How To Become A Disaster Recovery Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a disaster recovery manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

A disaster recovery manager is responsible for designing, implementing, and managing disaster recovery plans of an organization. Their role is imperative in ensuring business continuance and minimizing--if not eliminating--company losses in the event of a disaster.

To attain this goal, disaster recovery managers conduct risk assessments to identify potential problems. Then, they form disaster recovery strategies based on research and prior incidents, if there are any. After implementation, they are also in charge of monitoring the strategies they put in place, as well as making any modifications when necessary.

If you want to become a disaster recovery manager, start your path by completing a bachelor's degree in business, computer science, management, or another similar field. Afterward, build experience in the industry with a focus on disaster recovery and prevention. At the same time, it also helps to build your skills in leadership, communication, strategy, and analysis.

In the US, the average salary of a disaster recovery manager is $62,000 annually. If you want to pursue this role, you can find plenty of opportunities in private companies, mainly those that handle sensitive information.

ScoreDisaster Recovery ManagerUS Average

Salary

6.0

Avg. Salary $77,230

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.2

Growth rate 16%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.43%

Asian 8.83%

Black or African American 6.36%

Hispanic or Latino 9.39%

Unknown 4.56%

White 70.43%

Gender

female 35.05%

male 64.95%

Age - 43

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43

Stress level

7.2

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.4

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.7

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a disaster recovery manager

Explore disaster recovery manager education requirements

Most common disaster recovery manager degrees

Bachelor's

61.2 %

Associate

17.7 %

Master's

12.8 %

Start to develop specific disaster recovery manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Infrastructure	10.30%
Business Continuity	9.19%
Project Management	8.99%
Business Impact Analysis	5.16%
Impact Analysis	4.69%

Complete relevant disaster recovery manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New disaster recovery managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a disaster recovery manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real disaster recovery manager resumes.

Research disaster recovery manager duties and responsibilities

Work include managing sub-contractors, FEMA compliance, scheduling, and equipment logistics post disaster during clean-up activities.
Develop corporate BCM policy, roadmaps, and documentation templates.
Work with FEMA and local leaders to secure accesses to the affected areas quickly after the disaster end.
Administer infrastructure equipment and projects relate to data center networks.

Prepare your disaster recovery manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your disaster recovery manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a disaster recovery manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable disaster recovery manager resume templates

Build a professional disaster recovery manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your disaster recovery manager resume.