A tabletop exercise is distinct from an emergency drill, however.Īccording to the Homeland Security Exercise Evaluation Program (HSEEP), a tabletop exercise is just one of four different types of exercises that are used to evaluate emergency plans and procedures: These are typically activities meant to test a specific procedure or set of desired actions under a safety officer or other personnel’s direct supervision. Nearly every student and employee has experienced a fire drill, tornado drill, or some other scenario-based activity designed to improve situational awareness and coordinated response in the event of a disaster. However, they are always hypothetical and discussion-based activities, as opposed to other types of preparedness activities.įinally, there is a wealth of tabletop exercise resources online, including, FEMA, and our own tabletop exercise template. For example, a tabletop exercise for cyberthreats will be very different from one meant to test hurricane response tactics. These exercises can also be tailored specifically to any situation. What are the benefits of tabletop exercises?īeyond providing a low-cost, low-risk, and highly effective way to assess emergency response plans in advance-well-designed tabletop exercises help individuals across the organization better understand their roles in an emergency, providing a safe space to think critically about potential scenarios that could impact normal operations.įor leaders, tabletop exercises also provide peace of mind and confidence that key personnel are adequately trained and prepared for critical events, which can drastically improve response times, potentially saving lives and protecting the business from significant losses. Often, these exercises can be completed in a few hours however, it is common for government agencies and large organizations to dedicate multiple days every quarter to testing response plans for large-scale scenarios. How long should a tabletop exercise last?Ī tabletop exercise’s duration depends on the scenario being rehearsed, the number of participants involved, and the objectives established ahead of time. FEMA also relies on tabletop exercises to clarify roles and responsibilities to ensure interagency coordination and improve communication when responding to natural disasters and other emergency situations. Because the environment of a tabletop exercise is non-threatening, exercise participants can calmly rehearse their roles, ask questions, and troubleshoot problem areas.įor example, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)-which coordinates emergency response following federally declared disasters-regularly uses tabletop exercises to test and validate policies, current plans, procedures, equipment, and more. How do tabletop exercises work?ĭuring a tabletop exercise, key personnel with emergency management roles and responsibilities gather to discuss various simulated tabletop exercise scenarios. Tabletop exercises can also help ensure that critical equipment and tools work as intended and all responsible parties know what to do when a critical event occurs. They help train key personnel for any emergency by allowing you to assess your protection and preparation tactics, practice your response plans, and improve your recovery capabilities in a risk-free environment. Over time, organizations may develop a more comprehensive business continuity plan for specific scenarios-each intended to document and provide detailed instructions on how the organization will respond if/when an emergency occurs.īut how can you feel confident that your emergency operations or business continuity plans are sufficient before you need to put them into action? Thankfully, tabletop exercises are a great tool that provides employee safety and business continuity leaders with a low-cost but high-impact way of determining emergency preparedness before a crisis occurs.Ī tabletop exercise is a simulated, interactive exercise that tests an organization’s risk management and response procedures. For many businesses, this type of focused preparation starts with creating an emergency plan. But one tried-and-true method for mitigating the unknown is the tabletop exercise.ĭesigning your organization’s reaction to any future incident requires significant forethought and an organized effort to take proactive steps and minimize risks. We’ve all found ourselves in an unfortunate situation due to a lack of foresight and planning. Planning for an unknown future can be overwhelming.
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