Disaster Recovery Journal Summer 2026

CAREER SPOTLIGHT

Career Spotlight: Leah Fitzgerald

the right fit. Through our Women in IT ERG, a peer introduced me to the new director of business continuity. I began shadowing him and was hired as an ana lyst about six months later. Once I got hands-on experience, I realized this was work I genuinely enjoyed and felt very natural doing. Tell us about some of the challenges you have encountered in your career? One of the biggest challenges has been navigating the gap between what we know needs to be done and what leadership is willing to support at a given time. Early on, we had funding and momentum, which allowed us to travel to manufacturing sites

and conduct in-person tabletops. That level of engagement was incredibly effec tive. When priorities shifted and resources were suddenly limited, it became much harder to determine what to focus on. Remote tabletops, while sometimes neces sary, can feel awkward and far less pro ductive, especially in manufacturing plant environments. Have you had any mentors? Describe the effect they have had on your career. Absolutely. I’ve been fortunate to have two mentors who have played a huge role in my development. They’ve helped me connect the dots with translating theory

Tell us about yourself – your name, company, title, and responsibilities?

My name is Leah Fitzgerald. I’m a business continuity analyst at Sherwin Williams, based in Cleveland, Ohio. My role includes facilitating BIAs and BCPs, developing and maintaining continuity and recovery strategies, facilitating exer cises, and partnering closely with opera tional and IT teams. How did you get into the business resilience industry? I was apart of an IT rotational develop ment program. My second rotation wasn’t

30 DISASTER RECOVERY JOURNAL | SUMMER 2026