Manager, Business Continuity

JOB TITLE: Manager, Business Continuity

Location: North Fort Myers, FL

Work Hours: M-F 8:00 - 5:00

Our benefits include:

• Company-wide annual incentive plan
• Medical, vision and dental insurance
• 401(k) plan with a generous 6% company match
• Company funded Pension Plan
• On-site wellness/medical facility
• Company paid Short & Long-Term Disability insurance
• Health Savings Account with an employer contribution
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Paid time off and paid holidays
• Wellness program with financial rewards
• Tuition reimbursement
• Group life insurance
• Critical Illness and Accident Insurance

LCEC provides reliable, cost-competitive electricity to more than 245,000 customers throughout a five-county service territory located in Southwest Florida. We employ approximately 450 skilled employees and are one of more than 900 electric distribution cooperatives located throughout the United States. LCEC has been recognized locally and statewide as an industry leader and continually receives acknowledgment for the work that our employees do in the community along with other civic, environmental and professional honors.

Position Summary: This role is responsible for four functional areas, Business Continuity, Incident Response, External Affairs and Key Accounts. The primary responsibilities include developing, implementing, and maintaining a comprehensive business continuity and disaster recovery program to ensuring that the cooperative can continue operations, maintain customer satisfaction, and minimize service disruption in the event of a disaster, emergency, or unforeseen disruption to business functions and will work closely with internal teams, external partners, and government agencies to develop and test continuity plans, provide training, and oversee recovery efforts across the organization. This role is also responsible for managing relationships with external stakeholders and key accounts.

Position Responsibilities

• Lead the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of business continuity, disaster recovery, and crisis management plans for the cooperative and ensure business continuity plans align with industry best practices, regulatory requirements and LCEC's goals.
• Identify critical business functions and dependencies and develop strategies to mitigate risks and minimize service disruptions, especially in the event of natural disasters, cyber threats, or technological failures. Monitor and evaluate the progress of response efforts, adjusting strategies as necessary.
• Conduct regular risk assessments, business impact analyses (BIA), and threat assessments to identify vulnerabilities and gaps in existing plans. Conduct debriefings and after-action reviews to identify lessons learned and improve future response efforts.
• Analyze and evaluate potential hazards such as hurricanes, floods, cyberattacks, and equipment failure that could impact business continuity. Assess the situation quickly and determine the appropriate response strategy.
• Coordinate multi-departments and multi-disciplinary teams to ensure a unified response to business impacting scenarios. Collaborate with internal teams to ensure consistent messaging and alignment with organizational goals. Work closely with the Public Relations team to develop public messaging during emergencies, including outage updates, recovery timelines, and safety information.
• Build and nurture relationships and serve as the key point of contact with key stakeholders, including government officials, community leaders, emergency response teams, contractors, vendors, and regional utilities. Provide key accounts with priority updates and tailored communications during both emergencies and "blue sky" days, ensuring they are well-informed and supported. Prepare reports and presentations for stakeholders, highlighting key initiatives and outcomes.
• Monitor legislative and regulatory developments relevant to the organization and advise leadership on potential impacts.
• Represent the organization at public events, meetings, and forums to advocate for LCEC's interests and mission.
• Develop and execute account plans and strategies to achieve business goals.
• Other duties as assigned.

Education

• Bachelor's Degree Business Administration, Political Science, Emergency Management, Risk Management or related field or equivalent experience. (Required)
• Master's Degree Business continuity, emergency management, or related fields. (Preferred)

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge of incident response frameworks and protocols, business impact analysis (BIA), risk assessments, and recovery strategies. Strong attention to detail. Ability to work under pressure, remain calm and effective during emergencies and times of crisis. (Required)
• Very strong Microsoft application skills including Word, Excel, Outlook, SharePoint and PowerPoint at a minimum. (Required)
• Proven problem solving, decision making, and analytical ability. Strong leadership skills, including the ability to work independently and proactively as needed, under high stress situations for the duration of a crisis. (Required)
• Excellent interpersonal, organizational, communication (both written and oral), and telephone etiquette skills. Demonstrated ability to interface with all levels of the organization, including internal and external team members and partners. This includes handling sensitive and confidential situations and information appropriately. (Required)
• Familiarity with industry standards and regulations including Business Continuity Management Systems and NERC (North American Electric Reliability Corporation) standards for utilities. (Preferred)

Physical Demands and Working Environment: The physical demands and working environment characteristics described here must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Physical Demands: Standing Frequently,
  Walking Frequently,
  Sitting Frequently,
  Lifting Rarely,
  Carrying Rarely,
  Pushing Rarely,
  Pulling Rarely,
  Climbing Rarely,
  Balancing Rarely,
  Stooping Rarely,
  Kneeling Rarely,
  Crouching Rarely,
  Crawling Rarely,
  Reaching Rarely,
  Handling Occasionally,
  Grasping Occasionally,
  Feeling Rarely,
  Talking Frequently,
  Hearing Constantly,
  Repetitive Motions Frequently,
  Eye/Hand/Foot Coordination Frequently.

• Working Environment: Frequently Air-conditioned office environment, Rarely Extreme cold, Occasionally Extreme heat, Occasionally Humidity, Occasionally Wet, Occasionally Noise, Rarely Hazards, Occasionally Temperature Change, Rarely Atmospheric Conditions, Rarely Vibration.

STORM DUTY REQUIREMENTS.... Responding to storms will be considered a condition of employment: LCEC provides critical services to our community during an emergency. Employees are required to participate in the response/recovery activities related to emergencies/disasters to maintain service to our LCEC members. Employees are required to work in their normal job duties or other assigned activities. Proper compensation will be made in accordance with the company's guidelines and procedures.

Please note that at the time a candidate is made a job offer, the candidate will be subject to a background check and a drug screening.