Why are exercises important?
The last stage in the emergency management prevention process is monitoring and evaluation.
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Exercises are important because the conduct of exercises is one way in which we can validate all or part of our plan and SOP and indeed the training that we have conducted. Ideally, this validation of our ability to carry out our roles and responsibilities should occur before we are involved in an actual operation.
You will see from the model that the conduct of exercises is not in itself an end to the process. Any weaknesses identified as a result of an exercise should then be rectified at the appropriate point in the prevention and preparedness model, ie. the planning stage or the training and education stage.
While there will often be a large number of areas that you would like to validate/test, it is unlikely that you will be able to test all of your plan or SOP in the one exercise. This is not a problem - it is the selection and prioritization of the aim and objectives and the appropriate type of exercise to meet those needs that is important. You need to determine what it is that you want to achieve and what the most efficient and effective ways of achieving your goals. Asking the right sorts of questions is the key to successful exercise planning.