MHA Consulting

An annual listing of 10 companies that are at the forefront of providing BusinessContinuity consulting services and impacting the marketplace

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gy Engine for Business

Joe PhillipManaging Editor

Joe Phillip

CONSULTING/SERVICES COMPANIES - 2019

BUSINESSCONTINUITYTOP 10

Company:MHA Consulting

Description:Business continuity management consultants that specialize in crisis management, business recovery planning, disaster recovery planning, and IT best practices

Key Person:Michael Herrera CEO

Website:mha-it.com &bcmmetrics.com

The wake of 2019 has witnessed business continuity management (BCM) evolve at a rapid pace within enterprises to meet the ever-increasing market demands and regulatory needs. As the enterprises have assessed significant business and technology changes from

different perspectives such as the impact on existing processes, the associated risks, and the most important consideration, how technology transitions can be used such that the continuity capabilities can be improved, they have realized that they have to evolve as an organization to stay put with the market.

The most notable trends that have had an impact recently on the business continuity side of things has been server and desktop virtualization, the emergence of mobile devices, and cloud computing. These trends are creating a long-dues effect on the way that enterprises handle business continuity planning and testing. Although, according to experts, 2019 has all the promises to be the best and an exciting year for the business continuity space, companies have to ensure that they evolve continuously to stay abreast of the latest in this field.

To help companies find the best solutions that can help them in their transition by delivering digital transformation and business continuity services, our distinguished panel of prominent CEOs, CIOs, CTOs, and analysts, along with CIO Applications' editorial board has assessed and streamlined the companies offering streamlined and comprehensive services in the business continuity realm.

We present to you “Top 10 Business Continuity Consulting/Services Companies – 2019.”

CIOAPPLICATIONS.COMMARCH - 2019

Top 10 Business Continuity Consulting/Services Companies - 2019

BUSINESS CONTINUITY SPECIAL

Located in Phoenix, Arizona, MHA Consulting specializes in business continuity planning and Information Technology disaster recovery planning. In a recent interview with Michael

Herrera, CEO of MHA Consulting, we talk about how their business continuity and disaster recovery services assist enterprises in responding to and recovery from disruptions of all shapes and sizes. MHA Consulting, with 20 years of experience in this field, offers a full complement of proven continuity consulting services in addition to exclusive business continuity software that effectively tackles the problems of implementing complex continuity programs.

What are the challenges that enterprises face in this industry and how do you address them?Business continuity management is an integral element that addresses an organization's advance preparedness to address the risk of exposure to internal and external threats. Initially, it was an uphill task for us to craft solutions that would strike a balance between business environments and the ever-changing technology landscape. While developing solutions, we often came across business constraints such as tight budgets, lack of available resources,

and a shortage of trained personnel who understand business continuity management and information technology disaster recovery solutions. We developed BCMMetricsTM after years of using the traditional Word templates and Excel spreadsheets. It has four platforms— BIA On Demand (BIAOD), Compliance Confidence (C2), Residual Risk (R2), and BCMOne (BCM1). BIAOD

analyzes the relative criticality of business process and technology. C2 measures the client’s alignment

with relevant industry standards. The third platform, R2 refers to the risk elements in a program that persist after incorporating risk management measures. Finally, BCM1 allows clients to pull together all their plan information in a single location. It allows clients to view their facilities on a map

and upload their critical information and documentation. Our clients have benefitted dramatically by using these tools; besides that,

our pricing has been pocket-friendly throughout. Our tools have been

designed from the continuity planner's perspective, and they are very user-friendly. We have served the financial, insurance, educational, healthcare, pharmaceutical, and transportation industries over the last 20 years. We do not limit ourselves to the periphery of business continuity management; we also provide crisis management, disaster recovery, program augmentation, and training services to our clients. Integrating our wide range of services, solutions, and tools equip organizations with

MHA ConsultingBusiness Continuity Made Easy

CONSULTING/SERVICES COMPANIES - 2019

BUSINESSCONTINUITYTOP 10

Michael Herrera, CEO

the ability to adequately respond to natural, human cause and/or technology interruptions to protect their business interests.

What makes you stand out amongst other key players in the market?If you carefully look at our client pedigree, you will see an impressive global client base that is a “who is who” of industry-leading companies across a wide spectrum of industries. Moreover, we employ people who know what they are doing, backed by years of experience, and that makes it easier for us to deliver our comprehensive suite of hassle-free solutions. Sometimes our clients need consulting help to build a program from the ground up or just augment a piece of their program, and either way, we can help reduce their level of risk and increase their resiliency. It is entirely up to our clients whether they want to take advantage of our consulting services, leverage our BCMMetricsTM tools, or both simultaneously. I think this is what sets us apart from other consulting firms in play.

Could you elaborate a little on the training programs that you provide?We conduct a variety of training programs for the crisis management teams, recovery teams, and employees to elevate the capabilities of the client’s business continuity management program. It is a way to heighten awareness about the importance of business continuity management and to help our clients to be prepared for any disruption. Training programs are essential for reinforcing basic knowledge of the plan among all employees. It is mandatory for team leaders to be aware of how and when to activate the program; how to notify, assemble, and manage teams; and how to communicate effectively across organizational boundaries in a stressful situation. Lastly, we provide BCM 101 training for executives. Our training sessions are inclusive of business continuity planning, disaster

recovery, crisis management, business impact analysis (BIA), current state assessments (CSA), threat and risk assessment (TRA), recovery strategies, mock exercises, and IT/ disaster recovery (DR) exercises.

How do you envision MHA Consulting’s future?First, I challenged the MHA team to transform our business continuity management processes, methodologies, and tools so we can stay well ahead of the future in the business and technology landscapes. It is critical that we apply our services and solutions in a manner that will ensure the continuous operations of our clients today and well into the future. Secondly, the time to change how we apply business continuity management is now; not tomorrow. Lastly, over the next few years, we envision expanding our solutions either through acquisition or by adding functionalities to the host of services and solutions that we currently bring to our clients’. Our experienced team ensures that business and technology processes go uninterrupted that meet the soaring demands of our global client base.

Integrating our range of services and solutions

equips organizations with the ability to adequately

respond to natural, human or technology-based

interruptions to protect their business interests