Shaylee Marie Bartlett
Shaylee (Smith) Bartlett is a business continuity and resiliency professional dedicated to helping organizations prepare for, respond to, and recover from operational disruptions. She currently serves as a Resiliency Planning Specialist for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she supports enterprise-wide continuity planning and operational preparedness initiatives. In her role, Shaylee leads business impact analyses, facilitates continuity exercises, and collaborates with cross-functional teams to strengthen disaster recovery strategies and ensure critical operations can continue during times of crisis.
Shaylee’s professional background spans emergency management, utilities, and manufacturing environments, where she has contributed to large-scale preparedness programs and organizational resilience efforts. Prior to her current role, she gained hands-on experience through internships with Lansing Board of Water & Light and Nestlé, where she developed emergency response plans, facilitated training exercises, and partnered with leadership to improve safety and continuity practices. Her work reflects a strong commitment to building proactive systems that protect people, maintain operations, and support mission-critical functions during emergencies.
She holds a Master of Business Administration from Western Governors University and a Bachelor of Science in Emergency Services Administration with an emphasis in Emergency Management from Utah Valley University, graduating summa cum laude. This combination of academic training and real-world experience allows Shaylee to connect technical continuity practices with broader organizational strategy. Known for her structured and collaborative approach, she is passionate about fostering a culture of preparedness and resilience that empowers organizations and communities to navigate uncertainty with confidence.
• Certified Business Continuity Professional (CBCP)
• IS 230 - Fundamentals of Emergency Management
• E/L/K 1301 - Continuity Planning
• Western Governors University
• Utah Valley University
• Young Women's President for church organization
• Provo School District
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've received is to dream big and shoot for the stars. Someone told me about how a person worked so hard to beat some mile pace, and shortly after they beat it, so many other individuals were able to as well. It showed me that when you reach for something that you don't quite think is possible, you can do it. It opens other opportunities, and you find capability within yourself that you didn't even know you had. I had a coworker who told me that the world is mine, that I can do anything that I want to do, I just have to decide what I want. Having other people instill that belief and that value they see in me has really provided so much more confidence. It's helped me know that I can get to these leadership roles, being a manager, being a director, whatever that looks like. What I'm doing now is going to make a difference, and I'm building the foundation for decades of my career down the road where I'm going to be able to make even more change and impact not only the world and the organization, but the people I work with.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Don't underestimate yourself. You're very capable, and your hard work will truly pay off. It can be hard when you're in the thick of school and assignments or whatever, wondering if this is really gonna pay off. But just know that all of the hard work really will pay off if you have a vision for your future and your career. That work will come into fruition in ways you'll never, ever imagine. You'll look back and be so grateful you put that work in, because it will open doors where you'll be able to make a difference and grow as an individual and as a professional. I love young professionals, it's one of my favorite things. Success doesn't just happen, it requires a lot of grit. When I watch sports, or have people help me at the grocery store, or have contractors come into my house for projects, seeing young professionals thrive is something I am just so passionate about. We recently bought a house, and our realtor was younger, newer to the industry, but she was just incredible. I love seeing people chase their dreams and putting in the work.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
A challenge I really faced when I had graduated college was competing against other professionals for jobs where they had decades of experience in the response world, as a police officer or as a firefighter. They were individuals that had years and years of experience responding to emergencies and disasters, and I didn't have that. But what was different is I did have the education. I had the degree that set me apart. So I leaned into that and really honed my skills in the preparedness side, because I didn't have a lot of exposure to the response, and where I was at, it was hard to get that exposure and experience. By learning and reading case studies and after-action reports of how people did respond, I was able to learn from those other people's experiences, and then really just hone my skills and what I knew, and stick to what I brought to the table, and not compare that to what other people had that was different from me.