucial to ensure that all candidates are evaluated fairly and impartially, without bias toward their background, ethnicity, gender, or other personal characteristics.  

One of the essential aspects of being a judge is having an inclusive mindset and recognizing the importance of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in the awards selection process.  

Embracing Diversity and inclusion means that the panel will be able to consider a wide range of perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds, leading to a more well-rounded and representative selection process.