Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery Lead - KSA

Overview

1. Strategy, Governance & Framework

• Define and drive the enterprise BCDR and DR Automation strategy and roadmap, aligned with business continuity objectives and resilience goals.
• Establish and maintain standardized frameworks, methodologies, and best practices for BCP, DR, and automation.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards (ISO 22301, ISO 27001, NIST, ITIL).
• Govern adherence to a consistent and integrated DR automation framework across all teams.

2. Business Impact, Risk & Planning

• Lead Business Impact Analysis (BIA) to identify critical services, dependencies, and recovery priorities.
• Conduct risk assessments to evaluate threats, vulnerabilities, and operational impacts.
• Define and validate Recovery Time Objectives (RTO) and Recovery Point Objectives (RPO).
• Develop and maintain Business Continuity Plans (BCP) and Disaster Recovery Plans (DRP).

3. DR Automation & Solution Integration

• Design and oversee end-to-end DR automation lifecycle (scope, validation, execution, testing).
• Collaborate with automation teams to:
• o Implement and enhance automation workflows and orchestration
• o Manage changes to existing automated applications
• o Ensure accurate capture of application and inter-application dependencies
• Continuously identify opportunities to increase automation, reduce manual effort, and minimize downtime and risk.
• Ensure automation solutions support achievement of RTO/RPO targets.

4. Cross-Functional Coordination

• Lead and coordinate efforts across Application, Infrastructure, Network, Database, Security, and Business SMEs.
• Ensure alignment between business and IT stakeholders on DR priorities and execution approach.
• Orchestrate communication across technical teams, internal leadership, and customer stakeholders to enable real-time decision-making.

5. Testing, Validation & Execution

• Plan and lead DR testing activities, including:
• o Control tests and sequential automation testing
• o Dry runs and technical rehearsals
• o Full-scale DR simulation and live failover exercises
• Lead coordination for UAT and DR testing processes, including approvals and stakeholder alignment.
• Validate recovery strategies through structured testing and ensure operational readiness.
• Lead coordinated recovery execution to ensure timely restoration of services and business continuity.

6. Monitoring, Reporting & Governance

• Ensure implementation of DR dashboards, monitoring, and alerting tools to provide visibility into recovery readiness.
• Provide executive-level reporting on:
• o DR test results
• o Risks and gaps
• o Remediation plans and progress
• Contribute to Steering Committee (SteerCo) updates and lead discussions when required.

7. Risk Management & Continuous Improvement

• Identify, track, and drive timely mitigation of risks across BCDR and DR automation initiatives.
• Analyze test outcomes and incidents to drive continuous improvement and optimization.
• Enhance overall resilience posture while optimizing cost and operational efficiency.
• **Requirements*** Strong expertise in BCDR strategy, planning, and execution.
• Hands-on experience in DR automation and orchestration platforms.
• Deep understanding of enterprise IT environments (applications, infrastructure, cloud, security).
• Proven experience in BIA, risk assessment, and recovery design.
• Strong stakeholder management, leadership, and communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Certifications such as CBCP, ISO 22301 Lead Implementer/Auditor or ITIL
• Experience delivering large-scale enterprise BCDR and DR Automation programs.