Disaster Recovery Journal Winter 2024

CAREER SPOTLIGHT

planning. My career then expanded to include program management and technology management. My first official position overseeing a business continu ity program was as a division informa tion security officer for a multinational financial company, where I implemented, maintained, and improved an information security program based on ISO 27000, including business continuity and disaster recovery. Have you had any mentors? Describe the effect they have had on your career. At the beginning of my career, I was part of a formal “professional develop ment” program with an assigned mentor and throughout my career I have been for tunate to collaborate with many talented people – supervisors, peers, direct reports, others. I have learned a great deal from their knowledge and diverse experiences. I believe being successful includes the ability to listen and seek advice when needed. I also seek guidance from people I admire but have not met in person, learning from them through publications and events. Mentorship has taught me that knowl edge is different from wisdom. Wisdom is understanding how your expertise, knowledge, self-awareness, judgment, and attitude affect others and how to use it to make things happen. Mentorship has also helped me appreciate the value of respecting people, enjoying what you do, and striving to improve every day. What types of formal training and certifications have you pursued, and what kinds of learning and networking opportunities are you seeking to continue your professional development? I believe in lifelong learning and staying current with changes. Speaking of mentors I never met, a piece of advice that resonates with me is a quote from John F. Kennedy: “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” Continuous learning builds our exper tise in our field. It is also important to build a holistic view of the organization

Career Spotlight: Dr. Francisco Molina By MELANIE LUCHT

Tell us about yourself – your name, company, title, and responsibilities. My name is Francisco Molina, and I am the senior director for business continu

How did you get into the business continuity industry? I was born in Mexico City and, while in college, a major earthquake devastated my hometown, causing significant loss of life. I volunteered to help search for survivors in the aftermath, which gave me firsthand exposure to the impact of natural disasters. After graduating with a degree in industrial engineering, I joined a multinational manufacturing company’s advanced man ufacturing department. There I conducted process optimization and industrial safety projects and reviews and developed contingency plans in case of failures. These experiences sparked my interest in emergency response and contingency

ity and disaster recovery, includ ing emergency preparedness and response at Carnegie Mellon University. I report to the chief risk officer and associate vice president for enterprise risk management. I am responsible for imple menting a strategic approach to emer gency preparedness, business continuity, and disaster recovery. My team and I work closely with the university research, administration, and academic areas to identify and mitigate risks associated with disruptive events.

32 DISASTER RECOVERY JOURNAL | WINTER 2024