Foreword: Welcome to the Autumn Edition of AVAIL


Welcome to the autumn edition of AVAIL, which contains some highly topical stories reflecting the news headlines. In a thought-provoking article, Dr Sandra Bell, Sungard AS’ head of resilience consulting in Europe, explains why recovering from a terror attack can be more complex than it seems. We also share the real-life experience of customer Augentius whose London office was caught up in the London Bridge attacks this summer. While on this subject, Chris Butler, one of our cyber resilience and security consultants, gives some useful pointers for communicating clearly in a crisis.

As the latest BCI cyber resilience report confirms, ransomware continues to be a huge threat worldwide and Sungard AS has produced a new guide that provides a framework to help IT and security leaders approach this risk in a structured, methodical way. We caught up with Sungard AS’ global chief security officer Shawn Burke to talk about the growing problem – read the interview here.

Following the departure of Keith Tilley for pastures new, we introduce you to chief marketing officer Kathy Schneider who will build on the strong foundations laid by him over nearly 40 years. You can find out more about Kathy’s background and the recent organisational changes at Sungard AS here.

Elsewhere, we introduce Lee Webb, the new chair of the Sungard AS European Customer Advisory Board who talks about his plans in the role.

Finally, I hope you enjoy this issue and welcome your feedback on any aspect of the magazine. If you have any comments, please email me at AS.UK.AvailEditor@sungardas.com.

Jenna Powell

Editor