Mark Eckel

Mark Eckel

CBCLA, CBCP, ISP, PMP, MBA, MAOM
Principal Consultant

Mark Eckel’s business continuity and disaster recovery planning, fire/life safety and emergency management passion was forged in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. For more than 25 years, Mark has applied his extensive knowledge and experience working with a wide range of customers to optimize and test their plans to protect people, property and operations from risk and disruption, using an “all hazards” approach. For more than ten years, Mark has also worked extensively with standards such as ISO 27001, the National Industrial Security Program Operations Manual (NISPOM) and the Federal Risk Management Framework (RMF). 

Certifications

  • Certified Business Continuity Lead Auditor (CBCLA), Disaster Recovery Institute International
  • Certified Business Continuity Professional (CBCP), Disaster Recovery Institute International
  • Industrial Security Professional (ISP) from the National Classification Management Society
  • Project Management Professional (PMP) designated by the Project Management Institute
  • Master of Business Administration (MBA), Concordia University, 2013
  • Master of Arts in Organizational Management (MAOM), Concordia University, 2004

Career Accomplishments

  • Led dozens of organizations through risk assessment and business impact analysis processes to identify, quantify and prioritize risks and associated mitigations
  • Trained, mentored, and coordinated dozens of disaster recovery/business continuity planning teams supporting multi-billion-dollar business units
  • Facilitated annual certification tests and debriefings after actual plan activations
  • Managed the construction of several new Federal SOCs, NOCs and SCIFs, from initial design and site selection to federal certification and ongoing accreditation
  • Ensured that support facilities were equipped with all federally mandated physical security features, equipment, and processes
  • Planned and managed the design, construction, operation and evolution of complex briefing and product demonstration facilities

Skills and Expertise

  • Provides expert guidance on all areas of business continuity, disaster recovery, fire/life safety and emergency management; from risk assessment and business impact analysis to plan development, maintenance and testing, including designing tabletop exercises and after-action reporting
  • Assesses business continuity planning effectiveness and physical security requirements as part of ISO 27001 internal audits
  • Manages projects of all sizes related to technology implementation, business continuity, fire/life safety, physical security requirements and process development
  • Excels at providing clear communication for any project, large or small
  • 25+ years of experience as a business continuity manager for a large telecommunications company
  • Extensive experience with hiring, building and leading high-performance teams

Professional Affiliations

Disaster Recovery Institute International (DRII) Member since 2009. Maintaining Certified Business Continuity Professional (CBCP) and Certified Business Continuity Lead Auditor (CBCLA) credentials

National Classification Management Society (NCMS) Member since 2016. Maintaining Industrial Security Professional (ISP) credential. Serving as the Chapter Chair of the Mentoring Committee since 2018

Project Management Institute (PMI) Member since 2012. Maintaining Project Management Professional (PMP) credential

National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Member Since 2024. Certified as a Lead Auditor on the NFPA 1600 Standard on Continuity, Emergency and Crisis Management since 2024

How Can We Help?

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