Raelene Anderson, MBCP, CEM, has built an accomplished career with more than four decades of experience, with more than 25 years of experience as a certified emergency manager. She currently excels as the senior manager of business resilience management at Delta Dental of California, a role she has held since 2019. In this position, she leads the company’s crisis management team, overseeing training, disaster preparedness exercises, emergency response planning, and business continuity.
Before joining Delta Dental, Ms. Anderson was a principal consultant at BSI Consulting Group from 2018 to 2019, prior to which she served as the global emergency response team and business continuity program director at Applied Materials from 2005 to 2018. Ms. Anderson was a business continuity manager at Solectron from 1997 to 2005, where her work was featured in Contingency Planning and Management Magazine and Continuity Insights Magazine.
Ms. Anderson’s career began in California, working in both the police and fire departments before discovering her passion for disaster preparedness. Inspired by civil defense officers, she became an administrative assistant to the civil defense director and later a disaster and preparedness coordinator for local government. Transitioning to the private sector, she specialized in crisis management and business recovery, working with Fortune 500 companies.
To prepare for her professional path, Ms. Anderson earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from St. Mary’s College of California in 1995. She furthered her education with professional certifications, becoming a certified emergency manager in 1997 and a certified business continuity professional in 2000. Ms. Anderson also dedicates her time to various organizations, including the California Resiliency Alliance since 2013 and the Business Recovery Managers Association from 2004 to 2018. Moreover, she has contributed significantly to the field through keynote presentations at conferences and industry publications.
Reflecting on her path, Ms. Anderson is most proud of her crisis management achievements. At Delta Dental, she built a response team from the ground up just before the COVID-19 shutdown, earning international recognition as a finalist for a Disaster Recovery Institute International award. Additionally, at Applied Materials, she led the company’s response to the Japan earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster, successfully relocating the executive team and activating 29 response teams without missing any deadlines or deliverables.
In light of her impressive undertakings, Ms. Anderson has been honored with several awards, including the Preparedness Pioneer Award for outstanding contributions to Northern California’s state of preparedness and the President’s Award for Leadership from the California Emergency Services Association. She was also inducted into the Contingency Planning and Management Magazine Hall of Fame. Ms. Anderson attributes her success to her passion for crisis management, level-headedness, and leadership skills.
Outside of work, Ms. Anderson enjoys spending time with her family, gardening, and flower arranging. Looking to the future, she remains committed to making a lasting impact in emergency management. For future professionals, she emphasizes perseverance and continuous learning. She also notes that leadership in emergency management requires public speaking and team guidance, skills developed through practice and hands-on experience.