The use of a common ‘decision making’ and ‘business impact’ tool should be implemented across the organisation.

Response tools should facilitate the following:

• Situational awareness – understanding of the facts and assumptions
• Ability to prioritise
• Understanding of impacts across the business
• Decision making
• Ability to develop tactical and strategic plans under the pressure of tight timelines.

Training teams and individuals on using the tools

Teams should be trained on the tools to guide them to be more effective in ‘cutting through’ the issues they face and to provide clarity and priority on what needs to be done.  This is especially important in a CBD-wide emergency.

The tools should support the teams in developing their critical thinking capabilities individually and as a group.

Developing your own decision support tool

Janellis have a decision support tool that has been embedded across a number of small and large organisations nationally and internationally. If your organisation does not have a decision support tool for crisis and emergency management we recommend that you develop or source one.