SYA Group, Inc. was established in 1999 by Laurie R. Friedman to develop and market web-enabled emergency planning and disaster recovery products. Prior to SYA Group, Inc. Ms. Friedman owned and operated a sole proprietorship professional consulting business providing emergency response and recovery planning and training. Ms. Friedman also owns the domain name for Disasterworld.com.

Laurie Friedman has over 20 years experience in emergency management and planning. Clients include, the San Francisco Water Department, East Bay MUD, San Francisco Mayor's Office of Emergency Services, Port of San Francisco, San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, Monterey County Emergency Medical Services, National Park Service, American Red Cross, Santa Clara County Department of Public Health, and San Francisco International Airport.

Prior to owning her own business, Ms. Friedman served for nine years as the Federal Emergency Management Agency Region IX Earthquake Program Manager. She worked for four years as an emergency-planning consultant with EQE International, a risk management and engineering firm.