High Fidelity Simulation Exercises for Training Strategic Crisis Management

HIIGH H!FIDEELITTY! SIMU ULA ATIO ON! XER RCISSESS!!

EX FO OR!TRAIN NING! STRATTEGIC!CR RISISS! MA ANA AGEM MEN NT!!

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By!Dr.!Cllaudia!van!d den!Heuvel

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ABSTRA ACT:!Crisis!maanagement!aat!a!strategic!level!is!crucial!for!determ mining!an!orgganization’s!e effective! responsee!to!a!dynam mic,!high!risk!and!potentiaally!damagingg!incident.!Sttrategic!crisiss!management! requiress!a!set!of!‘non n"technical’!sskills!that!aree!different!to those!applie ed!during!bussiness"as"usu ual.!

These!skkills!are!mostt!readily!learn ned,!retainedd!and!transfe erred!to!real!life!incidentss!through!freq quent! training!using!immerrsive!simulation!exercisess.!The!design!of!complex, opaque!andd!dynamic! simulatio ons!ensures!that!real"life!pressures!arre!replicated!and!the!crisiis!managemeent!team! experien nces!similar!leevels!of!stresss,!uncertaintty!and!risk!ass!in!any!real!incident.! !

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Author! !DR.!CLA AUDIA!VAN!D DEN!HEUVELL! Dr.!Claud dia!van!den!H Heuvel!is!a!cconsultant!with!Steelhengge!Consultin ng!where! she!supp ports!the!dessign,!develop pment,!and!improvemennt!of!crisis! management!exercisses.!Claudia!recently!com mpleted!a!Ph D!on!individual!and! team!decision!makinng!in!critical!aand!major!in ncidents.!Thee!conducted!research! involved d!applied,!praactical!settings!and!informed!practiti oner!trainingg!design.! !

Introdu uction!

The!wayy!in!which!an ny!crisis!is!ma anaged!has!tthe!potentiall!to!profound dly!impact!ann!organizatio on!in! terms!off!operational!delivery,!sa afety!of!staff,,!future!succcess,!reputation!and!sharreholder!valu ue.!A! recent!study!clearly!illustrated!th hat!the!abilitty!of!senior!m managementt!to!deal!withh!a!crisis!and d!its! d!whether!the!firm!wouldd!fall!into!one!of!two!rela atively!distincct!groups,!th he!so"! aftermath!predicted Recoverers’!o or!‘Non"Reco overers’.!Sha re!value!patterns!collectted!for!a!largge!number!off!firms!in! called!‘R the!yearr!following!a!crisis!affectiing!their!orgaanization!cle early!illustratted!that!valu e!dropped! significantly!for!thosse!who!respo onded!ineffe ctively!to!the e!incident,!w while!share!vaalues!actually! increaseed!by!an!averrage!of!22!pe ercent!for!thhe!Recovers!((1).!!

Any!crisiis!management!capabilitty!must!funddamentally!be!supported!by!a!predefiined!structure!and! array!of!plans!to!enssure!approprriate!responsse!to!and!reccovery!from!a!threateninng!incident.!

Howeveer,!plans!rareely!survive!firrst!contact!w with!reality,!aand!the!unknown,!unfam miliar,!and! unexpeccted!will!alwaays!be!a!thre eat!to!effectiive!crisis!management.!M Moreover,!w hilst!having!a!pre" planned d!structure!an nd!an!array!o of!crisis!man agement!and!business!continuity!plaans!is!fundam mental! to!suppo ort!crisis!resp ponse,!effecttive!crisis!maanagement!is!largely!dep pendent!on!hhaving!the!rigght! people!in!the!right!roles.!Human n!behaviour!iin!crisis!respo onse!can!be!resilient,!adaaptive,!and!fflexible,! but!it!caan!also!be!plaagued!by!error!and!ineffiiciency.!The!demanding,!dynamic!andd!high"risk!nature!of! a!crisis!rrequires!thatt,!in!addition!to!being!do main!experts,!the!crisis!m managementt!team!(CMT T)!must! have!a!laarge!reperto oire!of!effectiive!incident! managemen nt!skills!in!ord der!to!functioon!under!higgh!levels! of!stresss,!arousal!and!time!presssure.!Maximiising!those!skills!dependss!on!the!leveel!of!experien nce!with!

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and!exposure!to!preevious!eventss!(2).!Howev er,!crises!are e!by!definitio on!infrequen t!and!unexpected! me!an!expertt!in!crisis!ma nagement?!! incidentts,!which!beggs!the!question:!how!doees!one!becom !

Strateggic!crisis!m manageme ent!trainingg!

Any!crisiis!management!capabilitty!must!be!deeveloped,!vaalidated,!and d!improved!t hrough!frequent! training!or!exercisingg.!Effective!e exercising!haas!been!defin ned!as!the!prrocess!of!maanaging!peop ple’s! experien nces!and!lesssons!learned d!so!that!theyy!gain!a!requ uisite!set!of!sskills!and!knoowledge!thatt!they! can!subssequently!ap pply!to!real!o operations!(33).!Many!different!types!o of!training!exxercises!mayy!be! relevantt!for!incremeentally!training!and!deve loping!the!skkills!needed!in!crisis!mannagement.!Th hese! include!w workshops!aand!desktopss!for!basic!levvel!crisis!management!and!plan!deveelopment!or! validatio on;!more!com mplex!team!ssimulation!exxercises!for!both!strategic,!tactical!annd!operation nal!level! function ns;!and!live!eexercises!whe ere!teams!acctively!rehearse!a!specificc!drill!in!real!!time!(4).!All!of! these!traaining!metho ods!share!the!common!aaim!of!preparing!individuals!as!best!aas!possible!fo or!future! problem ms!and!challeenges!in!crisiss!managemeent.!

Howeveer,!the!focus!of!workshop p!or!desktop! exercises!is! Any!crisiss!managemeent!capabilityy!must! be!developed,!validatted,!and!imp proved! often!to o!design,!develop,!and!validate!crisis! through!frequent!traaining!or!exercising. management!plans,!as!well!as!prroviding!reheearsal! unities!for!thee!operationa al!features!off!crisis! opportu management!such!aas!establishin ng!a!‘battle!rhhythm’!or!prractising!com mmunication!!cascades.! d,!importanttly,!strategic!level!

Simulations!are!morre!readily!tarrgeted!at!teaam"based,!intteractive!and over!longer!ttimeframes.! ! issue!maanagement!aand!decisions!that!need!tto!be!made!o High!fideelity!and!imm mersive!simu ulation!exerccises!are!argu uably!the!mo ost!appropriaate!for!trainiing! strategicc!level!execu utives!for!crissis!managem ment.!This!is!b because!theyy!provide!exeecutives!with h!an! opportu unity!to!practtice!their!crissis!response! under!similaar!conditionss!of!stress,!unncertainty,! dynamiccity,!risk,!and d!accountability!as!experrienced!in!a!rreal!incident.!Exposure!too!simulated! incidentts!within!a!saafe!learning!e environmentt!allows!for!tthe!acquisitio on!and!devellopment!of!ccritical! and!tran nsferable!skillls!that!are!crucial!for!efffective!crisis!managemen nt!within!anyy!domain!or! made!by!the organizaation.!This!m may!lead!to!dramatic!diffeerences!in!th he!decisions!a and!actions!m e!crisis! management!team!w when!dealingg!with!an!acttual!crisis,!ultimately!sep parating!the!‘‘winners’!fro om!the! ‘losers’!iin!the!crisis!aaftermath!(5).! !

‘Non"ttechnical!skills’!for!efffective!crissis!managgement!

Executivves! convenin ng! to! form! a! a strategic! C MT! are! argu uably! already! experts! in!! their! own! domains,! d having! ggained! theirr! organizatio onal! positionn! due! to! exttensive! expe erience! or! knnowledge! of! a! field.!

Therefore,!training!ffor!strategic!decision!ma kers!does!no ot!need!to!fo ocus!on!acqu iring!domain n"specific! knowled dge.!Howeveer,!crisis!man nagement!at!!its!core!invo olves!a!team m!of!people!ggathering,!prrocessing! and!inteegrating!inforrmation!about!the!incideent,!making!d decisions!and!carrying!ouut!actions!to o!manage! ! an!abno ormal,!high!risk,!complexx!and!dynam mic!event!(6). Effective!criisis!managem ment!therefo ore!relies!

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on! a! ran nge! of! general! problem! solving! straategies! and! ‘non"technic ‘ al’! skills,! a! fform! of! high h! level! of! management!skills!tthat!are!required!for!efffective!and!ssafe!perform mance!in!highh!risk!and!hiigh!stake! incidentts.!!

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Figure!o one:!The!non""technical!skkills!required!ffor!crisis!ma anagement.

Non"tecchnical! skills! are! those! skills! s that! ar e! crucial! forr! maintaining! safety! durring! an! incid dent,! but! ! which!arre!not!directtly!related!to o!technical!oor!domain"sp pecific!experttise!(7). Thesse!non"techn nical!skills! include! both! cognittive! skills! succh! as! situatiion! awarene ess! and! decision! makingg! as! well! as! social! or! rsonal! skills! such! as! le eadership,! teeamwork! and! coordina ation,! and! communicattion! and! interpers ! informattion!manageement!(8). Ovver!the!past! years!there!has!been!a!sshift!in!emphhasis!from!a ‘what!to! think’!to o!a!‘how!to! think’!focus! in!simulatioon!training!aacross!a!rang ge!of!high!rissk!industriess!such!as! aviation,! military,! and! policing,! which! now w! emphasise the! acquisition! and! im mprovement! of! these! non"tech hnical! skills! (9).! Each! of! these! main ! skills! and! their! role! in strategic! criisis! managem ment! are! briefly!d described!bellow.!

Situation!awarenesss!!

Situation n! awarenesss! is! defined! as! the! perrception! of! elements! in! the! environnment! along g! with! a! compreh hension! of! their! t meanin ng! and! a! proojection! of! their! t status! in! the! near! future,! or! a! a mental! construcction! of! a! sittuation! baseed! on! enviroonmental! cuees! (10).! In! other! o words,,! it! involves! knowing! what!is!ggoing!on!botth!within!an!incident!andd!the!wider!environment!around!or! beyond!the!incident,! as!well!aas!projectingg!forward!as!to!how!the! situation!is!likely!to!evolve.!Creatingg!situation!aw wareness! in!strateegic!crisis!maanagement!in nvolves!the!CCMT!rapidly!building!a!picture!of!whaat!is!occurrin ng!within! the!incid dent!based!o on!the!collattion!of!a!few w!pieces!of!(o often!incomplete)!inform mation!received;!and! by!relyin ng!on!their!p previous!experiences!to! make!assum mptions!abou ut!how!the!evvent!might!p progress.!

Situation n! awarenesss! is! achieved d! by! collecti ng! informattion! from! a! set! of! sourcces,! assessing! source! credibility! wheneveer! a! new! piece! p of! infformation! iss! received,! analysing! aand! organizzing! that!

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informattion!into!a!ccoherent!ove erview,!such!!as!in!a!situaation!report!(SITREP)!or! common!recognised! informattion!picture!(CRIP).!These!reports!su bsequently!sserve!to!man nage!and!maake!sense!of!the!large! amountss! of! compleex,! incomplete! pieces! of! informattion! and! co oordinate! thhem! into! acctionable! intelligence,! and! aree! used! as! a! basis! for! deeciding! what! actions! the e! CMT! intennds! to! imple ement! to! manage!the!incidentt.!

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Figure!tw wo:!The!proccess!of!creatiing!situationnal!awarenesss.!

Decision n!making!

Strategicc!decision!making!in!crisiis!situations! is!concerned d!with!the!qu uestions!“Whhat!are!we!going!to! do!abou ut!it?”!and!“W What!if!things!get!worse??”!It!is!based d!on!the!assessment!of!thhe!situation!m made!by! the!indivvidual!or!CM MT!and!requirres!the!team m!to!deal!with h!high!levels!of!uncertainnty!in!order!tto! identify!the!key!issues!that!need d!addressing..!Decision!maaking!is!the!p process!of!chhoosing!an!action!in! order!to o!appropriateely!deal!with!a!highly!unccertain!situattion.!Genera ally,!it!is!said! to!involve!th hree! steps:!! ! ! !

Option!geneeration!(gene erating!optioons!and!applyying!a!stoppiing!rule!oncee!an!approprriate! amount!of!o options!have!been!considdered);!!

Evaluation!(assigning!an!associated!vvalue!to!each h!option);!an nd!!

Choice!(selecting!an!action!based!onn!associated!vvalue).!!

Thus,!on nce!informattion!has!been n!gathered!a nd!analysed!in!order!to!fform!situatioonal!awarene ess!and! identify!the!key!issues!that!need d!to!be!addreessed,!the!CM MT!must!form mulate!a!set!!of!strategies,! contingeency!plans!an nd!actions!to o!implementt!in!order!to!effectively!m manage!the!inncident!and!attempt! to!control!the!futuree!impacts.!Th hese!decisionns!must!addrress!both!sho ort!and!long""term!consequences;! maintain n!an!overview w!of!the!potential!compllexities!invollved!in!termss!of!organizaational!and! stakeholder!manageement;!and!p pose!‘what!iff?’!questionss!about!the!fu uture!effectss!on,!and! developments!of,!th he!incident!being!manageed.!!

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Figure!th hree:!The!decision!makin ng!process.!

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Leadership!

Effectivee!leadership!is!crucial!to!managing!a! crisis.!Not!evveryone!who o!holds!a!maanagerial!possition! during!b business!as!usual!is!cut!ou ut!to!be!a!leaader!during!aa!crisis,!as!th his!requires!aa!particular!sskill!set! and!man ny!find!it!diffficult!to!transsfer!their!skiills!to!the!crissis!managem ment!arena.!CCrisis!managgement! leadersh hip!requires!o one!chair!or!incident!maanager!to!takke!charge!of!tthe!incident! and!identifyy!the!

CMT’s!in ntentions!or!goals;!establish!an!effecttive!team!strructure!with!clearly!definned!roles!and! responsibilities;!and!make!strate egic!decision s.!Leaders!m must!provide!clear!directi on!for!the!CMT!to! follow!and!must!therefore!also!e ensure!that!tthe!issues!an nd!actions!raised!remain! strategic!and d! egic!crisis!maanagers!or!ch hairs!must!also!assume!uultimate! forward"thinking!in!ffocus.!Strate CMT’s!overall!response!t o!that!incide ent.!This! responsibility!or!accountability!for!the!incideent!and!the!C be!done!in!an n!open,!hone est,!transparrent!and!visib ble!way!to!ge enerate!trustt!and!support!from! should!b both!internal!members!of!the!orrganization!aas!well!as!extternal!stakeh holders.!

Team!w work!

CMTs!arre!typically!fo ormed!on!an n!occasional! basis!and!te eam!members!may!workk!together!on nly!when! respond ding!to!a!crisis.!Crises!oftten!require!tthe!pooling!o of!different!ttypes!of!expeertise,!as!dicctated!by! the! inciident! and! its! developm ment.! This! produces! high! demand ds! on! the! communicattion! and! coordinaation! between! individua al! team! mem mbers.! In! response! to! th his,! effectivee! teamwork! requires! memberrs! of! the! CM MT! to! estab blish! clear! rooles! and! ressponsibilitiess,! interact,! aand! create! a! a shared! understaanding! (or! ‘mental! mod del! (11)’)! of! the! situatio on! and! issue es! that! they! all! wish! to! address.!

Individual! memberss! must! then! coordinate ! their! perso onal! (or! divisional)! strattegies! to! me eet! both! nal! and! each h! other’s! de emands! and!! collaborate e! to! reduce strain! on! thhe! team’s! re esources.! situation Ultimateely,! teamwo ork! in! crisis relies! on! proactive! co ommunicatio on! and! infoormation! sharing! by! individual!members!who!are!working!togethher!towards!sshared!goals.!

Communication!

Crises! aare! characteerised! by! a! thirst! for! knowledge.! Internal! an nd! external! communica ation! are! thereforre! crucial!forr!the!CMT!to o!gather!all! the!relevantt!information!about!an! evolving!incident;!to! establish h!a!shared!understanding!about!thatt!incident;!and!to!ensure e!that!the!reequired!decissions!and! actions! to! manage! that! inciden nt! are! carrieed! out! in! th he! most! efficient! mannner! possible..! Indeed,! breakdo owns! in! com mmunication! are! a! prim ary! source! of! error! in! incident! maanagement.! Effective! internal! communicaation! is! achie eved! by! connducting! freq quent! briefin ngs! where! evvery! membe er! of! the!

CMT! shaares! his! or! her! h newly! accquired! or! reelevant! information! rega arding! the! ddecisions! and d! actions! carried! out! by! his! or! o her! organizational! divvision.! Intern nal! communications! acrooss! the! leve els! of! the! e!tactical!annd!operational!teams!ressponding!to! the!incidentt!as!well)! response!hierarchy! (i.e.!with!the ng!a!shared!u understandinng!of!what!iss!being!done,!by!whom,!aand!why!the e!incident! are!cruccial!to!formin is! being! managed! in n! a! particula ar! way.! Interrnal! commun nication! musst! also! addreess! the! need ds! of! the! wider!orrganization!in!terms!of!keeping!staff! in!the!picture!and!up!to!date!on!acttivities,!particcularly!in! today’s! world!of!soccial!media!in nformation!fflows.!Effectiive!external communicattion!involvess!sharing! relevantt,!factual!and d!transparen nt!informatioon!in!a!time ely!manner!w with!stakehoolders!and!th he!media! about!th he!actions!th he!organizatio on!is!implem menting!in!response!to!th he!incident.!

This!coree!set!of!non"technical!skkills!is!especi ally!crucial!tto!maintainin ng!success!w within!crisis!response.!

This! is! b because! the! inherent! nature! of! any! crisis! create es! added! demands! and! pressures! on n! human!

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perform mance,!thereby! hinderingg!the!CMT’s! ability! to!crreate!situatio onal!awarenness,!make! decisions,! d and!coordinate!actio ons!as!effecttively!as!theyy!would!under!normal!circumstancess.!This!is!beccause!the! strategicc!decisions!m made!to!man nage!a!crisiss!are!charactterised!by!high!stakes!orr!consequences,!long! term!im mplications,!p political!senssitivity!and!eextremely!higgh!levels!of! both!internaal!as!well!as! external! accountability!to!staakeholders!a and!public!m members.!Nowhere!is!the e!crucial!rolee!of!these!skkills!more! visible!than!in!the!reecent!Deepw water!Horizoon!and!Costaa!Concordia!ccase!studies,,!where!the! strategic! level! deecision! makeers! had! to! asssume! ultim ate! accounttability! over! an! incident! in! which! a! range! of! human!eerrors!resulted!in!catastrrophic!conseequences,!eitther!in!termss!of!human!liives,!or!stake eholder!/! public! p perception.! The! T consequences! of! cri sis! managem ment! are! the erefore! clearrly! long"term m,! where! the!onus!or!spotligh ht!for!effectively!managi ng!an!incide ent!is!placed entirely!on! the!prepara ation!and! perform mance! of! the! strategic! crrisis! manage ment! team.! This! illustra ates! the! cruccial! need! forr! training! these! non"technicall! skills! withiin! simulatio n! exercises! that! replica ate! the! dem mands! and! pressures! p imposed d!on!a!team!o of!individuals!in!a!real"liffe!crisis.! !

What!d do!simulattion!exerccises!do?!

Simulations!have!beeen!described!as!high!fiddelity!replicattions!of!real!life!events!tthat!allow!trainers!to! oper!level!off!complexity,!pressure,!unncertainty!an nd!risk!to!rep produce!the! environmen nt!usually! set!a!pro faced! by! individuals! in! those! settings! (122).! Based! on n! the! premise! that! com mplex! skills! are! best! acquired d! through! experience,! e the! t main! gooal! of! simulation! training! involves! the! accelerration! of! expertise! by! confronting! professsionals! withh! domain"spe ecific! challen nges! (13).! Reepeated! exp posure! to! the! threeats! and! challenges! usu ually! faced! w within! real! events! offers! people! oopportunitiess! to! test! different!response!sstrategies!and!develop!prroblem"solviing!skills.!Thiis!type!of!conntextualised d!practice! eloping! the! capacity! to! respond! both! quickly! aand! dynamiccally! to! a! is! particcularly! valuable! for! deve crisis,! w where! the! ch haracteristicss! of! such! ev ents! (time! pressure,! p hig ghly! dynamicc,! high! risk! and! high! !! stress!leevels)!often!h hinder!effecttive!performaance!(14).

While! reeplicating! th hese! charactteristics,! thee! simulation! technique! also! providees! individualls! with! a! ‘safe! leaarning! enviro onment’.! This! is! definedd! as! an! envirronment! in! which! particcipants! feel! safe! and! supporteed,!where!th he!practice!ffield!is!shifteed!from!one! with!real!rissk!to!one!whhere!mistake es!can!be! staged,! repeated,! adapted,! and! improved,! and! skills! mastered! m (15)).! Simulationns! emphasise! guided! practice! in! a! settingg! that! allowss! participantts! to! apply! their! t knowle edge! and! ski lls! safely! in! order! to! reflect!o on!their!perfformance,!where!facilita tors!can!dettermine!the!causes!and! effects!of!ineffective! perform mance! and! provide! p feed dback! so! thhat! participaants! may! le earn! from! ttheir! mistakkes! (16).!

Facilitated! exposuree! to! a! highlyy! realistic! an d! immersive e! simulated! crisis! traininng! exercise! will! w aid! a! understandin ng! of! the! types! of! inciddents! it! is! likkely! to! be! re equired! to! m manage,! wh hat! those!

CMT’s! u environm ments!look! like,!what!in nformation!w will!and! will! not!be!availlable,!and!thhe!types!of!d decisions! and!actions!they!will!need!to!implement.!Expposure!to!otther!memberrs!of!the!team m!will!allow!the!CMT! to!identify!those!mo ost!suitable!tto!be!in!a!chhair!or!leadership!role,!and!will!fosteer!interperso onal!trust! other’s!abilitties,!therebyy!allowing!theem!to!work!and!commun nicate!more! effectively!a as!part!of! in!each!o that!team!within!an!actual!crisis.! !

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Design ning!realisttic!simulatiion!exercisses!for!tran nsferabilityy!of!learning!

One! keyy! goal! of! siimulation! exxercises! invoolves! provid ding! individu uals! with! thhe! knowledgge,! skills,! attitudes! and! confidence! that! will! ultimattely! result! in n! the! pragm matic! applicaation! of! the e! lessons! e! during! an!! actual! crisiis! (17).! It! learned! under! stresss,! and! therreby! enhancce! effective! performance management!capability!is!to!train!inndividuals!to! perform! follows!tthat!one!waay!to!increase!the!crisis!m under! sstress! or,! att! a! minimum m,! some! co mbination! of! o arousal,! time! t pressu re,! uncertainty,! and! anxiety.!This!can!be!done!using!a a!method!ca lled!situated d!learning!(18 8).!! !

The! realism! of! an! exercise! e is! one! o of! the! m many! issuess! that! influences! the! traansferability! of! skills! d.!Specifically,!in!order!tto!train!perfoormance!under!stress,!simulations!m must!have!th he!ability! acquired to! creatte! the! percceptions,! em motions! and! behaviourss! that! occurr! in! real! criises.! Therefore,! any! simulation! should! have! h at! its! developmenntal! centre! the! t aim! of! being! engagging.! For! simulation! exercisees!to!be!engaaging!they!must!be!credibble!to!the!traainees.!This!is!achieved!bby!incorporating!high! levels! of! fidelity,! co omplexity,! dyynamicity,! aand! opaquen ness! in! the! crisis! scenarrios! used! du uring! the! exercisee.!! !

Creatingg!fidelity,!complexity,!dyynamicity,!annd!opaquene ess!

The!cred dibility!of!an ny!simulation n!exercise!is! measured!according!to!the!extent!too!which!exp perienced! decision n! makers! takke! them! seriously! and! eengage! as! th hey! would! in! actual! opeerational! setttings.! In! other! w words,! it! dep pends! stronggly! on! the! leevel! of! fidellity! attained! within! the! simulation,! which! is! broadly! defined!as!tthe!level!of!ssimilarity!beetween!the!ssimulation!an nd!the!real!w world!(19).!The!levels!

T of!realissm!created!in!any!exercise!can!rangee!from!low!ffidelity!(such h!as!those!foound!in!workshop!or! desktop!exercises)!tto!high!fideliity!(e.g.!wheere!trainees! respond!to!a and!managee!a!realistic!ccrisis!and! thorougghly! exercisee! the! entire! crisis! manaagement! pro ocess).! Physical! fidelity,!! which! invo olves! the! degree!tto!which!thee!physical!asp pects!of!the! exercise!resemble!an!actual!real!life! e!environmen nt,!is!one! important! feature! in! i exercisingg,! because! ffamiliarity! with! w a! learn ning! environnment! impro oves! skill! acquisitiion.!Howeveer,!crucial!to!creating!a!pperception!off!reality!is!pssychological!ffidelity,!which!refers! more!to o!the!processs!by!which!p participants! interact!with h!other!agen nts!involved! in!the!scena ario,!and! the! sen nsory! and! cognitive! c pro ocesses! are!! elicited! fo or! the! traine ee! as! they! would! in! real! life.!

Psycholo ogical!fidelityy!is!crucial!b because!it!ennsures!that!tthe!skills!acquired!in!an!eexercise!can!transfer! to!real!liife!events.!

Complexxity!is!built!in nto!simulatio ons!by!proviiding!particip pants!with!a!realistically! large!set!of!features! or!conflicting!goals!tthat!they!must!considerr!in!order!to! make!decisions.!This!reeplicates!the! difficult,! n of! a! rreal! crisis,! where! w multip ple! events! offten! occur! almost! a at! uncertaiin! and! time! pressured! nature! once! an nd! the! strateegic! CMT! must! m simultanneously! consider! a! wide e! range! of! iissues.! For! example,! e complexxity!may!be! built!in!by!in njecting!a!larrge!number! of!feeds!(inccluding,!for! example,!ne ews!clips,! phone!ccalls!from!co oncerned!sta akeholders!thhe!media!an nd!internal!e emails)!withi n!a!short!am mount!of! time!to!tthe!CMT,!each!of!which!tthey!must!reespond!to.!

In!orderr!to!create!a!dynamic!and d!interactive! simulation!e exercise,!feeds!or!injects!!are!designed!so!that! they! offfer! participants! judgeme ental! choicess,! where! the e! consequen nce! of! choossing! one! opttion! over! the! otheer! will! be! ‘b better’! or! ‘w worse’,! ratheer! than! ‘righ ht’! or! ‘wron ng’.! This! is! ddone! to! enssure! that!

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participaants! are! ab ble! to! choosse! from! maany! possible e! courses! off! action! andd! the! conse equences! occurrin ng! in! subseq quent! feeds! of! informattion! are! the! direct! product! of! the! CCMT’s! decisions! and! actions.! This! serves! to! heighten n! the! sense! of! gravity,! stress! and! personal! p acccountability! over! the! made!(20).!! strategicc!decisions!m !

Finally,!aa!simulation n!exercise!is! made!opaquue!by!ensuring!that!some!informatioon!is!not!ava ailable!to! participaants.! This! reeplicates! the e! unavailabillity! or! incom mpleteness! of! o informati on! that! is! typical! of! actual! in ncidents.! Ind dividuals! in! the! t CMT! muust! therefore e! rely! on! their! own! preevious! experiences! in! order! to o! make! inferrences! or! hyypotheses! abbout! the! crissis! situation, the! issues! tthey! are! botth! aware! and! unaaware! of,! an nd! the! decisiions! and! acttions! that! th hey! must! ma ake! in! both! the! short"! and! a long"! term.!

Fidelity

Com mplexity Sim mulations

D Dynamicity

Opaqueness !

our:!Characteristics!of!an n!effective!sim mulation!exeercise.!

Figure!fo !

Creatingg!a!sense!of!immersion!

Creatingg! a! complexx,! dynamic! and! a opaque! simulation! exercise! witth! high! psycchological! fid delity! by! replicatiing!the!charaacteristics!off!real!incidennts!serves!to o!immerse!pa articipants!innto!the!exerccise!(21).!

The! con ncept! of! imm mersion! is! cllosely! relateed! to! that! off! presence,! which! is! brooadly! define ed! as! the! subjectivve!experiencce!of!being!in!one!place! or!environm ment,!even!w when!one!is!pphysically!sittuated!in! another! (22).! In! crrisis! manage ement! exerccises! immerrsion! refers! to! participaants! being! involved,! i absorbeed,!engaged!aand!engrosse ed!in!the!sceenario!at!han nd!with!such!intensity!thaat!the!extern nal!world! is! obliteerated,! and! they! t briefly! adopt! the! siimulated! wo orld! as! their! ‘real’! worldd! and! respon nd! to! the! situation n! accordingly.! Indeed,! studies! havve! shown! that! simulatiion! exercisees! used! for! training! emergen ncy! response! decision! making! m that! incorporate ed! these! elements! repliccated! experiiences! in! such! a! life"like! man nner! that! th hey! caused! physiologicaal! symptomss! such! as! inncreased! he eart! rate,! indicatin ng!that!participants!were e!deeply!imm mersed!in!th he!exercise!a and!treated! it!as!if!it!we ere!a!real! ! operatio on!(23). ! !

Buildingg!an!immersivve!exercise!iinvolves!the! complex!pro ocess!of!crea ating!a!credi ble!general!narrative! for!the!sscenario!and d!mapping!th he!simulatedd!events!to!aany!potentia al!responses!!that!the!CM MT!might! make!to o!ensure!conssequentialityy!of!their!acttions.!This!offten!requiress!the!involve ment!of!experts!who! may!pro ovide!details!of!the!incid dent!landsca pe,!which!is!essential!fo or!developingg!an!overvie ew!of!the! issues! tthat! the! CM MT! will! find! stressful! t o! deal! with h! at! each! phase! p (anticcipation,! pre evention,! mitigatio on,!adaption n!and!coping)!of!that!inciident.!This!process!resultts!in!the!prodduction!of!a!timeline!

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that!is!adequately!dynamic!and!flexible!to!m meet!the!team m’s!training!needs,!and!tthat!the!partticipants’! cognitivee!and!social!processes!arre!affected!bby!the!same!ffactors!that!they!would!iin!real!life.! !

Conclu usion!

A!strateggic!CMT!cannot!solely!re ely!on!proceddural!guidelines,!structurres,!or!plans! to!develop!e expertise! in! strateegic! crisis! management,! because! strrategic! crisiss! manageme ent! requires! a! unique! ye et! crucial! skill!set! that!is!mostt!readily!learrned!throughh!experience e.!However,! these!typess!of!skills!are e!difficult! for! execcutives! to! accquire.! First! of! all,! due! tto! their! inhe erent! comple exity,! high! sstakes! and! th hankfully! infrequeent!occurren nce!it!is!neith her!possible!!nor!desirab ble!to!have!individuals!leearn!through h!‘on!the! job’! traiining! or! by! exposure! e to! real! crisis! i ncidents.! Se econdly,! crisis! managem ment! involvess! dealing! with! higgh! levels! of! uncertainty,! complexity! and! stress;! therefore,! experience! e iin! a! real! crissis! is! not! always!aa!good!teach her,!and!this!type!of!enviironment!can!be!a!poor!place!to!learrn!strategic!decision" making!o or!leadership p!skills.!!

In!orderr!to!prepare! executives!for!the!occurrrence!of!an!incident,!the ey!must!gainn!experience e!through! effectivee! training! orr! exercising.! Low! fidelityy! or! more! basic! exercise e! environmeents! are! limiited! with! respect! to! ensuringg! the! acquisition! of! skil ls! that! will! transfer! to! real! incidennts.! Thus,! simulation! n!optimal!co ontext!for!traaining!the!crrucial!strateg gic!level!nonn"technical!skkills!such! exercisees!provide!an as! situation! assessm ment,! leaderrship,! and! t eam! decisio on! making! (a among! otheers)! in! eventts! where! anticipation,! preven ntion,! mitiga ation,! adapttation! and! coping! c are! interconnectted! elementts! of! the! h immersive! simulaations! replica ate! crisis! strategicc! crisis! management! process.! This! iis! because! highly! conditio ons! (risks,! dangers,! com mplexity! andd! ‘wickednesss’),! affect! a! a trainee’s! social! and! cognitive! c processees!and!inducce!the!same!emotions!eexperienced! during!an!acctual!crisis,!tthereby!allowing!the! skills!leaarned!to!tran nsfer!to!actual!crisis!respponse!in!a!m much!greater!way!than!thhat!which!is!achieved! by!low"ffidelity!or!low w"immersion n!seminars!o r!workshopss.!! !

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