Certain enterprise activities face threats that require exercises to practice crisis response utilizing actual systems and tools as if there were a real incident. Our Functional Exercises are designed to conduct “near real” simulations utilizing existing incident management systems and all relevant tools available to the incident management team. These exercises can include the use of a Red Team to carry out activities that create a high level of reality to the exercise. By their nature, Functional Exercises are delivered at a faster pace than the Table Top Exercise and require live communication among a larger range of constituents, including external parties. For many organizations, a Functional Exercise is often the natural progression from a Table Top Exercise.

Functional exercises simulate a crisis in the most realistic manner possible without moving real people or equipment to and from or around actual sites. The functional exercise requires a carefully designed and scripted scenario, with timed messages and communications between participants and simulators. The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) - the facility or location from which crisis response is coordinated - is usually activated during a functional exercise and actual communication systems, equipment and other relevant response tools are used. This “near real” exercise helps organizations go beyond testing of plans in order to identify any gaps or weaknesses that may exist with current equipment, systems and tools.