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 Jan Schwartz
Director of Business Continuity
CB Richard Ellis
Jan Schwartz, Director of Business Continuity, is responsible for the business continuity program at CB Richard Ellis, Inc. Jan joined CB Richard Ellis, Inc. in March, 2007 and is officed out of Newport Beach, California.Jan’s responsibilities include the development, review, testing, maintenance and auditing of business continuity plans, risk analysis, and business impact analysis. Mr. Schwartz leads a group of business continuity professionals that review both business and technology areas to ensure CB Richard Ellis provides for the safety of its employees and is prepared to meet business interruption events. The Business Continuity Office, led by Mr. Schwartz, is the primary resource for Business Interruption Crisis Management at CBRE, Inc.
Prior to joining CB Richard Ellis, Mr. Schwartz was the Global Business Continuity Director for Hewitt Associates, a leading HR consulting and outsourcing firm. He spent 21 years with Hewitt, originally serving as the West Market IT Manager. Jan expanded his role to include support of the Asia/Pacific market, played a lead role developing Hewitt’s global IT change management system, and was invited to become an owner of Hewitt in 1998. Mr. Schwartz retired from Hewitt in 2007.
Jan earned a BS from California Polytechnic State University in 1972, and a Masters of Science in Statistics from the University of California, Riverside in 1976. Mr. Schwartz has over 30 years of IT technology and business continuity management experience.
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 J. Michael Drake
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
masterIT
J. Michael Drake is masterIT’s founder, chairman and CEO. masterIT provides wall-to-wall technology services for small to medium businesses. Founded in 2005, the company services a variety of clients with a portfolio of solutions, including remote monitoring and management; remote back-up and data security; on-site engineering support; and Internet services. The managed service provider also developed IT-as-a-Utility™, a revolutionary methodology in which information technology infrastructure is provided and refreshed
as part of a fixed-fee service.
Prior to founding masterIT, Michael served as President/CEO of Econocom USA, Inc. from 1993 – 2005. The company specialized in technology finance and asset management solutions that allow businesses to regain control of their IT budgets and assets. Under Michael’s direction Econocom USA grew its IT portfolio to over $100 million in 48 states prior to selling its operations to The Meridian Group in Chicago effective December, 2005.
Michael is a 1986 graduate of the University of Memphis with a BBA in Finance and held various banking positions in the mid-south prior to joining Econocom USA in 1990. Michael has served on the Boards of Directors of Crichton College, Boys & Girls Club of Greater Memphis and Chickasaw Country Club.
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 Johnny Pitts
Chief Manager
Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance
Johnny and his partner, Mat Lipscomb, III, are the majority owners of the largest, privately held insurance agency in the Mid-South, Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance, LLC.
From 1980 to 1981, employed with Safeco Insurance Company and CIGNA Insurance Company training in the underwriting, loss control and claims departments. From 1981 to 1988, production and retention of business insurance clients for Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance.
1989, made partner at Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance with management of the financial and administrative areas while still producing and retaining business insurance. 1992, Johnny and his partner, Mat Lipscomb III, purchased Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance from their fathers, John Pitts and Mat Lipscomb, Jr., who founded the Company in 1954.
Professionally, Johnny has his CIC designation and serves on the Board of Directors of Assurex Global and the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers. He has also served as chairman of the Greenwich Insurance Group, chairman of the Insurors of Memphis, chairman of the Memphis/Shelby County Insurance Advisory Committee, chairman of the Greater Memphis Insurance Council, and Board member of the Business Emergency Preparedness Council.
In the community, Johnny is President of Carnival Memphis, Board Member and past chair of Youth Villages, Board Member of the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Past President of the Memphis University School Alumni Executive Board, Board Member of Boy Scouts of America, Chickasaw Council.
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 Diane Tchouros
Health and Safety Services Director
Mid-South Chapter of the American Red Cross
Diane Tchouros is the Health and Safety Services Director at the Mid-South Chapter of the American Red Cross. She has been an American Red Cross Instructor Trainer for eighteen years, teaching people in the Mid-South how to prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies. Having served during disaster relief efforts such as Hurricane Katrina and the ’08 tornadoes, she provides a unique perspective on individual preparedness.
Prior to joining the Chapter, Diane was an Occupational Health and Safety Director in industry. Aside from maintaining OSHA compliant workplaces, in this capacity she co-created the first Business Continuity Plans for three different global electronics manufacturers. Following incidents such as “Hurricane Elvis” it became increasingly clear how much individual employee preparedness significantly impacts the continuity of the overall operation. Since that time, she has been training management and individuals on how to be prepared and ready to respond.
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