NCJ Number
219032
Date Published
February 2007
Length
57 pages
Annotation
This second volume of a five-volume series on a national standard for homeland-security exercises addresses exercise planning and conduct, which is intended to help planners develop a standardized process for developing a foundation, design, development, and conduct that is adaptable to any type of exercise.
Abstract
In order to build an exercise foundation, the sponsoring entity (State, region, county, city, department, agency, private company, etc.) must create a base of support, identify an exercise planning team, develop a project management timeline with milestones, and schedule planning conferences. These activities may differ depending on exercise type. The exercises of the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program are in two categories: discussion-based and operations-based. Discussion-based exercises involve only concepts of player actions in a low-stress environment. Operations-based exercises consist of actual player actions and the mobilization of personnel and resources. Building on the exercise foundation, the design and development process involves identifying capabilities, tasks, and objectives; designing the scenario; developing documentation; coordinating logistics; planning exercise conduct; and selecting an evaluation and improvement methodology. Exercise conduct consists of setup and wrap-up activities. For a discussion-based exercise, conduct also involves presentation, facilitation, and discussion. For an operations-based exercise, conduct covers all operations that occur between the designated start of the exercise (StartEx) and end of the exercise (EndEx). 2 figures and 1 table