Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Business & Economy
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Business & Economy

Getting to Know: Risk Management Director David Pajak

Wednesday, October 24, 2012, By Kathleen Haley
Share
Whitman School of Management

pajakAs the director of risk management and chief emergency management officer at SU, David Pajak looks at the details with an eye on the big picture.

In their shared mission and vision, the Risk Management Department, Environmental Health and Safety Services Office and Emergency Management, all of which Pajak oversees, are tasked with protecting the University’s people, buildings, finances, resources and reputation helping it to meet its academic, social and economic goals.

“There’s a whole spectrum of risks to manage,” Pajak says. “We’re always trying to keep a pulse on any changes or new initiatives at the University. We’ve reached out to people—and people on campus have reached out to us—in situations that can range from emergency management planning for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Regionals at the Carrier Dome, to matters related to globalization initiatives and international travel/study abroad to procuring various types of insurances to protect the University’s assets, such as its art collections.”

Pajak, who reports to the University’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Louis G. Marcoccia, directs and coordinates risk management, environmental health and safety programs, emergency management, litigation and claims management, property and liability insurance, contract reviews and workers’ compensation and disability benefits. “We strive to create the appropriate programs, policies and procedures, and training to balance risk and reward across campus,” he says.

An important and seemingly vast responsibility with so many variables for Pajak and his office, the work is made easier through effective communication with partners across campus and promoting the idea across campus of thinking in terms of managing risk.

“Risk management is everyone’s job,” Pajak says. “The good thing about my job is that there are a lot of good people in the University’s senior leadership who provide support and in the campus community who we work with to build a culture of risk management.”

Pajak, who earned a bachelor’s degree in safety sciences at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and later obtained the Associate in Risk Management designation, has much experience in the field. He came to SU in 1990 after working at George Washington University Medical Center and American University in Washington, D.C.

In 2008, Pajak, who earned an M.B.A. from the Whitman School of Management in May, was appointed chief emergency management officer. He also serves as vice-chair of the Campus Emergency Planning Committee.

“If you think about emergency management, there can be inclement weather, crises abroad, data breaches of sensitive information and utility outages,” Pajak says. But planning is always the key—and getting leaders to think in terms of an all-risk approach, anticipating problems, allocating resources and communicating effectively are important.

His office also keeps up with emerging regulations, such as under the Higher Education Opportunity Act, and making cost-beneficial decisions or providing information to stakeholders who need to make decisions. For example, although not required by law, in 1999, the University initiated a five-year, $12 million plan to retrofit all of the University-owned residence halls with fire suppression sprinkler systems, and in 2007-08 the University complied with various federal and state environmental regulations related to the disposal of contaminated soil from the Center of Excellence.

Pajak credits his staff for the work that they have achieved. “I believe if you have people who trust, respect and care about each other and are committed to getting the job done, they’ll make it happen,” he says.

Pajak’s work has garnered him respect from his colleagues across the country. Earlier this month, he was honored to receive the 2012 Distinguished Risk Manager award from the University Risk Management and Insurance Association (URMIA). “It is something to be shared with the risk management, environmental health and safety services and emergency management staff and the University,” says Pajak, who served on URMIA’s board of directors and currently chairs its Government and Regulatory Affairs Committee.

Outside of his professional life, Pajak enjoys traveling with his wife, Janey ’00, practicing tai chi and cycling—he’s logged 2,500 miles this year. You might also find him fishing for trout on local streams. “Central New York is a godsend for cyclists and being outdoors,” he says.

It’s his work too in a complex field that keeps him energized. “There’s always an emerging risk due to various reasons: legal environment, new regulations, public policy changes, insurance market cycles, and institutional changes,” Pajak says. “Many of my colleagues in the higher education risk management profession like the challenges the diversity brings and being involved in supporting the work of the institution—preparing future leaders, creating research and emerging technologies, supporting the local community and educating our students.”

  • Author

Kathleen Haley

  • Recent
  • IVMF Advisory Board Welcomes New Additions
    Monday, January 18, 2021, By News Staff
  • Syracuse Stage Announces Changes to the 2020/2021 Season
    Sunday, January 17, 2021, By Joanna Penalva
  • Hehnly Lab Awarded $1.2M NIH Grant to Research Critical Tissue Formation
    Sunday, January 17, 2021, By Dan Bernardi
  • Important Information Regarding Proof of Eligibility for and Access to the COVID Vaccine
    Saturday, January 16, 2021, By News Staff
  • COVID-19 Update: Vaccination | Testing | Important Reminders | Zoom Sessions
    Friday, January 15, 2021, By News Staff

More In Business & Economy

Female Sport Analytics Students Look to Transform Their Love of Math, Sports into STEM Careers

Syracuse University senior Bailie Brown will be the first female to earn a bachelor’s degree in sport analytics from the Falk College when she completes her coursework in May 2021. She is grateful for connections made with women in sports…

Amy McHale’s Investment Portfolio: Whitman Graduate Student Success

Amy McHale, assistant dean for master’s programs at the Whitman School of Management, calls herself a jack of all trades. Since 2008 she has held roles focused on the student experience and preparing graduates to enter the workforce with a…

Women in Leadership Initiative Announces Spring 2021 Programming

After kicking off in the fall of 2018, the Women in Leadership (WiL) initiative, created through the vision of Candace Campbell Jackson, senior vice president and chief of staff to Chancellor Kent Syverud, and a steering committee of women leaders,…

LaunchPad Startup OthersideAI Receives $2.6 Million in Seed Funding

Syracuse LaunchPad startup OthersideAI announced on Nov. 12 that it received $2.6 million in seed funding from Madrona Venture Group, and joined Active Capital, Hustle Fund, Chapter One and top angel investors in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Software as a…

Applications Open for LaunchPad 2020 Impact Prize

Blackstone LaunchPad and Techstars at Syracuse University Libraries (LaunchPad) is accepting online applications now through Nov. 1 for the Impact Prize, a competition for social entrepreneurship.  The Impact Prize is open to Syracuse University and State University of New York…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2021 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.