Awards Winners 2024

Lifetime Achievement

The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual who has exhibited exceptional dedication and achievement in the fields of business continuity, disaster recovery, or emergency management. It is awarded to a member who has had a remarkable career marked by professional success, significant contributions to the industry, proficiency in applying the DRII Professional Practices, and a commitment to the mission of DRI Canada.

Contributor

The DRI Canada Contributor Award honours an individual who has made significant contributions to business continuity, disaster recovery, or emergency management in Canada through commitment, leadership, achievement, and innovation.

Response and Recovery

The ability to effectively respond to and recover from a disaster is the hallmark of business continuity, disaster recovery, and emergency management. This award recognizes an organization that has demonstrated the capability to meet the challenges presented by a disaster, not only to the organization itself but also to the community it serves.

Preparedness and Mitigation

The Preparedness and Mitigation Award recognizes individuals and organizations that exhibit exceptional commitment in proactively reducing, minimizing, or avoiding impacts from business disruptions.  The award serves as an inspiration for others to prioritize and invest in proactive measures, fostering a culture of resilience and preparedness across Canada.

Student Award and Scholarship

The Student Award and Scholarship recognizes a post-secondary student who, in the past year, has presented an exceptional project or scholarly work—such as an academic paper, report, or presentation—that is relevant to and adds value to the business continuity, disaster recovery, or emergency management industries.

Joe Ozorio

Joe is currently President of the Toronto chapter of the Resiliency Information Exchange (RIE), a non-profit association of professionals dedicated to the exchange of information on all aspects of planning for an emergency or a disruption to normal operations. 

Although semi-retired, Joe remains dedicated to the industry and spends much of his time volunteering for RIE and other disaster mitigation and recovery areas. 

Joe is highly respected for his knowledge of emergency preparedness and business continuity, which he has gained over a lifetime of work and participation. His contributions, commitment, and passion illustrate why he deserves this prestigious Lifetime Achievement award.

Mark Hoffman

Mark is the founder and current president of Anesis Consulting Group.  Over and above operating his full-time consulting practice, Mark has contributed significantly to the resilience industry and has driven significant conversations around business resilience, crisis management, and adjacent disciplines.

As producer and host of the Resilient Journey podcast, Mark’s role spans booking guests, writing, hosting, and delivering content that resonates with professionals in resilience, continuity, and risk management.

Over the past year, Mark has produced 50 podcast episodes featuring guests from a wide range of industries, covering various relevant topics. Recent podcast episodes have tackled timely issues such as misinformation, crisis communications, diversity and inclusion, and the impact of climate change on infrastructure.

Telus

Telus receives its third consecutive DRI Canada Response and Recovery Award for its impressive response to unprecedented events that continue to happen across Canada, from wildfires to IT outages.

In 2024, Telus faced multiple crises, including the Crowdstrike IT outage and new wildfires in Western Canada. As the company was putting the Crowdstrike emergency behind it this summer, wildfires erupted in Jasper, Alberta, consuming a third of the town. 

Telus activated an emergency response team, coordinating a nationwide response from July 24 to August 19. Despite being stretched thin, Telus was able to protect its telecommunications network, restore services, and support the community in Jasper. 

The crisis showcased Telus' ability to unite to safeguard its assets and the wider communities it serves. 

Telus

Telus receives this year’s Preparedness and Mitigation award for making significant investments in futureproofing to adapt to climate change, network protection, and emergency response. 

In all, Telus has allocated $125 million over five years towards these crucial efforts.

This substantial investment aligns with Telus’ core values, emphasizing its commitment to continuous improvement. 

This year we have two winners of the Student Award and Scholarship, Louise Pick and Shubhparteek Singh.

Louise, who is studying for a Master of Art degree in Disaster and Emergency Management at Royal Roads University, won for an essay she wrote detailing her experiences as a frontline emergency nurse during the Covid-19 pandemic and the 2021 British Columbia heat dome. 

Entitled Is Anyone Listening? The Role of Communication in Disaster Recovery, the essay details the disparities in how disasters affect different populations. Congratulations to Louise.

The other student award winner this year is Shubhparteek Singh, who is completing a post baccalaureate diploma in disaster management at the Justice Institute of British Columbia.